214 FORAGE CROPS. 



first, from the difficulty sometimes found in ridding 

 the land of them, and, second, from the impaction 

 of certain lands which follows harvesting them by 

 swine when those lands are unduly moist. These 

 objections will be further considered elsewhere. 



There are several varieties of the artichoke. 

 But two, however, would seem to have been exten- 

 sively grown on this continent. These are the com- 

 mon Jerusalem artichoke and the French Improved. 

 The first is probably the hardier of the two. The 

 second is more refined, and under favorable condi- 

 tions may be expected to produce larger crops, and 

 it is more easy of eradication. 



Distribution. — But few good plants are of wider 

 distribution than the artichoke. There are few 

 places in the United States or Canada where the soil 

 can be tilled in which this plant cannot be grown suc- 

 cessfully. And yet there are certain areas with 

 much better adaptation to its growth than other 

 areas. As it is a very hardy plant it can be grown 

 on high altitudes, and yet if planted sufficiently 

 early in the season it can be grown in the 

 warmest valleys. 



In considering the highest adaptation in this 

 plant it is necessary to bear several things in mind. 

 These are, first, the soils and climates in which it 

 will grow most readily; second, the soils in which 

 it can be most easily harvested by swine ; third, the 

 soils that will receive the least injury from harvest- 

 ing the crop by swine in the fall or spring; and, 

 fourth, the duration of the season for harvesting. 

 It is very evident, therefore, that localities with con- 

 ditions for producing the largest crops in the 

 abstract are not of necessity the best in all-round 



