8S LEAFLET 91, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
The Alabama station reports heavy increases in sorghum hay, corn, 
and oats for 10 years after a crop of kudzu was turned under. In 
this case the kudzu appears to have occupied the ground for three 
seasons with nothing removed. There are no published data to show 
what would be the effect of turning kudzu under after grazing or 
harvesting in the usual course, but there is no reason to doubt that 
increases in the yields of cultivated crops would follow. Kudzu is 
used as a cover crop in pecan groves in some cases in northern Florida 
and in southern Georgia, with good results, though it is necessary 
to use sheets when harvesting the pecans. 
Kudzu Not a Pest 
There is no danger that kudzu will become a pest. True, the 
growth, if uncontrolled, will make a tangle of vines likely to smother 
bushes and even small trees, but in fields heavy grazing or cutting at 
once reduces the stand and weakens the growth. Hogs will eat the 
starchy roots and destroy a stand. The few plants that remain can 
readily be killed by digging them. | 
To Prevent Soil Erosion 
In gullies and on steep slopes a heavy growth of kudzu gives sub- 
stantial protection against soil erosion. In such situations a limited 
amount of grazing can be allowed, and kudzu will not only prevent 
further erosion but also will give the farmer some return from the 
land. : 
The Place of Kudzu 
Where alfalfa, clover, or lespedeza can be grown profitably there 
is no place for kudzu as a general farm crop. Any of these crops 
under favorable conditions will yield as much as kudzu or more. 
Where, because of unsuitable soils or lack of moisture, these crops 
cannot be produced profitably, kudzu often is a good substitute. 
In the northern part of its range, that is, about the latitude of 
Washington, D. C., its most profitable place would seem to be on 
steep slopes and on rocky fields or other places not suitable for gen- 
eral cultivation. Farther south, especially where rainfall is often 
deficient, it may become one of the most profitable forage crops. 
For controlling gullies and badly eroded farm lands in the South, 
kudzu is to be recommended. 
Any farmer in the South or Southeast may advantageously plant a 
small area to be expanded if the crop proves profitable to him. Kudzu 
would appear to have a place on submarginal lands, ‘especially if a 
farmer, having a small area established, can dig his own roots and 
extend his plantings at a minimum expense for roots. 
In the Northern States and in Kentucky and Tennessee kudzu has 
never been successful as a field crop. Possibly one reason is that, 
while the old roots may live, the rooted joints of each ‘season are 
winter-killed, and the establishment of a thick stand is thus prevented. 
U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1939 
For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, Washington, D.C. - - - - Price 5 cents 
