224 ALFALFA FARMING IN AMERICA. 



ing bacteria was seen in Christian County, Kentucky. 

 A field of good limestone soil was well enriched 

 and sown to alfalfa in the fall. A fine stand re- 

 sulted and I visited it the next spring, some time 

 early in May. The alfalfa was short, stunted, of yel- 

 low color, clearly destined to be a failure. Careful 

 search revealed no nodules on the roots. One bunch 

 of thrifty alfalfa was in the middle of the field, 

 another at one edge, near where had stood a negro's 

 cabin. I dug up these plants and found abundant 

 inoculation, the nodules being plentiful. I dug out 

 the soil around these spots and threw it over the 

 field. Eains distributed the bacteria still further, 

 so that in a year the whole field was inoculated and 

 yielded a heavy crop of hay, about six tons to the 

 acre. The land had been well limed. 



Vital Relation of Bacteria. What is the vital re- 

 lation between bacteria and alfalfa? I make no 

 pretense to exact scientific knowledge on this ques- 

 tion. As near as I understand it the case is about 

 as follows : Alfalfa is a legume. All or nearly all 

 leguminous plants are aided in their growth by bac- 

 teria that associate themselves with the plants, living 

 on the roots or on the rootlets. With plants using 

 these bacteria existence without them is precarious 

 and often impossible. 



Securing Nitrogen. The problem of fertility, of 

 production of plants, of crop yield is a curious one. 

 Some elements going to make up plants are mineral; 

 these we find in the ash of plants. A large part is 

 water; this comes easily enough from the soil. A 



