74 



thrives best on land holding a fair percentage of lime. It does 

 not require much in the shape of stable-manure which, if over- 

 done, is even detrimental to its growth; but it is grateful for a 

 manuring with potash and phosphoric-acid. 



As it makes exceptionally deep roots, sometimes as deep as 6 

 to 15 feet, it extracts both its nutrition and moisture from long 

 distances. It does not require, therefore, the surface of the land 

 to be of the best as long as it finds a good fertile soil below. 

 And it is for the same reason that, whilst it does not like too 

 much moisture, it can stand a lasting drought very well indeed. 

 The plants won't wither soon during a dry period; they may not 

 show signs of thriving then, but they won't die off, and whenever 

 there is a change of weather with some rainfall, the plants will 

 start up again at-once and display themselves luxuriantly. 



Lucerne is better adapted for fodder in its green state than 

 as hay, as it drops more than any other variety its leaves during 

 the process of hay-making, thus causing the loss of the very best 

 part of the plant. 



Now it makes a great difference what stock-seed is being used. 

 First of all, there is an enormous difference between ttfe produce 

 of American- and European-grown seed, so much so even, that 

 throughout our own country Holland it is being considered 

 quite a falsification if American-grown seed is sold for European- 

 grown, or if mixtures of the two are handled as genuine European- 

 grown seed. There is simply no comparing the one plant with 

 the other. Not only that the American plant's duration does not 

 surpass 2 or 3 years at best, so that it does not answer the pur- 

 pose of having a longer lay than a field of Red-clover, and 

 that consequently it is by far the inferior of the 5 or 6 years 

 lying plant of European origin. But the plant-itself is a rather 

 poor-one compared to that of European descent! Even the first 

 cut does not yield more than half the quantily yielded by the 

 latter, whereas the second cut is even less in that respect. Crops 

 produced by American seed in ^4/nm'ca-itself may be better, they 

 are worth practically nothing in Europe. 



Amongst the European-grown seeds of Lucerne, viz: Pro- 

 vence, Middle- and North of France, Italian, Hungarian and 

 Russian, we consider the Provence and Italian seeds to be the 

 best; next we would prefer the North- and Middle of France and 

 Hungarian seeds, whilst the Russian seed is in our opinion, in 

 no way superior to the American. 



