154 ALFALFA 



the surface the more water is required, and it some- 

 times needs to be irrigated every eight days. The 

 plant is at its best, usually, in one year from seeding, 

 and continues vigorous for ten to fifteen years. There 

 are three crops each season, yielding about two and a 

 half tons, two tons, and one ton, respedliyely. The 

 second cutting is sometimes used for seed, but gener- 

 ally the first. As soon as the pods turn black, and 

 the seed is ripe, it is cut with a common reaper, and 

 thrown aside so that • the seed will not be run over. 

 When it is dry, it is thrashed with the ordinary 

 thrashing-machine. The hay is cut as soon as it 

 blooms, and raked while green into small bunches that 

 can be handled in one forkful. It is best stacked 

 with open-sided and shingle or lumber topped sheds. 

 Bales weighing one hundred pounds are preferred for 

 market, and the cost of preparing them is $2.25 a ton. 

 The total cost of alfalfa in the stack, on $30 land, is 

 about $2 per ton. The hay is better for mutton and 

 beef than clover or timothy, but it is not so good for 

 driving-horses. My alfalfa has been used for feeding 

 beef, and I found that I could do as well with it as 

 with hay and corn, and the stock are very fond of it. 

 It is superior for feeding calves and young stock, and 

 we use it, after it is stacked, for feeding swine. The 

 pasturage is better for swine than clover, but it is best 

 to cut it and feed it to them. The hay and water will 

 keep them growing well. The thrashed straw is worth 

 about one-half as much as that cut green for hay 

 alone. There is some diflSculty in clearing land of the 

 plant, because the roots are so hard to break up." 



