PREFACE 



THE exceedingly diversified climatic conditions in North 

 America have led to the cultivation of an unusually large 

 number of plant species for forage production. Some of 

 these are successful or important over but a comparatively 

 small area, and not one is capable of profitable cultivation 

 over the whole region. The climatic conditions of some 

 parts of North America, especially the dry regions and the 

 southernmost states, are not closely duplicated in any part 

 of Europe. This fact has necessitated the introduction of 

 numerous grasses and legumes from other regions to secure 

 forage plants capable of profitable cultivation. The success 

 of these endeavors has resulted in the utilization of many 

 forage crops practically unknown in Europe, such as numer- 

 ous varieties of sorghum, cowpeas, soybeans, Japan clover, 

 Florida beggarweed, velvet bean, Bermuda-grass, Rhodes- 

 grass, and many others. In some sections, there is still 

 need of better adapted or more productive forage crops. 

 Extensive experimental investigations have been conducted 

 with only a few forage crops in America, so that there yet 

 remains much to be learned concerning most of the others. 



The aim of the author has been to present as concisely 

 as practicable the present state of our knowledge with ref- 

 erence to each forage crop grown in America, and it is hoped 

 that no important contributions to the subject have been 

 omitted. 



The illustrations are mostly those which have been used 

 in various publications of the United States Department of 



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