No. 4.] ALFALFA IN NEW ENGLAND. 159 



I might have the thing in my mind and try to convey it to 

 you and you might get the wrong impression. It is a hard 

 matter to lay down a rule in regard to cutting. You speak 

 of cutting within fifteen minutes of the right time. We take 

 three weeks for our cutting, and we cut just as soon as these 

 buds appear, and during those three weeks we don't destroy 

 very many of the new shoots. 



I want to say that one outfit — one mower, one side dehvery 

 rake, two or three wagons, and one tedder — is capable of har- 

 vesting from 175 to 200 acres of alfalfa, that is, when it is 

 grown in a commercial way. 



Mr. Bates. I have found that when I delayed my cutting 

 on account of bad weather, by raising my mowing machine I 

 have avoided cutting the small shoots. 



Mr. Jeffers. That is good. 



Dr. Brooks. I agree with Dr. Wheeler about the cutting, 

 — the sooner the better, and in many instances the crop will 

 come up healthier the next time; but I want to emphasize 

 again that there is clearly a great difference in varieties in 

 susceptibility. Last summer when one variety went bad, side 

 by side with it, on both sides, on land treated in the same way, 

 other strains were in perfect health, so that the selection of the 

 best possible seed cannot be too much emphasized. 



Dr. Wheeler's reference to some of Professor Hansen's varie- 

 ties leads me to call attention to another matter. We get 

 Professor Hansen's literature, and in the summer of 1914 we 

 sent and got some of his most highly recommended double, 

 hardy, cast iron alfalfa, and it is a miserable failure. Professor 

 Hansen is seeking particularly for alfalfa that will grow where 

 they don't have much loam, and none of his varieties have 

 ever done well with us. They are hardy, they are cast iron, 

 but they don't flourish under the conditions of our humid 

 climate. 



In relation to cultures he says you can get small amounts of 

 culture from the United States Department. If alfalfa is new 

 to you use a culture. That advice is absolutely sound, but I 

 am glad to be able to announce that the Extension Service of 

 the college will furnish culture in any amount you need. The 

 charge is a merely nominal one of 25 cents. 



