ANNUAL HAY AND FORAGE CROPS 289 



will not be serious. When oats and peas are drilled together, it is best 

 to drill the peas first, after which the oats may be drilled at right angles 

 to the peas and not so deeply. Since the oats come up more promptly 

 than the peas, some advocate deferring drilling the oats until three or four 

 days after drilling the peas. 



Harvesting. — Peas are ordinarily cut with a mowing machine when the 

 first pods are full grown but not yet filled. At this time they make an 

 excellent quality of hay. They are cured in the same manner as clover or 

 timothy. Care should be taken to prevent loss of leaves by shattering 

 and injury from rain. 



Other Annual Legumes. — The Velvet Bean is a rank growing vine 

 requiring seven to eight months to mature seeds, and is especially adapted 

 as a cover crop in Florida and along the Gulf Coast. 



The Beggar Weed is also well adapted to the extreme South and is 

 utilized both as forage and for cover crop purposes. It is adapted to light, 

 sandy soils, and when seeded thickly, can be converted into hay or silage. 

 It grows six to ten feet high and is relished by all kinds of livestock. 



Sorghum. — The non-saccharine sorghums were discussed under the 

 head of Kaffir corn. The sweet sorghums, of which there are a number of 

 varieties, are utilized for forage purposes as well as for the manufacture of 

 molasses. The sweet sorghums are not so drought resistant as the non- 

 saccharine sorghums, and a small acreage may be advantageously grown on 

 many livestock farms east of the semi-arid region. 



The season of growth is similar to that of corn and the plant demands 

 the same kind of soil and methods of treatment. When used for hay, it 

 should be seeded thickly either by broadcasting or by drilling with a wheat 

 drill, using 70 to 100 pounds of seed per acre. 



The Early Amber is considered the best variety for general purposes. 



Sorghum should be cut for hay when the seeds turn black. It may be 

 cut with a mowing machine the same as any hay crop. Best results are 

 secured by putting it into large shocks and allowing it to remain until 

 thoroughly cured. If cut too early or stacked before the weather becomes 

 quite cool, it is likely to sour and make a poor quality of hay. 



Millet. — There are three common varieties of millet: German, Hun- 

 garian and common millet. The common millet is drought resistant and 

 grows well on rather poor soil. It matures in from two to three months. 

 It makes a good quality of hay and can be fed with less loss than the coarser 

 varieties. 



The German variety is the largest and latest maturing variety. It 

 will outyield common millet, but is not so drought resistant. 



Hungarian millet is about midway between the common and German 

 millet as regards time of maturity, drought resistance and yield. Its tend- 

 ency to produce a volunteer growth has brought it somewhat into disfavor. 



The millets may be seeded any time after the soil is thoroughly warm. 

 In latitude 40 degrees north, German millet should be seeded the last week 



19 



