OTHER LEGUMES AND CATCH CROPS 



become a weed on farms devoted largely to small 

 grain, but it is not to be feared where tilled crops 

 and sods are the chief consideration. Inoculation 

 is needed for best results, as in the case with other 

 legumes new to a region. 



Sweet Clover. Much interest has been 

 aroused within recent years in sweet clover, a 

 legume that formerly was regarded as a more or 

 less pernicious weed. Its friends regard it as a 

 promising forage crop, but too little is definitely 

 known to permit its advocacy here except as a 

 soil-builder in the case of poor land that is not too 

 deficient in lime to permit good growth. Ex- 

 periments have shown that a taste for this bitter 

 plant can be acquired by livestock, and it is nearly 

 as nutritious as alfalfa when cut before it becomes 

 coarse and woody. It is a strong grower, sending 

 its roots well down into the subsoil, and its great 

 ability to secure nitrogen from the air enables it 

 to make a very heavy growth of top. The yield 

 in forage usually exceeds that of the clovers. 



Its most peculiar characteristic is its ability 

 to thrive in a poor, compact soil that contains 

 little humus. It may be seen in thrifty condition 

 on roadsides and in waste places that seemingly 

 would not support other plants. Laying aside all 



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