FOEAGE AND SOILING CROrS 91 



the nianmiotli and is favored where early cutting is practiced. 

 Where, on account of farm oi:)erations, late cutting is the com- 

 mon practice, mammoth clover is commonly grown. Where 

 these clovers fail, alsike clover often succeeds, and should be 

 sown with the timothy. It grows on soils too acid or too wet 

 for the red clovers. Alsike clover matures even earlier than the 

 medium red clover and is generally overripe by the time timothy 

 has reached its best cutting condition. It greatly adds to the 

 feeding value of the hay, however, and, like other clovers, adds 

 to the fertility of the soil. 



Life history. — Timothy is a perennial plant, propagated from 

 year to year by means of small bulblets formed each year at the 

 base of the stem about seeding time. The following spring these 

 bulblets send out roots and stems which in turn j^roduce bulblets 

 for the next crop. Timothy usually reaches its maximum growth 

 the second or third year, after which it declines unless the soil 

 is very productive or the sod has been well top dressed with 

 manure, fertilizer, or both. 



Redtop. — This is known as Herd's grass in some parts of 

 the South and holds an important place as a forage crop. It is 

 a perennial, with small w^iry stems, usually about thirty inches 

 tall, bearing flat leaves about one-quarter inch wide and four 

 to eight inches long. It has an open, erect, many-flowered pan- 

 nacle. Vigorous shallow rootstalks, two to six inches long, are 

 usually present. These are constantly producing new stalks. 

 AMien growing isolated, tufts are formed, but in pure cultures 

 a fair turf is produced. 



Soil and climatic adaptations. — Redtop has a wider range 

 than timothy both for soil and climatic conditions. It reaches 

 its best growth in a cool climate on moist soils, but it will grow 

 on soils that are either too wet or too dry for timothy. It will 

 withstand more acidity, at least as much cold, and thrive where 

 it is too hot for timothy. It has, consequently, a wider range 

 than any other cultivated grass. 



Seed and seeding. — Redtop seed is smaller than that of other 

 commercial grasses, and it should consequently be pure, since 

 foreign seeds can easily be screened out. It is grown chiefly 

 in southern Illinois and is sold in two grades, known as * 'chaffy'* 

 and "recleaned". The former weighs about fourteen pounds 

 to the bushel, while the recleaned should weigh about thirty-six 

 pounds. The latter should be used as it is cheaper and less apt 

 to contain noxious weed seeds. It may be seeded about the 

 same time and manner as timothy. Ten pounds of recleaned 



