FOR BETTER CROPS IN THE SOUTH 53 



some growing" crop on the ground at all seasons, and so many 

 hay crops are grown at times when the fields would otherwise 

 be idle. 



Bermuda, The Blue Grass of the South— Bermuda grass 

 is to the South, what Kentucky bluegrass is to the North— the 

 foundation of the best permanent pastures. On rich and fairly 

 moist soils, it makes two to four tons of hay per acre, in two to 

 three cuttings. It is a grass which needs a good soil to make a 

 profitable hay crop, but the hay is of fine quality, having no 

 coarse stems and no waste. It is the best hay grass for rich 

 river-bottom lands, and the best pasture grass for all excepting 

 very sandy or thin clay soils. 



It is usually propagated by planting small pieces of the sod, 

 which may be done at any time from April to August. If the 



Where alfalfa shocks are plentiful 



field is wanted for a meadow the ground should be well-plowed, 

 and harrowed until the surface *is level and smooth. Sods, 

 which need not be more than an inch in thickness, are taken 

 from an old Bermuda field and chopped into pieces half an inch 

 or more in diameter. These pieces are then dropped three or 

 four feet apart on the freshly prepared ground, and are easily 

 covered by pushing them into the soft ground with the foot. 

 When planted early in the spring, the plants will make a heavy 

 growth the same season, but July and August plantings will do 

 little more than cover the ground before cold weather. If the 

 field is wanted for a pasture, less care is necessary in planting, 

 and a common method is to ran shallow furrows four to six 

 feet apart, the pieces of sod being dropped in these furrows and 

 covered with the foot, or a hoe. 



When sods are not available seed may be used, but it is 

 usually slow and uncertain in germinating. The ground for 



