1 76 VARIETIES OF FOOD. 



In the cultivation of lucerne, which is not an unimportant 

 branch of stable economy, we should bear in mind that the 

 young shoots grow perpendicularly upwards from the rhizome 

 (rootstock), and thus leave spaces which are liable to be 

 occupied by grass and weeds that will more or less choke and 

 impoverish the plants. Hence, in the sowing of lucerne, care 

 should be taken to obtain pure seed and clean soil. The best 

 preparatory crop is roots or potatoes which have been well 

 manured. " After harvesting the preparatory crop, the ground 

 is prepared as thoroughly and as deeply as possible. The 

 subsoil-plough may be used, or two ploughs can be passed 

 through the same furrow, the one to turn the surface soil and 

 the other to stir the subsoil. This preparation of the subsoil 

 is essential, if the land is at all firm. Lucerne is usually sown 

 about the end of April or the beginning of May, when there 

 is no danger of late frost, which acts injuriously upon the 

 young plants. Late sowing also has its risks, as the fly which 

 comes in with the warm weather is equally injurious " (Stebler 

 and Schroter). It is well to sow in drills, so as to facilitate 

 weeding ; and Sutton tells us that the seed must not be deeply 

 buried. In the event of manure being required, Stebler and 

 Schroter advise the employment of 40 or 60 Ib. of nitrate of 

 soda on each acre, and point out that a dressing of stable dung 

 is not only a waste of manure, but is actually hurtful, because 

 it greatly favours the growth of weeds. Sutton recommends 

 three cwt. of superphosphate per acre. " Its duration varies 

 from 3 to 20 years and depends upon the nature of the soil 

 and climate. In climates where the soil is warm and deep, 

 fields of lucerne from 12 to 15 years are quite common ; some 

 fields are in their twentieth or even their twenty-fifth year and 

 still the plants are good. If the conditions are unfavour- 

 able, the plants usually die out within a period of 3 years. 

 Cultivation is only profitable when a ley of 5 or 6 years' 

 duration can be relied upon. At the end of the ley, the land 



