GRASS AND HAY 71 



corn, oats, and clover in a 3-year rotation gave a yield of 59 bushels 

 for the corn. 



Clover in Rotation with Corn, Oats, and Wheat. A common 

 rotation in the clover belt is corn followed by oats which in turn are 

 followed by wheat. The wheat in turn acts as a nurse crop for the 

 clover sown with it. After clover has stood two years the sod is 

 plowed down for corn again. Rye may be substituted for wheat in 

 the rotations already discussed. It has some points of advantage 

 over wheat in that it grows taller and stools less and therefore does 

 not shade the clover so much. 



Clover in Rotations with Spring-Seeded Cereals: In sections 

 north of the winter-wheat belt it is usually the practice to seed the 

 clover with spring-sown grain. 



Rotations Containing Cowpeas or Soy Beans Preceding Wheat 

 and Clover. In sections where cowpeas and soy beans are success- 

 fully produced it is sometimes the practice to introduce one of these 

 coarse legumes immediately preceding the wheat crop. The vines 

 are either cut in time to have the ground ready for fall seeding or 

 the entire pea or bean crop is rolled down and then cross-disked. 

 The accumulation of the cowpea or soy bean stems and leaves on 

 and near the surface serves as a mulch which acts very beneficially 

 on the clover. 



Seed Production of Red Clover. The extensive production of 

 red clover in this country is due to the production of a few acres on 

 a large number of farms rather than to the production of large 

 areas on farms devoted primarily to this crop. For this reason the 

 clover crop is too often an incident and not the main issue on the 

 farm. The various successful experiences of occasional farmers in 

 sections where the average production of red clover seed is very low 

 indicate that much is to be learned regarding the essentials of the 

 successful production of the crop of red clover seed. Where these 

 essentials are understood, it is usually not hard to provide for them 

 and thus materially increase the seed crop. In practically all of the 

 areas adapted to the production of red clover hay fairly satisfactory 

 crops of seed are also produced. Red clover differs in this respect 

 from alfalfa, which is grown for hay over extended areas where seed 

 production is not practicable. 



Handling Clover for Seed. In order to produce the best crops 

 of seed the conditions should be such as to retard somewhat the pro- 

 duction of the largest vegetative growth, as the conditions which will 

 produce a medium growth of the plant will usually induce the best 

 set of seed. When the growth of the clover is so rank as to lodge, 

 the heads are apt to be comparatively few and not well filled with 

 seed. 



Estimating the Probable Seed Crop. Inasmuch as the clover 

 strawy is of little value as hay, if the crop is allowed to go to seed a 

 decision must be made when the field is a little past full bloom as to 

 whether the second cutting should be allowed to stand for seed or 

 be used for hay. It is usually possible to estimate with fair accuracy 

 the probable seed production by the time the plants are well out of 



