WHITE SWEET CLOVER. ils} 
The whole plant has a characteristic fragrance—hence the name 
Sweet Clover—especially noticeable when in bloom and when the 
stems and leaves are cured into hay. 
Geographical distribution: Sweet Clover is a native of the 
Old World where it occurs practically all over the temperate zone. 
It was probably introduced into America with the early settlers and 
is now spread all over the continent. It is common everywhere in 
Canada, especially in the eastern provinces. 
Cultural conditions: Sweet Clover is generally found in waste 
places, along roads and railways, on river banks and in cultivated 
fields. It grows readily on almost any soil and will do well where 
practically nothing else will flourish. This ability to thrive almost 
anywhere, combined with its faculty of reseeding itself abundantly, 
is apt to give it the character of a troublesome weed where it is not 
desired. It does well in almost any climate and will live under very 
adverse conditions. 
Agricultural value: When Sweet Clover is young it is succu- 
lent, but as soon as it flowers the stems get woody and lose their 
palatability. Its peculiar flavour is distasteful to stock, which will 
eat it only when nothing else is available. Milk and butter obtained 
from cows fed on green Sweet Clover have a peculiar taste disliked 
by most people. Furthermore, as the yield of hay is not high, Sweet 
Clover makes a poor forage plant. Its chief value is to enrich the 
soil and to improve its mechanical condition. Like other leguminous 
plants, the tubercles on its roots are filled with nitrogen-collecting 
bacteria. There seems to be conclusive evidence that these bacteria 
are identical with those of Alfalfa. At any rate, they act in exactly 
the same way and can therefore be used for the inoculation of Alfalfa 
fields. Six to eight pounds of seed are sufficient for an acre. 
Seed: Sweet Clover seeds are common in commercial samples 
of Red Clover and Alfalfa and are sometimes found in Alsike. They 
are dull yellow and very like those of Trefoil, from which they may 
be distinguished by their larger size and a V-shaped light mark 
running from the scar. 
There is no seed more prolific than that of ocimum; it is generally recommended to sow it with 
the utterance of curses and imprecations, the result being that it grows all the better for it; the earth 
too, is rammed down when it is sown, and prayers offered that the seed may never come up.—Pliny, 
Natural History, 23-79. 
53334—8 
