GRASS AND HAY 77 



treatment of cases. When the balls have once developed to such a 

 size that they can not pass through the intestine no practical remedy 

 can be suggested. But the prevention of the difficulty is in most 

 cases easy. The hairs of crimson clover do not become stiff until 

 the plant has passed the flowering stage and begun to ripen. It 

 should be made a rule, therefore, never to feed crimson clover after 

 the crop has ceased flowering, and especially never to follow the 

 pernicious practice of feeding stock with the straw of crimson clover 

 raised and thrashed as a seed crop. By guarding against improper 

 methods of feeding there is no reason why crimson clover should 

 not continue to maintain its well-merited reputation and increase 

 in use as a forage plant and green manure. 



The seed of crimson clover is larger than that of red or mam- 

 moth clover and is almost perfectly oval in shape. The fresh seed 

 is of a bright, slightly reddish or greenish yellow color and has a 

 high polish. As the seed becomes older, the color changes to a red- 

 dish brown, and eventually the polish is lost and the seed has a dull, 

 dark, reddish-brown color. Dark seed should never be purchased, 

 as it is too old to grow. (Dept. Agr. B. P. I. Circular No. 8.) 



This plant is by no means new. It has been tested by many 

 persons on a small scale with very variable results. The main 

 difficulty appears to be its inability to withstand our severe winters. 

 Perhaps two-thirds of those who have tried it report a complete or 

 partial failure, while the remainder seem to be very enthusiastic 

 over their success. A strip sixteen rods long by one rod wide was 

 sown together with some rye for protection. It germinated nicely 

 and before winter set in was 5^2 inches high. The winter was a 

 comparatively open one; other clover and grass lands heaved and 

 froze out badly. Regardless of these conditions about 22 per cent, 

 of the plot came through all right. Where it did come through the 

 winter, it looked well, stood on an average 18 y% inches in height, 

 and made a fine crop. Crimson clover is also known as scarlet clover 

 and Italian or German clover. It is an annual, requiring seed for 

 each crop. The flower heads are bright crimson in color and from 

 li/2 to 2 inches long. The plants attain a height of from 12 to 26 

 inches. 



Time to Sow. The general impression is that it has not proved 

 hardy enough to fully withstand the winters of New Hampshire. In 

 Delaware, where 2,340 acres were sown in 1891, it was planted the 

 latter part of July or during August. This crop may be cut for 

 silage or hay early in May and a yield of from one to two tons per 

 acre may be secured from very poor land. The plants from the 

 seed sown in August blossomed during the latter part of May. It 

 is claimed that if it is sown in July it will make a growth by fall, 

 which may be used for pasture during October and November, as a 

 good substitute for hay. 



The seed weighs sixty pounds to the bushel and from ten to 

 sixteen pounds are necessary to seed an acre properly. It is claimed 

 that there are five types of crimson clover, and that but one of these 

 is hardy. (N. H. Agr. Exp. Sta. Bui. 37.) 



