4 8 4 



day. Twenty or 25 pounds of seed are required for an acre. It is- 

 a valuable forage plant to sow on barren hillsides. Sheep are very 

 fond of and fatten quickly upon it. 



Vicia americana (Common wild vetch). A smooth perennial 

 with compound leaves, elliptical or oblong obtuse leaflets, and four 

 to eight purple flowers on elongated flower stalks. It grows in 

 moist soil from New York westward to the prairie region. A 

 valuable native vetch, which should be given a trial in cultivation. 



FIG. 38. Bird vetch {Vicia craccd]. 



Vicia cracca (Bird vetch ; chicken vetch. Fig 38). A downy 

 pubescent perennial, with compound leaves of 20 to 24 narrowly 

 oblong, abruptly pointed leaflets, and numerous blue or purple 

 reflexed flowers in a one-sided spike. Common in the borders of 

 thickets from New England to the upper prairie region. The 

 species is cultivated in Europe for fodder, and is recommended for 

 cultivation in wet meadows. In the shade it yields a return three 

 times larger than in open places. It would, therefore, be valuable 

 in woodland pastures and alpine regions. 



