THIRTEENTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK— PART XII 705 



good plant of Turkestan alfalfa in the breeding nursery 



the German, the Sand Lucerne, and the American or ordinary type. 

 Other varieties which give perhaps greater promise of usefulness, espe- 

 cially in the Northwest, are the Grimm and the Baltic. 



A number of species other than the common one (Medicago Sativa) 

 have been introduced by the United States Department of Agriculture, 

 some of which give promise of usefulness under certain conditions. A 

 few of the more important of these are, Medicago Ruthenica, Medicago 

 Media, Medicago Platycarpa and Medicago Falcata. All of these are 

 being grown at the Iowa Station, though the trials have not progressed 

 far enough to make definite recommendations concerning their value to 

 our conditions in this state. 



A brief statement of the characteristics of various varieties and regional 

 types and their adaptions may be of value and is therefore included here- 

 with. 



Turkestan Alfalfa. — These alfalfas derive their name from the country 

 from which they are introduced into the United States, and were among 

 those varieties brought by the United States Department of Agriculture in 

 1898. Coming from a semi-arid region, the Turkestan alfalfa is very 

 drought resistant and well adapted to the dry, non-irrigated portions 

 of the West. This type in general appearance so closely resembles the 

 common alfalfa that a trained botanist often finds it difficult and perhaps 

 impossible to take up a particular plant and tell whether it is of the 

 Turkestan or the ordinary American type. The chief difference between 

 the two is the ability of the former to withstand the dry conditions 

 found in such states as New Mexico and Colorado, as well as the even 

 more unfavorable conditions due to cold, found in such regions as 

 Minnesota, North Dakota, Wisconsin and Montana. 

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