Peoceedixgs of the Farmers' Club. 633 



When to Sow Clover. 



Mr. .J. D. Ackerman, Union city, Michigan, asked " if 'it will do 

 to sow clover abont the middle of June with bnekwheat and get a 

 good catch ? I have a field I wish to seed. The laiid is too wet to 

 get in proper condition earlj enough for oats. Would it do any bet- 

 ter with Hungarian grass V 



• Mr. S. Edwards Todd. — Leave out the buckwheat and sow the 

 grass seed alone. The best way to seed down is not to plant any crop 

 at all. 



Mr. Wm. S. Carpenter. — I .have sown clover seed as late as 1st 

 June. If sown with buckwheat or rye the seed is more sure to take 

 and look well ; and where w^eds alone accompany the grass seed they 

 are very apt to destroy it in my experience. 



Mr. S. Edwards Todd. — With all respect to Mr. Carpenter, I say 

 that there is a good deal of error in regard to seeding farms. The 

 farmers have had it driven into them that they must sow something 

 with the grass seed before they can get a catch. I thought so at first 

 myself, but I have changed my opinion. It is better to sow the seed 

 alone on prepared ground ; the difliculty in securing the catch arises 

 from not having the ground properly prepared. The ground wants 

 to be prepared as for a carrot bed. The seeds are very small and ten- 

 der and cannot grapple with lumps. The ground must be pulverized. 

 Whenever a load of hay is turned over in the streets, how the seed 

 will spring up on the hard beaten path. 



Mr. P. T. Quinn. — What time would you sow it ? 



Mr. S. Edwards Todd. — Whenever I got the ground ready. If it 

 were not under a state of pulverization till July I would wait then. 



Mr. Wm. S. Carpenter.— It is hardly safe to put in grass much 

 after July. If accompanied with grain it is more likeh" to succeed. 



Mr. Louis Brenelt, Xew York city, wrote to ofler a few suggestions 

 to the club. He said : " While a grain crop is growing and begin- 

 ning to bloom, but very little strength is taken from the ground, but 

 when the grain i'^/pens the ground becomes impoverished. In like 

 manner, when grass for hay is left to bear seed, the soil is similarly 

 afiected. But the soil is most impoverished by raising plants of 

 which the seed produces oil. A better crop of wheat can be raised 

 without manure, after clover mowed in blossom, than can be raised 

 even vvdien the ground is well manured after clover mowed in seed. 

 Most farmers let their hay get too ripe, by which they hurt their 

 land more than they are aware of, and thus the soil becomes so poor 



