264 



SCIENTmC AGRICULTUKE. 



April, 1922. 



duc-ed to germinate and made to produce 

 healthy plants. 



CAUTION,— The above method should 

 be carried out strictly in accordance with 

 instructions given. By improper mani- 

 pulation, the germinating power of the 

 hard seed may be completely destroyed. 



Hardening of Seedling Plants. 



After germination of the seed and when 

 the seedling plants have got to about the 

 fourth leaf stage, they are transplanted 

 singly into three-inch flower pots. With 

 a moderate greenhouse temperature, a 

 sturdy growth is encouraged, and finally 

 the plants are transferred to a cold frame 

 to harden off before planting out in the 

 open field. 



The germination of the seeds and the 

 manipulation of the plants are .so adjusted 

 that plants are usually ready to transplant 

 out in the field from about the middle to 

 the end of May. In the field, the plants 

 are usually spaced from three to four feet 

 apart each way. This allows for the study 

 of the individual plants and also gives the 

 necessary working space between the 

 l)lants. (Fig. VI.) 



If Alfalfa plants are raised in the man- 

 ner described above, it is usually possible 

 to obtain seeds the same year of planting; 

 and thus the worker is enabled to con- 

 tinue further investigations with a mini- 

 mum of lost time. 



RefereTices to Literature Cited in Text. 



1. Love, H. H. and Leighty. C. E. Germ- 



ination of Seed as Affected by Sul- 

 phuric Acid Treatment ; Cornell 

 Univ., Col. of Agriculture, Dep't of 

 Plant Breeding, Bulletin 312. Mai-ch 

 1912. 



2. Oliver, G. W. New Methods of Plant 



Breeding; U. S. Dep't of Agr., B. 

 P. I., Bulletin 167, 1910. 



3. Piper, C. V. Alfalfa Seed Production; 



Pollination Studies: U. S. Dep't of 

 Agr., B. P. T. Bulletin 75, April, 

 1914. 



4. South worth, W. Alfalfa Hybridization : 



Journal of Hereditv, vol. V, No. 10. 

 October. 1914. 



Fig. VI. Second growth of Alfalfa showing method of spacing plants. 

 (Note: The plants selectetl for seed have not Ihhmi cut.) 



