Arguments For and Against Alfalfa 



eEORGE FITCH once wrote that "alfalfa is the greatest known 

 breakfast food for cattle . . . and possesses a flavor that 

 makes the most blase cow brighten up and pass her plate for 

 more." George Fitch has not been the only one to proclaim the 

 merits of alfalfa. Bankers, lawyers, doctors, merchants, manu- 

 facturers, authors, professors, governors, agriculturists, and some 

 farmers, have climbed on the band wagon to join the chorus of 

 praises of alfalfa. 



~ If it is worthy of all this approbation it is fair to ask why it is not 

 more generally grown on livestock farms, especially in the Middle- 

 Western and Eastern States. If its popularity is just a fad, what 

 justification is there for all the numerous alfalfa campaigns, tours, 

 demonstrations, associations, and never-ending alfalfa articles in the 

 agricultural press? That there are two sides to alfalfa is indis- 

 putable. It has its enthusiastic friends and enemies. In many 

 places it is like a prophet in his own country, without honor. In 

 other places it is the leader among forage crops. 



Alfalfa Our Best Hay Crop 



All the good things about alfalfa may well be summed up as fol- 

 lows: Where it can be grown successfully it excels all other hay 

 crops in yield per acre, feeding value, drought resistance, soil en- 

 richment and weed eradication. This covers the field of alfalfa 

 enthusiasm. I have elaborated on these very points at farmers' 

 meetings. 



Not long ago I was asked to say a good word for alfalfa at a large 

 farmers' picnic in Illinois. They listened to me; they even applauded 

 very energetically after I was through. But after the meeting a 

 half dozen farmers gathered round and said: 



Objections 



"We have grown alfalfa. It may be all you say in some places, 

 but not so on our farms. Our soil isn't right for it. It costs us too 

 much to get it started, and then it doesn't last. It winter-kills and 

 blue-grass and weeds come in. It brings too much work. Help is 

 scarce. It would keep us haying all summer, leaving no time to 

 cultivate the corn or potatoes, particularly in June when they need 

 it most badly. It doesn't fit into a short rotation, as clover does, 

 and it is mighty hard plowing alfalfa stubble. There are so many 

 failures in growing alfalfa round here, and so much time, effort and 

 money have been wasted in trying to get alfalfa started, that we 

 believe we would be better off to let it alone and- stick to our old 

 friend clover." 



That is the other side of alfalfa. What some people think is con- 

 servatism on the part of farmers may often be good common sense. 

 Is it good common sense to get into the alfalfa business? We shall 

 see. 



