GRAINS AND FORAGE CROPS 47 



Restoring Alfalfa. 



/ have two-year-old alfalfa that is a poor stand. Should I cultivate 

 it and sow in or should I ploiv it up and resecd iff 



It depends upon how poor the stand is. If it is fairly good or 

 good in spots, scratching-in seed may help the bare places, since the 

 stand is so young. A poor old stand is hard to catch in with. Prob- 

 ably, as a rule, when one is sure the stand is poor or worse, it is better 

 to start over. (See also Part III, Vol. 1.) 



Storing Alfalfa Hay. 



Will alfalfa hay keep in a barn loft after being in the stack long 

 enough to sweat f 



Surely; we have seen this done in many instances in the interior 

 valleys where stockmen ran short of hay and were compelled to buy 

 from neighbors who had already stacked theirs. 



Alfalfa Tonics. 



My alfalfa is a good stand, but it makes a poor growth. I will disk 

 it this fall and put on barnyard manure. I would like to use gypsum. 

 Would you mix with manure and spread broadcast before disking? Also, 

 how much per acre? 



Spread the manure and disk this fall after the last cutting, as 

 you propose. The gypsum can be best applied in the spring when 

 the growth is starting and still more rain is to come. You can use 

 300 Ibs. per acre, broadcasting it over the surface. For a small field a 

 fire shovel makes a good throwing implement for one hand. The first 

 following rain will take care of it. 



Alfalfa on Heavy Land. 



I have ten acres I wish to plant sometime in March; it is all leveled 

 and checked now, but will have to be replowed. It is only fairly well 

 drained and water is standing some now from the heavy rains. How 

 should I plant it deep or shallow and should the ground be settled, after 

 plowing, with water to insure a firm seed bed? If I can get a good stand 

 this spring, would it live through the coming winter rains, or would it 

 likely drown out? I wish to plant it in March so as to catch spring rains 

 to bring it up. 



Replow as soon as the ground is in good shape, and harrow 

 thoroughly. Cover the seed very little. If the surface is a little cloddy, 

 the alfalfa will come around all right if moisture is right, but there 

 ought to be a good degree of pulverization. Do not water-settle after 

 plowing. There is danger of making the ground too cold and wet 

 If you can get the seed up by rainfall, irrigation will behave better 

 after the stand protects the land. Alfalfa will stand overflows when 

 the plant is dormant but is not likely to be long-lived if the ground 

 stays too wet during the summer. 



