seedlings may die from lack of moisture before they can become 

 established. 



Its bulky nature makes unhulled seed more difficult to distribute 

 uniformly than hulled seed. It must be broadcast and may be 

 harrowed in. It is also difficult to market and is not generally 

 handled by the seed trade. But farmers can harvest seed for their 

 own use and save the expense of having it hulled. 



Companion Crops 



Rye, vetch, ryegrass, and fall-sown grain crops are often seeded 

 with crimson clover. Such crops are seeded at half to a third the 

 normal rate, and the crimson clover is seeded at half to two-thirds 

 the normal rate. Seeding is done at the same time, but, as a greater 

 depth is required for most of the seed of the companion crops, two 

 seeding operations are necessary. 



Farmers often use a mixture of 5 pounds of red clover and 10 pounds 

 of crimson clover per acre with excellent results. The first growth 

 of the mixture may be grazed or harvested for hay or for crimson 

 clover seed, while the second crop is wholly red clover. Dixie crimson 

 clover has given good results when planted with Johnson and 

 Bermuda grasses. 



Diseases and Insects 



The most serious disease that affects crimson clover is crown rot. 

 The effect of this disease is seen early in spring and is characterized 

 by the plants dying in patches. The stems rot at the surface of the 

 soil or where they join the crown. Continued damp, cool weather 

 during winter and early spring favors the development of the disease. 

 This disease can be controlled by not growing clover or other legumes 

 in rotation for 2 to 5 years. 



Sandy soils in the southern part of the crimson clover belt are often 

 infested with nematodes. Nematode injury stunts and yellows the 

 plants. While the clover-seed chalcid, the pea aphid, and other in- 

 sects sometimes become numerous in crimson clover, insects do not 

 ordinarily cause appreciable damage. 



Utilization 



Crimson clover grows rapidly in fall and spring and furnishes an 

 abundance of grazing (fig. 3). If planted early and good fall growth 

 is made, the clover may also be grazed during the fall and winter 

 months. Such a practice has been successfully followed in many 

 States where crimson clover is providing winter pasture. Crimson 

 clover combined with small grains or ryegrass has been most widely 

 used for winter grazing. Crimson clover makes little growth during 

 cold periods in winter. Under such conditions, to prevent close 

 grazing, it is necessary to remove the animals or shift them to other 

 fields that have not been grazed. 



Animals grazing on crimson clover seldom bloat; however, it is 

 advisable not to turn them into clover fields for the first time when 

 they are hungry. Bloat is less likely to occur on a mixture of clover 

 and grass or grain then when the clover alone is grazed. As crimson 

 clover reaches maturity the hairs of the heads and stems become hard 



