284 ALFALFA FARMING IN AMERICA. 
be plowed deeply and made mellow. It is then laid 
off in furrows parallel to each other and spaced ac- 
cording to the soil from 12” to 2’ or 3’ apart. Vari- 
ous implements are in use for opening these furrows. 
It is often done with a common plow, making rather 
shallow furrows as close together as may be neces- 
sary, or a special implement with several large 
shovels affixed to a frame is used; this opens fur- 
rows exactly parallel. A roller with ridges turned 
to fit the furrows sometimes follows these plow 
shovels and makes very smooth, even furrows down 
which water may flow very nicely. 
The reader may wonder why these furrows are 
made if the land is to be flooded. It can not be 
flooded until the alfalfa is well established. 
Sowimg Alfalfa on Irrigable Land—The next 
thing to consider is sowing the seed and getting a 
stand. Here one may as well forget all that he has 
known of alfalfa in the East. None of the condi- 
tions are the same. In the arid regions one need not 
trouble to inoculate; as a rule inoculation comes of 
itself, we do not know how. He can sow in the early 
spring to good advantage; later the sun is rather 
hot and irrigation more difficult, though if that can 
be effected it is as well to sow late as early. 
Fertilization is unknown, as the desert soils are 
rich already in lime, some of them having in them 
as much as 4 per cent of carbonate of lime, or as 
much as 75 tons to the acre in the top foot of soil 
alone. They are also rich in phosphorus, in potash, 
in nearly everything that alfalfa desires. 
