44 THE BOOK OF CORN 



In this way a stand of clover can be secured with- 

 out losing- a crop from the field, an important consid- 

 eration to the farmer. The clover seed is small and 

 consequently contains little plant food. Therefore, it 

 must be seeded shallow in order that the young plants 

 may reach the surface, yet deep enough to get sufficient 

 moisture for the best germination. It is extremely 

 difficult to get good clover seed. Very frequently the 

 vitality of the seed has been injured by cutting too 

 early or by improper harvesting and drying. If the 

 seed is moist it is liable to heat and injure the vitality 

 of the seed. 



Clover seed is very likely to be mixed with noxious 

 weed seeds. The weed seeds are often of such a size 

 and shape that it is impossible, or at any rate difficult, 

 to separate them from the clover seed. For instance, 

 buckhorn grows very much like the clover plant and 

 matures seed about the same time. The seed is about 

 the same diameter as the clover seed, and boat-shaped. 

 In screening the clover seed these boat-shaped buck- 

 horn seeds tip up and go through the clover screen, 

 making it necessary to secure special cleaners. Other 

 varieties of weed seeds are often found in clover seed, 

 as smartweed, stampweed, quack grass and pigeon 

 grass. All of these weeds are detrimental to the land, 

 and clover seed infested with them should not be used 

 under any circumstances. Such seed should be burned 

 or discarded if cleaning is impossible and the land put 

 in some other crop if good seed cannot be obtained. 



The best rate of seeding is about ten to twelve 

 pounds of clover seed per acre. Less seed will give a 

 poor, thin stand, and more is likely to result in small, 

 spindling plants, and the expense is increased. Poor 

 seed should be sown more thickly than good seed, but 

 quantity cannot make up for lack of quality. Poor, 



