52 HATCH EXPERIMENT STATION. [Jan. 



had been cropped for many years without application of 

 manure or fertilizer of any kind. On the other plots, which 

 had been well manured in preceding years, it would not be 

 strange should a good yield be obtained on the north half, 

 even although the manure spread there during the winter 

 may have suffered serious loss. The fact that the difference 

 between the north and south halves of plot 1 during the 

 past two years is less than on any of the other plots, serves 

 to confirm this view ; for it will be remembered that plot 1 

 had yearly received a fairly liberal application of barnyard 

 manure for a long series of years previous to the beginning 

 of this experiment. 



XIV. — Alfalfa as a Forage Crop. 



There is at the present time so mucli interest in alfalfa as 

 a forage crop that attention is called to the fact that. the 

 results obtained at this station have been distinctly un- 

 favorable. Alfalfa has been under trial in a small way for 

 a considerable number of j^ears, and we have never succeeded 

 in obtaining results encouraging to its general introduction. 



It is well known that alfalfa thrives best on soils where 

 the water level is well below the surface, and where the 

 texture of the sub-soil is not too compact. We have not 

 perhaps an ideal soil for alfalfa on the college estate. It 

 has been tried, however, on a considerable number of fields, 

 some of which it would seem must possess soil with the 

 right characteristics. It is known, further, that for success 

 with alfalfa the soil must be rich in lime. Our soils are not 

 naturally rich in this constituent. In one of the experiments 

 of the past few years which will now be briefly described 

 we have made a heavy application of lime to one-half of 

 the plot. 



A. — Alfalfa on Campus Slope. 



The field known as campus slope falls off gradually toward 

 the west, affording perfect surface drainage. The surface 

 soil is fine, medium loam, which gives excellent crops of 

 potatoes, corn or clover. The sub-soil to the depth of three 

 or four feet is of the same general character as the surface 



