Il6 SOILING CROPS AND THE SILO. 



The proportions of seed in the combination that 

 will prove most satisfactory can only be ascertained 

 by actual test in each locality. But the aim should 

 be to make the vetches, to the greatest extent pos- 

 sible, the dominant factor in the mixture, consistent, 

 however, with the retention of upright growth 

 in the crop. The other factor or factors of 

 the combination are intended rather to support the 

 vetches than to furnish food. When vetches are 

 sown with crimson clover, the seed of the latter 

 should be used sparingly lest it crowd the vetches. 



The quantity of seed that ought to be sown will 

 vary with conditions such as relate to fertility, 

 moisture and the varieties of plants used in the 

 combination. But it will seldom, if ever, be advan- 

 tageous to sow less than one bushel of vetch seed per 

 acre, except when peas are used in the combination, 

 and sometimes even more than the amount of the 

 vetch seed named should be sown. When the 

 vetches are sown alone, from one to one and one-half 

 bushels of seed are used. 



The best time for sowing the seed is largely 

 dependent on the use that is to be made of the crop, 

 and on the character of the climate. Vetches sown 

 in the spring should as a rule be put into the ground 

 quite early, but in moist climates it is admissible to 

 sow them later and at intervals if necessary. When 

 sown in the autumn they should be given time to 

 get well rooted before the more trying weather of 

 winter arrives. 



Cultivation. Harrowing is the only form of 

 cultivation that can be given to this crop, and when 

 all the conditions are favorable to growth, it is not 



