HORTICULTURE 37 



crop be grown alone, frequently two or more are grown in combina- 

 tion. Probably the most used combination is that of oats and Canada 

 field peas. 



Some of the chief advantages and disadvantages of the various 

 plants mentioned above, in their use as cover crops are : Hairy vetch 

 is especially hardy ; makes a rapid growth in spring ; is slow to catch 

 in a dry season ; makes slow growth in fall ; is low and does not hold 

 snow as well as some of the other crops. Crimson clover can only be 

 recommended in certain localities owing to the fact that it winter 

 kills. Where it is hardy it makes a very good cover if a catch can be 

 secured. Field peas are one of the best food-supplying crops ; make a 

 heavy growth ; are especially valuable when mixed with some other 

 crop which provides support. Soy beans are more tender than field 

 peas, but stands up better after frost. Rye is the best non-food-sup- 

 plying hardy cover; does not make as much growth as oats in the 

 fall, but stands up somewhat better during the winter. Oats is prob- 

 ably the most used of all covers; comes quickly when sown, makes a 

 good growth, stands up fairly well during the winter. Barley pos- 

 sesses about the same merit. Millet is similar to oats, but less hardy 

 and does not stand up as well. Turnips and rutabagas add consid- 

 erable vegetable matter, but lack the essential qualities necessary for 

 holding snow ; especially valuable for rendering available phosphoric 

 acid. 



Amount of Seed for Cover Crops. The amount of seed to be 

 sown for the various crops is practically the same as that in ordinary 

 field culture. It is better to err on the side of having the cover too 

 thick rather than too thin. There is little danger on the side of the 

 former, save in the expense of seed, as the denser the growth, the bet- 

 ter it stands up, and therefore the better it holds snow. The follow- 

 ing amounts may be considered as indicating the quantity of seed to 

 be used per acre : Hairy vetch, 1 bushel ; crimson clover, 15 pounds ; 

 field peas, 2 bushels; soy beans, 3 to 4 pecks; rye, 1 to 1% bushels; 

 oats, IVs to 2 1 /2 bushels; millet, 6 pecks; turnips and rutabagas, 4 

 pounds. 



It is well to harrow the ground just before sowing, and to put 

 in the crop exactly the same as for field conditions. Once in the 

 ground, the crop needs no further attention until time for cultiva- 

 tion the next spring, when it is to be plowed under and the system 

 of clean culture again taken up. 



Occasionally an orchardist stops cultivating at the proper time, 

 and allows nature to provide him with a cover crop in the form of 

 weeds. It would hardly seem necessary to advance any argument 

 against such a procedure. The growing of weeds as a cover crop sim- 

 ply means that the labor expended in eradicating them will in time 

 more than offset the cost of using a legitimate cover. Some may say 

 that the season of growth will be too short for the weeds to ripen seed.. 

 If this be true, it will only be a short time until those weeds which 

 produce the cover are those which have a short season and ripen seeds 

 early, for unless this be so, the weed cover crop must in a short time 



