126 AGRICULTURE 



Clover seed. A great deal of the trouble found in 

 securing a good stand of red clover comes from poor seed. 

 Good red-clover seed should (1) be plump, and not shriv- 

 eled; (2) look bright instead of dull; (3) vary in color 

 from violet to light yellow, but not be a dull brown; (4) 

 show individual seeds medium to large size; (5) be free 

 from all weed seed and rubbish ; (6) be free from what 

 is called "hard" seed. By hard seed is meant grains whose 

 seed coat is such that the seed absorbs moisture but slowly 

 and hence may not germinate for several weeks or even 

 months. The seed of very new varieties may contain as 

 much as fifty to sixty per cent, of hard seed. 



As is the case with most other farm crops, it is safer to 

 secure clover seed from near home than from a distance. 

 In this way one may be sure that the variety is adapted 

 to the vicinity, and that the seed does not contain noxious 

 weeds and other impurities. 



Cleaning red-clover seed. Ordinary red-clover seed 

 contains many different kinds of weed seeds. Some of 

 these look enough like clover grains that they may pass 

 unnoticed. Sowing clover mixed with weeds not only 

 reduces the stand of clover, but compels the clover to divide 

 its moisture and food with its worst enemies, besides ren- 

 dering the ground foul for other crops. 



Screening red-clover seed through a sieve with twenty 

 meshes to the inch will remove all the smaller weed seeds, 

 while retaining the medium-sized and larger clover grains. 

 Seeds of wild carrot, ragweed, thistles, buckthorn, wild 

 chickory, and several other weeds bearing large seeds are 

 not removed in this way. Clover seed should first of all 

 be selected from a field that is as free as possible from 

 weeds. Even then, screening will pay, however, for the 

 removal of the smaller clover and weed seeds. 



