86 THE HANDBOOK FOR PRACTICAL FARMERS 



Acreage, Production and Valxje Accokdino to the Censxis of 1909 



Timothy. — In the United States timothy is the most imi^ortant 

 grass grown, either alone or with clover. According to the cen- 

 sus of 1909, there were 14,686,393 acres grown alone and 

 19,543,382 with clover. This total of more than thirty-four 

 million acres produced nearly fort^^-three million tons of hay. 

 The reasons for its great popularity are not hard to find. Among 

 these may be mentioned, (1) the cheapness of the seed. This 

 is due to the fact that timothy is prolific in seed production which 

 is easily procured. (2) It yields well and makes an excellent 

 grade of hay, both when grown alone or in mixtures. (3) Wlien 

 cut late it still makes a good grade of hay. (4) It is the best 

 known and in great demand by the city trade. 



Much the greater part of the timothy is grown in the region 

 north of the Ohio and east of the Missouri (see Fig. 2). This 

 broad section has the cool humid climate most favorable to its 

 best development. To the Avestward the climate becomes too 

 dry, to the southward it becomes too hot for favorable produc- 

 tion. It is a cool climate crop, and is adapted to the well-drained 

 clay and loam soils of this region. 



Rotation. — The most common practice in the timothy-growing 

 region is to have the timothy follow the small grains in the rota- 

 tion. In that part of the country where winter wheat, corn and 

 oats are grown, the rotation consists of corn, oats, wheat, each 

 one year, followed by timothy or timothy and clover for one to 

 three years or more. In the southern part of the timothy region, 

 however, where oats do not thrive well, the rotation is more 

 often corn, wheat, followed by timothy or timothy and clover. 

 In the more fertile soils of the corn belt it is a common practice 

 to give not more than one year to timothy or to timothy and 

 clover in a three or four-year rotation. 



In these rotations the corn may be replaced by potatoes or 



