EXPERIMENTS WITH ALFALFA. 27 



Of the persons replying to the inquiries, 221 have stands of alfalfa that yield more 

 than 4 tons of cured hay per acre each season, while 157 do not get as much as 4 

 tons of hay per acre. 



Of persons having practiced disking alfalfa in the spring or at other times, 138 report 

 that beneficial results have been obtained, while 7 report that disking has been ineffec- 

 tive or injurious. By disking alfalfa is meant going over it in the spring with a disk 

 harrow before growth starts, or during summer immediately after cutting for hay. It 

 is customary to set the disks at a slight angle. This cuts the crown root and stirs the 

 soil. Some of the correspondents prefer harrowing to disking. Where positive 

 objection was made to disking, it was based on the claim that it caused the crowns 

 to become diseased. The great bulk of the evidence was, however, in favor of 

 disking. 



Of the persons who have manured alfalfa, either by plowing in the manure immedi- 

 ately before seeding or by spreading it on the field after a stand had been obtained, 

 110 obtained beneficial results, and 13 found it to be ineffective or injurious. Objec- 

 tions are based on the claim that plowing in manure causes the soil to dry out, but 

 objections to spreading manure on alfalfa are rather indefinite in their nature, except 

 that on low land it makes the growth too rank, and the alfalfa falls down. Many 

 of those who advocate its use specify that the manure should be rotted and fine. 

 One man suggests harrowing after spreading, to fine it. The reports of beneficial 

 results from plowing under manure come largely from the eastern portion of the 

 State, but the use of fine manure applied as a top dressing has proven beneficial in 

 all parts. 



ALFALFA SEED FROM DIFFERENT SOURCES. 



Turkestan alfalfa. — One plot of one-fifth acre was sown alone with 

 5 pounds of seed April 8, 1901. There was a good stand and no loss 

 from winter killing in 1901-2 or 1902-3, thus showing its superiority 

 in respect to hardiness during the winter. On the other hand, this 

 plot was injured by the wet weather in the summers of 1902 and 1903 

 to a greater extent than common alfalfa. On June 12, 1903, a crop of 

 hay was obtained, weighing 605 pounds (3,025 pounds per acre), and 

 a second crop on July 23, weighing 500 pounds (2,500 pounds per 

 acre), making 2.75 tons of hay per acre, besides fall pasturage. It 

 was noted that this plot started one week earlier in the spring than the 

 ordinary alfalfa, but did not continue growth so late in the autumn. 

 At no time did it grow so tall as ordinary alfalfa, but the stand was 

 much thicker, and there appeared to be less tendency for the crowns 

 to become large and crowd out weaker plants, as is the case with 

 ordinary alfalfa. As compared with the latter the leaves and espec- 

 ially the stems are smaller. 



A second plot, one-tenth acre, a drilled in rows 6 inches apart May 

 21, 1898, gave a good stand, with no loss from winter killing the first 

 year and yielded 215 pounds of hay (2,150 pounds per acre) on June 

 17, 1899. The third year the yields of hay from one-eighth acre were 



« The plots here, as in several other cases, are 66 feet by 76 feet and contiguous on 

 the longer sides. If the marginal growth was greater than the central, 5 feet was 

 mowed off each end, reducing the plots to 66 by 66 feet, or one-tenth of an acre, and 

 thus eliminating the marginal factor. 



