TIME OF CUTTING. 297 



into an alfalfa field with wagon or animals in late 

 fall or winter time. Especially do not let hogs run 

 on the alfalfa in winter. 



Winter-killing of Alfalfa. There are several 

 things that destroy alfalfa in winter time. One is 

 the freezing of ice over the crowns. If this lies 

 close and for some time it will destroy the plants. 

 It is more apt to do this if the alfalfa was late 

 mown. It is not known just why this ice destroys 

 the alfalfa. When snows suddenly melt in Minne- 

 sota and Wisconsin, finding the earth hard frozen 

 the water can not sink down and so freezes into a 

 glare of ice that may destroy the alfalfa. In that 

 case it is best to plow, plant to corn or some other 

 crop and re-seed. There is no loss in one sense; it 

 only interferes with a man's rotation. 



There is another form of winter-killing, that in 

 clay soils not well drained when the repeated freez- 

 ings and thawings lift the alfalfa roots out of the 

 soil. This may happen on very good alfalfa land. 

 On Woodland Farm it is a common occurrence for 

 a good deal of alfalfa to be lifted the first winter. 

 If it goes through that it will be too well rooted to 

 be lifted very much the second season. 



The remedy is good drainage, deep plowing, and 

 probably subsoiling. These things will take out 

 surface water and also let alfalfa roots penetrate 

 deep enough to be strong enough to escape this lift- 

 ing. 



Spreading with Manure. There is another thing 



