52 



1471. Medic ago sativa. Alfalfa. 



From France. Received through Mr. W. T. Swingle, December, 1898. (9 pack- 

 ages.) 



" Luzerne rustique" (hardy lucern). 



" Medicago falcata- sativa." 



"Perennial, intermediate between the ordinary lucern and the Swedish lucern 

 (M. falcata); very vigorous, very hardy, accommodating itself better than the cul- 

 tivated or ordinary lucern to mediocre, dry, and shallow soils and to arid lands; but 

 it is somewhat later and does not come up again so quickly; appreciated in certain 

 localities in Germany, where it has begun to spread." ( Vilmorin.) 



The seed weighs 58 to 62 pounds per bushel; 18 to 22 pounds is sown per acre. 



1472. Medic ago lupulina. Black medic. 



From France. Received through Mr. W. T. Swingle, December, 1898. (8 pack- 

 ages.) 



"Luzerne lupuline." "Minette." 



"An annual or biennial clover, widely grown as a pasture plant in wot meadows 

 and on stiff, clayey soils which are too poor to grow alfalfa or clover. On rich, 

 moist soil it sometimes makes an enormous growth, but ordinarily its growth is in 

 pastures. It is sometimes recommended to be sown mixed with white clover for 

 lawns, as it remains green through the driest summers." (Jared G. Smith.) 



"Biennial; cultivated alone or mixed with grains, also with clover or other plants. 

 Forage fine, of good quality; used also like clover on lands of mediocre quality, 

 arid, calcareous, chalky, or sandy; pasture early, very good for sheep. It can not 

 be mown, but after pasturing it comes up rapidly under the teeth of the animals. 

 To be sown with the March cereals; in the South it may be sown in September or 

 October." (Vilmorin.) 



The seed weighs 58 to 62 pounds per bushel; 13 to 18 pounds is required per acre. 



1473. Madia sativa. Madia. 



From France. Received through Mr. W. T. Swingle, December, 1898. (9 pack- 

 ages.) 



"Madia du Chile." 



"A rank-growing annual, native of both Chile and California, which has been 

 recommended as furnishing an excellent summer sheep forage. The leaves are 

 clammy, with a viscid exudation, and the plant has a rank odor. Its chief merit is 

 its rapid growth. It is cultivated in the arid Southwest and California and makes 

 a palatable and nutritious food for sheep. An excellent lubricating oil is extracted 

 from the seeds." (Jared G. Smith.) 



"Annual. Very good plant to plow under as green fertilizer. Good pasture for 

 sheep, which accommodate themselves also very well to the dry straw after the 

 removal of the seeds, which are oleaginous. 



"The Madia sativa is quite hardy, resisting the winter, especially in wholesome and 

 light soils lying southward. It is able to bear drought, but it shuns cold and damp 

 soils. It is an early plant of a rapid growth, productive of seed, not very choice as 

 to the quality of its territory and meriting cultivation in spite of its strong, dis- 

 agreeable odor and the viscous nature of its leaves, inconveniences of small impor- 

 tance which may even become advantageous in keeping off the insects. To be sown 

 from the middle of March to the beginning of June, or also in autumn, especially in 

 the South." (Vilmorin.) 



The seed weighs 35 to 39 pounds per bushel; 7 to 9 pounds per acre is required 

 if sown in rows, and 16 to 18 pounds if broadcast. 



1474. Melilotus officinalis. Hungarian melilot. 



From France. Received through Mr. W. T. Swingle, December, 1898. (11 pack- 

 ages.) 

 "Melilot grand des bois" (large wood melilot). "Melilot de Hongrie." 

 " Melilot us linearis Poir." 



"Biennial, productive, succeeds in poor lands but especially on such as are fertile 

 and humid, along streams and rivers, etc. ; quality of forage contested." ( Vilmorin.) 

 Twenty-two pounds is generally sown per acre. 



