temher 5. It may, tlierefore, take the place of the first seeding of 

 peas and oats, and the second seeding of barnyard millet. Alfalfa 

 has thus far proved itself an uncertain crop in Massachusetts. It 

 occasionally winter kills, and is quite likely to be partially replaced 

 by the grasses after two or three years. It is very nutritious and 

 highly relished by stock, and farmers are advised to try It as an ex- 

 periment at first, rather than as a sure crop for green forage in a 

 sequence with others. The following points are important and must 

 be observed : 



1. Do not try to grow it on land with a hard'pan subsoil, or where 

 the water table is within six or eight feet of the surface. It needs 

 well-drained land, free from hollows that will permit of standing 

 water. 



2. The land should be in a good state of fertility. Apply a ton 

 of lime to the acre, preferably in the autumn and harrow thoroughly; 

 plow in a fair dressing of barnyard manure' in the spring, and like- 

 wise add 800 pounds of basic slag, 300 pounds of high grade sulfate 

 of potash and 100 pounds of nitrate of soda to the acre. Apply also 

 a few hundred pounds of soil secured from an old alfalfa field. The 

 land should be well fitted, the soil being made almost as fine as for 

 an onion bed. The seed may be sown in early May at the rate of 

 30 pounds to the acre, together with one-half bushel of oats as a 

 nurse crop, the latter checking the growth of weeds. Cutting should 

 begin just as the first blossoms appear. If allowed to stand late, it 

 is very likely to be attacked by blight, and is also less digestible. 

 If more is obtained than is needed for soiling, it may be cured in 

 the same manner as described for clover. 



3. If sown in the spring with oats, the first cutting may be ex- 

 pected about July 20, and another in early September. It is doubt- 

 ful if more than two comparatively light crops are secured the first 

 season. After the last cutting a growth of six to eight inches will 

 generally take place, which may be allowed to stand as a winter 

 mulch. 



4. Another method tried with success at this station consists in 

 plowing the land in the spring, and applying the lime at once, to be 

 followed by frequent harrowings until late July to kill the weeds. 

 The manure' and fertilizer should then be added, the land harrowed 



' If land is rich, manure may be omitted. 



