GROWING LEGUMES IN DRY AREAS 319 



for horses still later. It is raked as soon as the rake will 

 readily do the work. It is drawn into small winrows 

 and lifted from these onto the wagon when cured, or it 

 is stacked by the aid of other machinery of modern con- 

 struction, as the bull rake and stacker. In other in- 

 stances the winrows are put up in small cocks to com- 

 plete the curing. In dry areas the first cutting may 

 sometimes be injured by rain, but this will seldom hap- 

 pen with the second cutting. 



Harvesting for seed. Dry land conditions frequently 

 show high adaptation for the production of alfalfa seed. 

 Excessive rankness in the growth of the plants and wet 

 weather when the plants are in bloom are adverse to the 

 growth of alfalfa seed. The same is true of plants that 

 grow too thickly on the ground. The best seed crops are 

 obtained from plants young and strong and growing well 

 apart. Because of the influence which ample space has 

 on the production of seed, the 'practise of growing seed 

 in dry areas that is obtained from plants grown in rows 

 and cultivated is meeting with much favor. This method 

 of growing the seed, however, has not as yet been carried 

 beyond the tentative stage, but much is expected from it. 



The following are among the indications of a prob- 

 able shortage in the seed crop: (1) blooms not numer- 

 ous, and light in color; (2) blooms that do not fertilize, 

 but fall off from the plants; (3) the production of only 

 one or two weak and small pods in a flower truss. When 

 these and some other indications that may be given are 

 present, the crop should be cut for hay. In areas north 

 of the latitude of Denver, the first cutting frequently 

 furnishes the best seed crop, but this does not always 

 follow. The crop should be cut for seed when a majority 

 of the seeds have turned brown. The stems, notwith- 

 standing, will still be green. If allowed to stand too 

 long, there will be much loss through shattering of the 

 pods, and this condition is intensified by rain. When 



