316 DRY FARMING 



of the state and may be used as a permanent meadow or 

 may be treated as if it were a short-lived crop and used 

 in the rotation. Experiments conducted at the State 

 Agricultural College experiment farms in various parts 

 of the state indicate that a three-year rotation of corn, 

 small grain and sweet clover is very satisfactory. This 

 rotation is easy to take care of and is satisfactory from 

 the economic or business standpoint. It is also a good 

 rotation for maintaining the soil in good condition. It 

 is handled about as follows : the land is divided into three 

 parts approximately equal, the first field is plowed 6 or 

 8 inches deep in the fall. In the spring this field is har- 

 rowed to break up the lumps and level the ground. About 

 the first of May or a little later, it is double disked to 

 further pulverize the seed bed and kill weeds. It is then 

 harrowed again and planted to corn, potatoes or whatever 

 cultivated crop may be desired. This crop receives 

 thorough cultivation, usually from three to five cultiva- 

 tions during the season to keep it as free from weeds as 

 possible. The following year this land is double disked 

 and dragged in the spring without plowing and is sown 

 to an early maturing variety of grain with 10 or 15 

 pounds of sweet clover per acre. If alfalfa is preferred, 

 it may be substituted for the sweet clover. The grain 

 crop is harvested leaving the stubble to protect the clover 

 or alfalfa plants during the second winter. The third 

 year this field will be producing sweet clover or alfalfa. 

 A crop of sweet clover hay will be ready to cut by the 

 10th to the 15th of June. A seed crop will be ready late 

 in August or early in September. If in alfalfa the crop 

 will be cut from one to three times according to the abun- 

 dance of moisture during the season. It is not best to 

 cut it after the first of September as the alfalfa is more 



