596 FORAGE PLANTS AND THEIR CULTURE 



animals in the field. The tubers keep in the ground all 

 winter and usually enough of them are left by the hogs 

 to make a new crop. Indeed, it is this weedy propensity 

 of the artichoke that has militated much against its 

 culture. 



The yield of tubers to the acre ranges from 4 to 18 tons, 

 but in western Washington records of 20 to 39 tons to the 

 acre are reported. 



CHUFA (Cyperus esculentus) 



715. The chufa is apparently native in the subtropical 

 regions of both hemispheres, but its culture originated in 

 Mediterranean countries. It is a sedge-like plant with 

 creeping rootstocks which produce small sweet tubers 

 rarely over 1 inch in diameter. The tubers are eaten as 

 human food or pastured to hogs. 



The plant is propagated by the tubers, which are planted 

 in spring in rows wide enough to be cultivated, placing 

 the tubers about one foot apart in the rows. In the South 

 they are sometimes planted in corn at the last cultivation. 

 One peck of tubers is needed to plant an acre, and it is better 

 to soak them a few days before planting. 



Chufas are grown mainly in the Southern States. Prac- 

 tically all the " seed " is produced in Georgia, the product 

 in 1909 of 481 acres being 12,531 bushels. The yields 

 seem to vary greatly. At the Arkansas Experiment Sta- 

 tion the product was estimated at 6992 pounds to the acre. 

 At the Alabama Experiment Station the number of 

 tubers in 8 hills were counted and found to average 568. 

 The yield to the acre was determined as 172 bushels green 

 or 115.24 bushels dry. At the Ontario Agricultural Col- 

 lege the yield averaged 22.8 bushels an acre. One bushel 

 weighs 44 pounds. 



