338 FIELD CROPS 



from weeds and there is no danger of introducing new and 

 troublesome pests. New seed is not so desirable as that 

 which is a year old, because new seed usually contains a con- 

 siderable percentage of ''hard seed" which will not germinate 

 for some months after planting. No seed should be purchased 

 until a sample has been obtained and a test of its purity and 

 germination has been made. Too little attention is commonly 

 given to the quaUty of grass and clover seed, and as a con- 

 sequence large quantities of inferior seed are sold every year. 



448. Sowing the Seed. The common method of getting 

 a stand of red clover is to sow the seed in the spring on land 

 that was sown to winter wheat the previous fall or to sow it 

 with spring wheat, oats, or barley. When sown with winter 

 wheat, the seed is usually scattered on the surface before the 

 frost is out of the ground in the spring, and the subsequent 

 freezing and thawing and the spring rains are depended on to 

 cover it sufficiently. Some farmers delay sowing until April, 

 when the rains alone are expected to cover the seed. A 

 more satisfactory method is to harrow the land lightly both 

 before and after the clover seed is sown. If the harrow is 

 run in the same direction as the drill rows, the wheat will 

 not be hijured but may even be benefited if the season is 

 dry, and the clover is much more certain to succeed. If 

 the seed is to be harrowed in, it should be sown just as early 

 as the land is in condition to work in the spring. 



When sown with a spring grain crop, the seed is usually 

 distributed by hand or with a broadcast seeder after the 

 grain is drilled, though it may be sown with a seeder attach- 

 ment to the drill. It is not customary to cover the clover 

 to so great a depth as the grain, though on loamy and sandy 

 soils the seed is sometimes sown in the drills with it. When 

 this practice is followed, the drill must not be permitted to 

 run more than 2 inches deep, and shallower seeding is 

 desirable. The usual quantity of clover seed sown is from 8 

 to 12 pounds to the acre, when it is the only crop seeded. 



