42 



sections of the country this plant may be found growing wild in scat- 

 tered clumps. In the South, where bur clover occurs, soil from 

 around its roots may be used with good results. The soil may be 

 mixed with the seed and sown with it. It may also be drilled or 

 broadcasted separately. If broadcasted, the soil should be scattered 

 on a cloudy day or toward evening and immediately harrowed in, 

 as sunshine is harmful to the germs. 



If the soil has to be freighted considerable distances, it is usu- 

 ally advisable to uso but 200 or 300 pounds of soil per acre, but this 

 should be mixed with several times its weight of ordinary soil to 

 facilitate even scattering. If the soil is difficult to secure, it may be 

 best to seed a very small area the first season, taking special precau- 

 tions to have it thoroughly inoculated. This will then furnish an 

 abundance of soil for inoculating a larger area the following sea- 

 son. 



It can not be urged too strongly that inoculation is absolutely 

 essential to the successful production of alfalfa. There are very few 

 soils outside the alfalfa districts that do not require inoculation, and 

 it may be taken as a general rule that all other soils must have the 

 inoculation supplied in order to grow alfalfa successfully. A few 

 soils, however, especially those upon which sweet clover grows nat- 

 urally, seem able to produce successful stands without artificial in- 

 oculation. These, however, are the exception rather than the rule. 



Inoculation by Pure Cultures. The artificial cultures supplied 

 by the United States Department of Agriculture are fully explained 

 in the Farmers' Bulletin on the subject. These cultures are sent out 

 in hermetically sealed tubes. The contents are mixed with clean 

 water, and certain chemicals included with the outfit are added to 

 the solution to form the food supply of the germs while they are 

 multiplying. When the germs have increased sufficiently in num- 

 ber the solution becomes of a faint milky color. It is then applied to 

 the seed. The seed should be dried in a shaded place and sown as 

 soon as possible. The advantages of the artificial cultures lie in the 

 greater ease of transportation and application as well as in the ab- 

 sence of the danger of introducing plant diseases or harmful weeds. 



Inoculation produced by the cultures, in case it is successful, 

 seems to be in every way as efficient as when the soil method is used. 

 Fewer failures are reported in the case of the soil-transfer method, 

 but the reason for this has not been definitely determined. It has 

 been found that successes are more apt to follow inoculation with 

 pure cultures if the seed is sown immediately after the seed has been 

 dried after having been inoculated. There is some evidence ac- 

 cumulating to indicate that the germs in the pure cultures when 

 they do survive are superior to those normally found in the alfalfa 

 soil. It is suggested, therefore, that both the soil-transfer method 

 and the artificial cultures be used. 



Treatment the First Season. If seeded in the late summer or 

 early autumn, alfalfa will require no treatment that autumn unless 

 a growth of more than 12 inches is made before cold weather. If 

 this occurs, the plants should be clipped back so that they will go 



