68 FIELD AND GARDEN PRODUCTS 



mixture of the hay increases very rapidly after the second season. 

 Ordinary red clover matures about two weeks earlier than the tim- 

 othy, and for this reason the Mammoth clover, being about two weeks 

 later, is frequently used for seeding in mixtures with the timothy. 

 Other mixtures suitable for hay are red clover combined with orchard 

 grass, tall meadow oat-grass, and a small admixture of alsike clover. 

 In any low places which may exist in the meadow it is advisable to 

 replace the orchard grass with redtop and at least half of the red 

 clover with alsike. 



Effect of Red Clover on the Land. The clovers have been 

 justly ranked as the principal foundation of a permanent system of 

 agriculture in the northern and eastern United States. By the 

 proper utilization of the clover in the rotations it is possible perma- 

 nently to maintain the supply of nitrogen and humus in the soil. 

 The fertilizing value of red clover is not entirely in the hay which 

 would be plowed under if the crop were to be used for green manure. 

 Experiments show that 30 to 50 per cent of the fertilizer value of 

 the clover may lie in the roots and stubble which are plowed under, 

 even though the hay crop is removed. In one experiment the Dela- 

 ware Experiment Station found that the red clover produced on an 

 acre contained 122 pounds of nitrogen, 68 pounds of potash, and 28 

 pounds of phosphoric acid. At present prices for fertilizers one ton 

 of clover hay contains nearly $10 worth of fertilizing elements. It 

 frequently happens that the yields of grain crops are increased as 

 much as 10 bushels to the acre by turning under clover sod, but too 

 much must not be expected of red clover. The only real addition it 

 makes to the land is the humus it supplies, together with the nitrogen 

 it is able to extract from the air. The other fertilizer elements, such 

 as potash and phosphoric acid, must needs be drawn from the soil 

 iteelf. 



Red Clover in Rotations. One reason for the great popularity 

 of the red clover plant is the ease with which it lends itself to the 

 rotations which have been practiced in the sections to which it is 

 adapted. The fact that it lives but two years necessitates a rather 

 short rotation on the farm, especially when the clover is seeded alone. 

 Meadows and pastures containing clover and grass mixed are usually 

 held three or four years, even though very little clover may remain 

 during the last year or two. The value of the red clover on the farm 

 makes it usually desirable that a considerable area of the farm be 

 at all times seeded to this crop. The possibility of obtaining a grain 

 crop during the season when the red clover is making its early 

 growth, makes the utilization of this legume in maintaining soil 

 fertility a thoroughly practicable one, not calling for an undue 

 amount of special preparation or fertilizers to maintain successful 

 stands upon the ordinary farm. If the land be in a somewhat de- 

 pleted condition as regards fertility a 3-year rotation with clover is 

 best, although on better soils a 4-year or even a 5-year rotation may 

 be practicable. The Illinois Experiment Station has shown as a 

 result of a 30-year test that corn on land continuously has produced 

 25 bushels to the acre; corn alternated with oats, 43 bushels j whilo 



