LUCKUNK IX THE TRANSVAAL. 37 



United States, in some places with a rainfall of 65 inches ; but 

 under these conditions it does not, and indeed cannot, give such 

 -satisfactory results as in regions of greater warmth and more sun- 

 shine. It is essentially a sunshine-loving plant ; but a certain 

 .amount of frost, while it retards growth, does no harm to the stand. 

 Any danger of injurious effect from a severe frost may be reduced 

 by the application of, a winter irrigation. 



IMPORTANCE. 



The wide distribution of lucerne is an indication of its import- 

 ance, but anyone who has seen the enormous stretches of country 

 in California and Argentina, which are devoted almost exclusively 

 to this crop, cannot fail to be impressed by it. One California 

 grower alone has no less than 20,000 acres under lucerne. 



Governor Hoard of Wisconsin writes: " No one more liter- 

 ally abets the growth of two blades of grass where one grew before 

 than he who effectively urges the cultivation of alfalfa upon those 

 who are strangers to it, and no one is more truly working for the 

 benefit of agriculture, the basis of all prosperity, than he who pro- 



claims its excellence as the foremost forage." 



Its value lies in its high nutritive qualities, its heavy yield, its 

 perennial character, and the longevity of well-cared-for stands. 



PARTS OF THE TRANSVAAL BEST SUITED 

 TO LUCERNE. 



In general terms it may be stated that lucerne will grow any- 

 where in the Transvaal, provided the soil is suitable. But it would 

 not be safe to start laying down large areas, even on suitable soils, 

 in every district in this Colony. 



The most satisfactory results have been obtained on the deep, 

 alluvial soils, in the valleys of rivers having their rises in, or 



- having tributaries from, the Dolomite. There are some excellent 

 lucerne lands of considerable size along the Yaal and Mooi 

 Rivers. 



On the western slopes of the Drakensberg, in the eastern por- 

 tion of the Carolina, Ermelo and Wakkerstroom districts, the 

 attempts at lucerne growing have not been very successful, and it 

 is possible that Dutch clover (Tvifolium repens) will there give better 

 results. At Piet Retief, however, a few good crops of lucerne have 

 In 1 en grown. 



On the Springbok Flats in the Waterberg District, in parts of 

 ZoutpanVuei-o; West, and in much of the South-western Transvaal, 

 a good deal of diilr.-ulty has been experienced in establishing stands 

 of lucerne on dry land, on account of the uncertainty of the rainfall 

 and the intensity of the heat during dryspells, which burns up the 

 seedlings. When irrigation can be practised this trouble need not 

 be feared. 



