SERICEA AND OTHER PERENNIAL LESPEDEZAS 



15 



in some areas the number of stems per square foot was deter- 

 mined in the field and was found to range from 68 to 98, with the 

 exception of 188 in one very dense stand. The number of crowns 

 could not be determined, but it was clear that there were 2 or 

 more stems to every crown, making the probable number of 

 plants 25 to 35. In one area what appeared to be a good stand 

 in full growth was found to have 10 to 15 crowns per square foot. 



It seems reasonable to conclude that whenever an average of 20 

 to 30 plants per square foot are present at the end of the first 

 season a good stand may be expected. In some cases a stand of 

 no more than 10 to 15 plants per square foot may develop into 

 a satisfactory stand. If this conclusion is correct many stands 

 that do not look very good at the end of the first season should 

 not be destroyed as they may develop into satisfactory stands 

 later. 



Table 2 shows the results of a rate of seeding trial at Arlington 

 Experiment Farm in 1932. The seedings were made in April and 

 the number of plants per square foot was checked in September. 

 Some of the hulled seed appears to have been scarified a'so in 

 hulling. 



Table 2. — Plants per square foot from seedings at designated 

 rates, Arlington Experiment Farm, Va., 1932 



Seeding 



rate 

 (pounds 

 per acre) 



Plants per square foot 

 from — 



Seeding 



rate 

 (pounds 

 per acre) 



Plants per square foot 

 from — 



Un- 



hulled 

 seed 



Hulled 

 seed 



Scari- 

 fied 

 seed 



Un- 



hulled 



seed 



Hulled 

 seed 



Scari- 

 fied 

 S3ed 



5 



10 



Number 

 ~~6~ 



Number 

 14 

 32 



Number 



9 



26 



15 



30 



Number 

 10 

 12 



Number 

 37 

 33 



Number 

 32 

 40 



HAY FROM SERICEA 



Good hay can be made from sericea, but it must be cut early. 

 When cut early sericea hay is leafy, has a good light-green color, 

 and is eaten w^th relish and Lttle waste. Up to the time the stems 

 are about a foot high very little wood has developed. At this 

 time the cell walls in the lower part of the stem begin to lignify 

 and this condition spreads upward so that when the plant is 2 feet 

 high most of the stem contains a great deal of woody tissue. 

 This naturally increases the weight of material but decreases the 

 quality. 



Sprmg growth is rapid, and if cut early hay of excellent quality 

 can be made. The time that this growth reaches a desirable 

 height for cutting will, of course, vary with the latitude, but the 

 first growth should be cut when Irom 10 to 15 inches high 

 (fig. 5). Possibly the limits at which cutting should be done may 

 be said to be 10 inches for the best hay and 15 inches for fair to good 



