SWEET CLOVER : GROWING THE CROP. 



21 



for seeding on a field scale is not to be recommended, in view of 

 the fact that as good or better results may be obtained by using 

 scarified seed. 



It is very important that seed of the desired species be obtained. 

 Many lots of sweet-clover seed offered for sale on the market consist 

 of mixtures of the yellow and white species, and many samples also 

 are adulterated with alfalfa. Seed which is simply labeled sweet 

 clover should never be purchased, as seed so labeled may be any one 

 of the several varieties offered for sale. It is always best to state 

 the specific kind of seed ordered and then submit a sample to either 

 your State agricultural experiment station or one of the seed labora- 

 tories of the United States Department of Agriculture 1 for identi- 

 fication before purchasing. 



The Seed Laboratory of the United States Department of Agri- 

 culture during the winter of 1915-16 obtained 172 trade samples of 

 sweet-clover seed and, as may be seen from Table II, many of the 

 samples were not true to name. 



TABLE II. Trade samples reef ircd in response to requests for white sweet 



dorer seed. 



PREPARATION OF THE SEED BED. 



Sweet clover requires a well-settled and firm seed bed, with just 

 sufficient loose soil on the surface to permit the seed to be well 

 covered. When the seed is sown in the spring on winter grain 



1 Samples of seed may be submitted for analysis or identification to the Seed Laboratory 

 of the United States Department of Agriculture at Washington, D. C., or to any of the 

 following laboratories maintained through the cooperation of the Department : Branch 

 Seed-Testing Laboratory, Agricultural Experiment Station, Columbia, Mo. ; Branch Seed- 

 Testing Laboratory, Agricultural Experiment Station, Baton Rouge, La. ; Branch Seed- 

 Testing Laboratory, Oregon Agricultural College, Corvallis, Oreg. ; Branch Seed-Testing 

 Laboratory, Purdue University, La Fayette, Ind. ; Branch Seed-Testing Laboratory, 

 California Agricultural Experiment Station, Berkeley, Cal. 



