180 LEGUMINOUS CROPS 



VETCHES are of several kinds (Fig. 127). Two of these are 

 commonly cultivated in America: (1) The hairy or winter vetch 

 (Vicia villosa) is a winter annual, much used as a winter cover 

 crop south of the northern tier of states. (2) Spring vetch or sum- 

 mer vetch (Vicia sariva) is a much coarser plant and is not hairy. 

 It is grown as an early spring or cool weather plant, but does not 

 endure severe freezing. 



Hairy vetch is abundantly used when mixed with winter grain, 

 or crimson clover, as a winter cover crop in orchards, gardens and 

 fields. In the spring it may be cut for hay or for soiling, or the 

 crop may be turned under as green manure. 



Spring vetch is very useful for hay and soiling purposes, and 

 is usually grown with grain to support the viney growth. 



The seed of the different vetches should not be confused or 

 mixed, because one plant is hardy and the other is not. Hairy 

 vetch has smaller seeds, which are black or nearly so. Seeds of 

 spring vetch are larger, brownish in color, and more nearly kid- 

 ney shape than the others. Its pods are longer and more slender 

 than those of hairy vetch and the plant is smooth throughout. 



THE VELVET BEAN is grown in Florida and other gulf states. 

 During warm summer weather it will produce a vigorous growth 

 in latitudes much farther north if plenty of water is supplied. 

 It will mature seed only in or near the gulf states. The stems 

 are vine-like and may grow to a length of twenty or thirty feet 

 in a season. Much forage is produced, but it is difficult to cure. 

 The plant is valuable for green manure when worked into the soil 

 by the use of a disk harrow. The seeds and pods are ground 

 into meal for stock. 



MISCELLANEOUS LEGUMES. Sweet clovers are of two 

 kinds, the white (Fig. 128) being much more common than the 

 yellow. They are perennial plants with stems and leaves resem- 

 bling alfalfa, but the growth is usually much more rank. Chiefly 

 by natural means the sweet clovers have become widely distrib- 

 uted throughout the East and South. Their principal use is for 

 the improvement of soils, but when stock acquire a liking for them 

 they are also valuable as forage. The feeding value is equal to 

 that of alfalfa, but the taste is bitter and is at first disliked by 

 most farm animals. Sweet clovers are sometimes grown by bee- 

 keepers because of the abundance of honey produced. 



Bur clovers belong to the same genus as alfalfa, Medicago. 

 There are two common species, the spotted medic and the tooth 



