228 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 



prevents growth of annual grasses and weeds. Beard- 

 less spring barley is by far the best nurse-crop, since it 

 is not apt to lodge and draws less moisture from the soil 

 than would oats. One bushel of barley to the acre 

 is enough. Commonly it should be cut for hay, though 

 if it stands well it may be allowed to ripen its seed. If 

 oats are sown as a nurse-crop 3 pecks of good seed will 

 be enough for an acre, and the crop must be mown for 

 hay as early as bloom appears, else the stand of alfalfa 

 will be greatly weakened or entirely destroyed. Long ago 

 a farmer in New Jersey told of using winter rye as a 

 nurse-crop, sowing it in the spring. We tried this with 

 excellent results. The thrift of the alfalfa was better 

 in the part of the field sown to rye than in any other 

 part, and the stand was perfect. Winter rye so\vn in 

 spring should not be allowed to form heads ; it dies down 

 when hot weather comes, and thus does its work without 

 injury to the alfalfa. 



Method of Sowing Alfalfa in Spring. Our practice 

 for many years has been to make the land ready by sev- 

 eral diskings and harrowings, having it smooth by using 

 last a plank drag. A common grain drill with a grass 

 seeding attachment sows the barley, one bushel to the 

 acre, and the alfalfa is sown ahead of the drill so that 

 it is covered by the disks. Some of it is covered too 

 deeply, but enough gets through to give a good stand. 

 A plank drag is floated over the field to make a finishing 

 touch, so that the mowers may run nicely there later in 

 the season. Having all our land inoculated now, we 

 give that matter no thought; were we to start in a 

 new place we should first distribute the inoculating earth. 



