The Hay Crop 267 



Like all other legume crops the vetch is greatly helped 

 by a liberal apphcation of acid phosphate and potash. 



We have treated thus briefly of the leading 

 The Place of , ^i ^ r i m • 



the Legumes ^^S^^^ ^^^P^ ^^^^ ^^^ ^* value as soil im- 

 provers and forage crops largely to show 

 that through the use of these in a good rotation one can 

 grow forage and improve his land for the production of 

 the grass hay crops for the market, and by practicing a 

 reasonably short rotation can through their use keep the 

 grass improving annually. 



The legumes will furnish all the nitrogen needed and 

 by using the mineral plant foods in acid phosphate and 

 potash liberally, their growth, and consequently, their 

 power to get the nitrogen, will be greatly increased. We 

 would advise those best adapted to the making of good 

 forage for the feeding value is far in advance of their 

 mere value as manure direct, and we have no sympathy 

 with the so-called green manure idea. It is poor farm 

 economy to bury a valuable food crop as manure when by 

 feeding it and carefully saving the droppings and apply- 

 ing them to the soil we can recover more than 80 per cent, 

 of the manurial value of the crops, while getting a profit 

 from the feeding value. 



Properly cultivated and the legume used as soil im- 

 provers and forage, one can easily make a money crop 

 from grass hay without impoverishing his soil; in fact, can 

 make it more productive. Feed the legume crops with 

 commercial fertilizers Hberally, and through their use 

 keep up the humus content of the soil and the farm is 

 certain to improve, no matter what the sale crop may be. 



