CROPS AND SOIL IMPROVEMENT 



crop. It is more hardy than crimson clover, and 

 is grown as far north as winter wheat. The seed- 

 ing is made in August in the north, and when grown 

 for hay or seed, it needs rye or wheat to hold it up. 

 Rye and vetch make a rich and early green forage 

 crop, and the proportion in which they are seeded 

 varies widely in practice. Six pecks of rye and 

 15 pounds of vetch make an excellent seeding 

 per acre. 



When grown for seed, one to two pecks of rye 

 and 20 to 30 pounds of vetch may be used. The 

 rye can be fairly well separated from the vetch 

 by use of a fanning-mill or an endless belt of felt 

 so inclined that the round vetch seed will roll 

 down, while the rye sticks to the felt and is carried 

 over. 



Vetch is excellent as a fertilizing crop, adding a 

 great amount of nitrogen to the soil when plowed 

 down in May. If the seed were cheap, its use 

 would become much more common. Thirty 

 pounds should be used when seeding alone after 

 summer crops or in corn. Farmers should pro- 

 duce the seed for their farms, and use it freely. 

 When sown for seed, September first is a good 

 date for the north. The seed matures in June. 



As vetch matures with wheat, it may easily 

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