ON LIVE STOCK FOOD 



place has the color intensified to a bright, rich 

 crimson, which has been reproduced exactly from 

 seed. This is probably a species introduced from 

 South America. A very marked tendency to varia- 

 tion is shown by a large number of clovers when 

 brought to California from distant regions. 

 THE COMING OF THE ALFALFA 



Doubtless the most important of the clover 

 importations of recent years is the plant that has 

 become familiar as the alfalfa. 



This is a form of clover, of which there are 

 several species and almost innumerable varieties, 

 that is adaptable to relatively arid regions, inas- 

 much as it sends its roots to a depth of sometimes 

 ten or even fifteen feet in search of moisture and 

 nutriment. Such a plant, once it has attained a 

 fair growth, is almost independent of the rainfall 

 for months together. Moreover, the vigor of root 

 of the alfalfa is duplicated by the complementary 

 growth of its foliage, which develops so rapidly 

 and so persistently that it may be cut three, four, 

 and even five times in the season, depending upon 

 climate. 



The enormous productivity of alfalfa, together 

 with its adaptability to arid regions, led to glowing 

 predictions as to the importance of this new for- 

 age crop, when it was first introduced a few years 

 ago. In the southwestern part of the country the 



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