No. 4.] ALFALFA GROWING IN MASSACHUSETTS. 119 



Given drainage, a soil filled with air, then limestone, what 

 comes next in the order of essentials to alfalfa culture ? Next 

 I put manure turned down deep under the soil. Once an 

 alfalfa field is established, I never afterward put stable 

 manure on it, but keep it going with chemicals instead ; but 

 I like well to turn under a good coat of manure when I es- 

 tablish a field. The manure does much more than feed the 

 plant, it promotes bacterial life in the soil as well. Where 

 a soil has much manure and much limestone as well, one will 

 find his biggest, healthiest alfalfa; and if he will dig down 

 in the soil he will find immense numbers of nodules contain- 

 ing the nitrifying bacteria. As alfalfa needs to be estab- 

 lished only once in five or more years, one can afford to give 

 it a lot of manure when he lays it down. 



Next in order of importance I put phosphorus and potash. 

 Alfalfa draws heavily on the soil for these mineral elements. 

 I like to use basic slag for this purpose. Five hundred 

 pounds to the acre seems with me to do as well at the outset as 

 more, but as it is a fairly cheap substance, and does not leach 

 away from the soil, one can just as well apply 1,000 pounds 

 to the acre, and it will be all the better for it. For the 

 potash, one can use either muriate or sulphate, whichever is 

 the cheaper, and at rates of from 200 pounds per acre up, 

 depending upon the soil. Soils derived from granite rocks, 

 and good heavy clays, ought not to need much potash. Sandy 

 soils and peaty soils will need more. It is an element that 

 does not leach away ; once applied, it is yours until the plants 

 get it, that is, except on very sandy soils. On these, no 

 doubt, frequent small applications will prove better than 

 occasional large ones. 



Inoculation comes next in order. I like to take soil from 

 a good alfalfa field and sow it directly in front of a harrow 

 at the rate of about 400 pounds to the acre, or more if it is 

 readily available. That gives efiicient inoculation, or one 

 can use the commercial cultures on the seed. I think that 

 these cultures are now generally successful. They cost more 

 than does the method of soil inoculation; that is their only 

 fault I think. Or one can use both soil and seed inoculation, 

 and that is the best way of all. The better the inoculation 



