LEGUMINOUS FORAT.E CROPS 213 



cured hay per acre. In California, when sown in January, it will be ready 

 to plow under in May. While it has been found to do fairly well on heavy 

 soils in that state, the scarcity of the seed and the relatively limited adaptation 

 of the plant insure it little promise. 



VIII. WHITE AND YELLOW MELILOTUS 



250. WHITE AND YELLOW MELILOTUS (Melilotus alba L. and M. officinalis 

 L.), usually known as sweet clovers because of their characteristic odor, are 

 distinguished from alfalfa, for which they are not infrequently mistaken, by 

 their ranker growth, more succulent structure, smoother surface, rather more 

 distinctly toothed leaves, their long racemes of white or yellow flowers and 

 their odor of coumarin. In many parts of the United States it is the common 

 wayside weed, the white and earlier blooming melilotus being the more fre- 

 quent. The seed of the white species has been sold under the name of Bokhara 

 clover, or simply sweet clover, for forage purposes. It is, however, ex- 

 ceedingly distasteful, either green or cured, to all classes of domestic animals, 

 and hence unfit for forage. 



The Illinois Station has shown that the bacteria in the root-tubercles of 

 the melilotus readily produce root-tubercles on alfalfa. It has, also, been held 

 in the North Atlantic states that the occurrence of these weeds on a given 

 soil is an indication that it is adapted to the growth of alfalfa. It probably 

 has a much wider range of soil and climate than alfalfa. Because of its rank 

 growth and nitrogen-gathering propensities, it has been recommended for the 

 renovation of extremely poor soils. The difficulty of eradicating it is in many 

 instances an objection to such use. It is considered an excellent food for 

 bees. The seed sometimes occurs in alfalfa. The seeds have a bitter-sweet 

 taste and the characteristic odor of sweet clover. 



"The seed of the Bokhara clover averages darker than that of alfalfa. 

 While the sizes of individual seeds of the two kinds are similar, the form of 

 Bokhara seeds is more constantly oval, with the scar nearer one extremity, 

 and the tip of the caulicle never projecting. They are relatively thicker, not 

 curved sidewise, and the surface is often finely uneven. Furthermore, an 

 examination of the embryo shows the longer caulicle of Bokhara to be often 

 abruptly bent, forming an extra segment. Nevertheless, the general likeness 

 between the two kinds of seeds is very striking, and only careful examination 

 will expose the deception before the seed is sown. The presence of pods of 

 Bokhara is good evidence of adulteration. The assurance of a western seed 

 firm that its alfalfa seed contained no sweet clover or dodder, which recently 

 came to the notice of the writer, was at least suggestive, particularly as dodder 

 seeds were present in considerable number." * 



1 Nevada Sta. Bui. No. 47 (1900), p. 9. 



