144 THE FORAGE AND FIBER CROPS IN AMERICA 



Central states during June, and the second crop during August. 

 The flowers bloom progressively from the lower to the upper 

 parts of the head, and for a single head occupy four to ten 

 days. Hopkins estimates that a field will remain in bloom from 

 I S to 3 days during the second crop. The 

 stage of full bloom is therefore a rather un- 

 certain point. 



When the flowers dry they easily break off 



Red clover capsule on , -,.,., , . , , 



the left; single seed b y reason of their brittle pedicel, but the calyx 

 on the right. En- an( j the withered corolla are persistent. In 



larged four times. 



damp weather these absorb moisture and 

 become spongy, making threshing or hulling quite difficult. The 

 pod is a one-seeded capsule and differs from that of other 

 clovers or other leguminous plants in that it is not a legume 

 but is orbicular, opening transversely, thus dividing the pod 

 into an upper smooth, shiny, thin-walled cap and a lower 

 small thin-walled box which readily tears and allows the seed 

 to escape. 



150. Description of Seed. Viewed in outline from its two 

 longest diameters the seed is oval, with the raphe or radicle 

 forming a distinct projection. Viewed from its two smallest 

 diameters the seed is flattened. Sizes vary greatly : the average 

 length is 0.07 inch; width 0.05 to 0.06 inch; thickness 0.03 to 

 0.04 inch. The average number of seeds to the pound is about 

 375,000, from which there may be a variation of 50 per cent, 

 either way. The legal weight of a bushel in nearly all states 

 and Canada is 60 pounds. 



The seeds may be uniformly yellow, or uniformly purple, or 

 variegated with yellow, lavender, or violet and purple. Unripe 

 seeds are yellowish green. With age the color is said to change 

 to drab, afterward passing into red. The dark seeds, which are 

 probably the more thoroughly ripened, are likely to be "hard" 

 or dormant. 



