THE LEGUMES. 



that there is lime in the soil. Thus the hydrochloric test will de- 

 tect one of the requirements of a successful alfalfa soil. 



When a stand of alfalfa looks yellow and sickly it is an in- 

 dication that it may need liming or harrowing. This should be 

 done at once after cutting a crop of hay. It has been frequently 

 found that soil that did not respond to the acid test, had an 

 abundance of lime at a depth of two or three feet from the 

 surface. The effect therefore of liming such soil in a new seed- 

 ing of alfalfa is to assist the new plants to grow until the roots 

 can penetrate to the limestone subsoil. 



The nitrogen-fixing bacteria of alfalfa and sweet clover are 

 very similar, and they readily adapt themselves from one to the 

 other. Thus where we find sweet clover growing there is a good 

 innoculation for alfalfa. It shows the same fondness for lime 

 that is common to alfalfa and the clovers. A comparative an- 

 alysis of alfalfa and sweet clover shows the following: 



COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF ALFALFA AND SWEET CLOVER. 

 (PER CENT) 



DIGESTIBLE COEFFICIENTS. 



