ALFALFA 143 



the food value of the plant, and are easily crumbled and 

 lost if the hay gets too dry. 



Probably the best plan is to cock the hay when the stems 

 are about half dry, stacking it when moisture no longer 

 shows as a wisp of the plant is twisted by the finger. In 

 regions where frequent rains are the rule during the hay- 

 ing season, it pays to have haycock covers consisting of 

 squares of muslin to the corners of which weights are at- 

 tached, or pins to thrust into the hay or the ground. 



7. Enemies of Alfalfa 



Weed enemies. 'Undoubtedly weeds are the worst 

 enemies of alfalfa in most parts of the country. This is 

 particularly true throughout the West and Southwest. 

 Among the weed enemies are witch-grass, crab-grass in the 

 West, blue-grass and foxtail throughout the Middle West 

 and the barleys in the far West. Cultivation with the 

 spring-tooth harrow or disk is the best means of killing 

 most of the weeds. 



An especially troublesome weed among alfalfa is dodder. 

 Dodder is a plant which twines itself about the alfalfa seed- 

 lings, soon attaching its threadlike stems firmly to the 

 alfalfa plant. The dodder stem then withers away near 

 the ground and the dodder continues to live as a parasite 

 on the alfalfa. It is almost impossible to exterminate dodder 

 when it has once secured a foothold in an alfalfa field. 

 Turning sheep into the field to graze is one remedy for this 

 pest. Another is to cut the alfalfa very low or even remove 

 it entirely on any spots in the field where dodder starts. 



Insect enemies. Alfalfa does not have so wide a 

 range of insect enemies as some of the other farm plants. 

 The alfalfa weevil and grasshoppers are probably the worst 



