Legumes 



187 



the seed is planted in the fall and the plants harvested the next 

 spring. The crop is grown principally from New Jersey south- 

 ward. The chief use is as a green-manure crop, as described 

 previously. Nevertheless, it is used largely as hay and when 

 cut the plants should be harvested before the stems become too 

 woody. The leaves and stems are covered with fine hairs and 

 if the plants are woody 

 before they are cut, 

 masses of hair are likely 

 to form in the stomach 

 and intestines of ani- 

 mals that eat the hay 

 and in some instances 

 have been known to 

 cause death. 



White clover. Dutch, 

 or white, clover has 

 the creeping habit, a 

 quality desirable in pas- 

 ture and lawn plants. 

 The blossoms are white 

 and the leaves are 

 marked with a white 

 crescent-shaped mark. 

 The plant has a wide 

 adaption and grows 

 wherever red or alsike 

 clover thrives and also much farther south. In the northern 

 part of the cotton-belt it often survives the summers. 



Alfalfa. In the western half of the United States, alfalfa 

 (Fig. 79) is the most important forage crop. It is also culti- 

 vated to a limited extent in certain sections of the East and 

 South, where, when soil and climatic conditions are favorable, 

 it makes a profitable stand. 



Alfalfa is a strongly branching perennial that when mature 



FIG. 79. Alfalfa, the chief forage crop of the 

 West. 



