FARM MANAGEMENT IN THE OZARKS. 25 



TIMOTHY AND CLOVER. 



Timothy and clover are the main hay crops at present, and both 

 do well in good seasons. The humus content of the soil is very low 

 on some farms, and where such is the case it is difficult to get a good 

 growth of clover. However, clover does well where the soils are 

 kept in good condition by a proper system of crop rotation and 

 pasturing. For greater assurance of a crop of hay most farmers 

 make it a practice to plant both timothy and clover in seeding 

 meadows. 



ALFALFA, SOY BEANS, AND COWPEAS. 



A very limited area was planted to alfalfa, soy beans, and cow- 

 peas. A few operators were found raising a few acres of alfalfa with 

 moderate success on the better grades of soil. If the known pre- 

 cautions against acidity are taken and the soil inoculated, the area 

 can be profitably increased. In establishing alfalfa liberal application 

 of stable manure has been found necessary on most of the farms. 

 Soy beans were also grown by a few of the farmers from whom records 

 were obtained, usually a limited area in corn for silage, and in two 

 or three instances as a separate hay crop. The acreage of this crop 

 could well be increased, both for the purposes just mentioned and 

 also as a grazing crop for hogs. Cowpeas do well, and make an 

 excellent hay. They could be sown to advantage with the sorghum 

 and millet hay, and the quality of the hay would be greatly improved 

 without materially decreasing the tonnage. Certainly, more legumi- 

 nous crops should be raised, both because of their soil-building powers 

 and also to afford additional feed for stock. The price of concen- 

 trates, cotton-seed meal, bran, linseed meal, etc., is extremely high, 

 and many of the operators have abandoned feeding them. Unless 

 satisfactory substitutes are used, this can not be done without 

 suffering a loss both in milk production and in growth of stock, and 

 also a loss of returns from the other feeds fed. With an abundant 

 supply of leguminous hays, clover, alfalfa, soy bean, or cowpea, a 

 satisfactory balanced ration can be provided by feeding them in 

 conjunction with sorghum or corn silage, or other hays with some 

 corn. 



KAFIR, MILLET, AND SORGHUM FOR HAY. 



Most of the farms studied had an acreage of sorghum, kafir corn, 

 or millet, as an auxiliary hay crop, because the droughts at times 

 almost entirely ruin the meadow hay crop. In view of the drought- 

 resisting qualities of the sorghums, they undoubtedly will receive 

 much consideration in the future cropping systems of this area. 

 Sudan grass is also worthy of consideration in the arrangement, of 

 profitable cropping systems in this area. Where such a practice 

 has been adopted the farmers have available for other purposes a 

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