ALFALFA 115 
stand and start that they can not afford to bother with 
it. 
The author has found that it is easier to get a stand 
of and grow alfalfa than it is to get a stand of and grow 
clover. He has also found that the first requisite to 
successful alfalfa growing is a well drained soil. Al-" 
falfa can not grow with “ wet feet.” 
In the growing of alfalfa the author has pursued the 
following methods with great success: 
When he decided upon the location of his alfalfa field 
(and in selecting the field he paid no attention to charac- 
ter of soil, but selected the field with reference to easy 
access to barn and stock), he plowed the land deep in 
the spring and planted to either field or sugar corn. 
After the corn was laid by he sowed the field to sand 
or hairy vetch at the rate of thirty-five pounds to the 
acre, and thereafter kept all stock off of same. The 
following season the vetch is allowed to grow until it 
has bloomed, then the vetch and corn stalks are plowed 
under as deeply as possible and the soil thoroughly rolled 
and dragged. This plowing is generally done in July, 
and the field is not only rolled and dragged several 
times, but is harrowed quite a number of times until the 
soil is in an excellent state of pulverization. 
If manure is available a thin coating is spread with a 
manure spreader, the spreading being done after plow- 
ing and the manure being worked into the soil with the 
harrow. The spreading of a thin coating of manure 
upon alfalfa ground after it is plowed will insure a stand 
of alfalfa. And the plowing under of vetch without 
manure will also insure a stand of alfalfa. 
