216 



THE ESSENTIALS OF AGRICULTURE 



IV. OTHER LEGUMES 



282. Sweet clover. Sweet clover, or Melilotus, is a native 

 of central Asia and for more than two thousand years has been 

 utilized by the farmers of the Mediterranean region as a plant 

 for bees and for forage and green manuring. It was brought 

 to this country long before the Declaration of Independence, 

 but until recently was not thought to have any agricultural 



value. Even yet in 

 some localities it is re- 

 garded as an injurious 

 weed. Sweet clover 

 grows in all parts of 

 the United States and 

 on almost all soils. It 

 grows well in humid 

 and subhumid climates 

 and is of value where 

 the more i m P OI "tant le- 

 guminous crops, like clo- 

 ver and alfalfa, cannot 

 be successfully grown. 

 The chief variety, Bo- 

 khara, is a biennial and 

 produces a rank growth 

 and seeds profusely. As 

 a soil builder, especially 



FIG. 103. Alfalfa seed, clover seed, and 

 weed seed 



Many kinds of weed seed are mixed with the alfalfa 

 and clover seed. When sown, these produce weeds 

 which occupy part of the soil, reduce the quantity 

 and value of the hay, pollute the farm, and get into 

 the next seed crop 



in waste places and 

 where the surface has 



been badly eroded, it has no equal. Sweet clover is a good fore- 

 runner of alfalfa, because it inoculates the soil for alfalfa, adds 

 plant food to the soil, and with its large roots breaks up the 

 soil to a considerable depth. 



Farm animals do not relish sweet clover at first because of the 

 woody character of the stems and because of the bitter taste 

 and offensive odor of its foliage. They may be taught to eat it 



