FOR THE SOUTHERN STATES. 
89 
apart. Broad-cast would be preferable, if the 
land was perfectly free from grass and weeds, 
but it takes several years of clean culture to 
put the land in this condition; sowing in drills 
is practically the best. No seed sower known 
to me can be compared with the Matthews’ 
Seed Drill. Its work is evenly and regularly 
done, and with a rapidity that is astonishing; 
for it opens the drill to any desired depth; 
drops, the seed, covers and rolls them, and 
marks the line for the next drill at one opera- 
tion. Itis simple and durable in its structure, 
and is the greatest labor-saving machine of its 
kind ever devised for hand work. 
When my Alfalfa is about three inches high, 
I work it with the Matthews’ Hand Cultivator. 
First, the front tooth of the cultivator is taken 
out, by which means the row is straddled and 
all the grass cut out close to the plant; then 
the front tooth being replaced, the cultivator 
is passed between the rows, completely clean- 
ing the middles of all foul growth. As often 
as required to keep down grass. until the Al- 
falfais large enough to cut, the Matthews’ 
Hand Cultivator is passed between the rows. 
Alfalfa requires three years to reach per- 
fection, but even the first year the yield is 
larger than most forage plants; and after the 
second it is enormous. The land must, how- 
ever, be made rich at first; a top-dressing every 
three years is all that will thereafter be re- 
quired. The seed must be very lightly cov- 
ered, and shonld be rolled, or brushed in, if 
not sowed. with Matthews’ Seed Sower. 
Whenever the plant is in bloom it must be 
cut; forif the seed be left to mature, the stems 
become hard and woody. Also whenever it 
turns yellow, no matter at what age, it must 
be cut or mowed; for the yellow color shows 
the presence of some disease, or the work of 
some insect, both of which seem to be vre- 
medied by mowing promptly. My experience 
leads me to the conclusion that fully five tons 
of cured hay per acre may be counted on if 
| proper attention be given to deep plowing, 
sub-soiling, fertilizing and cleanliness of the 
soil. These things are indispensable, and 
without them no one need attempt to cultivate 
Alfalfa. 
In conclusion, I will remark that I have 
tried the Lucerne seed imported by you from 
France, side by side with the Alfalfa seed sent 
me by Trumbull & Co., of San Francisco, and 
Ican not see the slightest ditference in ap- 
pearance, character, quantity or quality of 
yield or hardiness. They are identical; both 
have germinated equally well, that is to say, 
_ perfectly. 
In closing, I can not do better than refer 
you to the little treatise of Mr. C. W. Howard, 
entitled: ‘‘A Manual of the Grasses and For- 
age Plants at the South.” Mr. Howard, among 
the very first to cultivate Lucerne in the 
South, gives it the preference over all other 
forage plants whatever. My experience con- 
firms all that Mr. Howard claims for it. Cer- 
tainly, a plant that lastsa generation is worthy 
of the bestowal of some time, patience and 
money to realize what a treasure they can 
secure for themselves. I confidently believe 
that in years from this date the Alfalfa will 
be generally cultivated throughout the entire 
South. 
Iam respectfully yours, 
, EK. M. HUDSON, 
Counsellor at Lav, 
20 Carondelet Street, New Orleans. 
LETTER ON THE VALUE OF THE RYE CROP. 
The following letter is from a clipping of the Southern Stockman and Farmer, published at 
Starkville, Miss., October 15, 1892. 
VALUE OF THE RYE Crop.—The letter below 
was written to Mr. Richard Frotscher, of New | 
Orleans, the well known seeds man, by Mr. H. 
Wilkinson, manager of Poplar Grove Planta- 
tion, Port Allen, E. Baton Rouge Parish, La. 
My Dear Sir:—In reply to your inquiry as 
to our success with Rye during the past five 
years, I would say, that we are very much 
pleased with it. Its great value for a winter 
pasturage cannot be too highly commended, 
and we believe it would be much more ex- 
tensively planted, were the benefits to be | 
derived from a winter pasture more generally | 
considered. Failures to get a good stand of 
this grain are frequently reported, but if a 
thorough investigation could be made as to 
the cause of these failures, we believe that 
want of proper preparation of the land would 
be the prime reason. We have never failed 
to get a full stand from 14 bushels to the 
acre, planted at,time between the 10th of | 
September and 20th October, and we believe | 
could be successfully planted later, but would 
not be grown enough to turn stock on at the 
time our native grasses begin to dry up, which 
‘in this latitude is usually about November 
15th. Its germination was much delayed by 
the extreme drought of last fall (1891), but 
after the first shower, near the end of October, 
it sprung up uniformly, and at the end of 
November it was ready for pasturage. 
If the date for planting can be fixed, we 
would advise that plowing the land be deferred 
until that time, October 20th, as during the 
long spell of dry weather we are apt to have 
during the fall, freshly plowed land is apt to 
bake rapidly and become very cloddy. Every- 
thing ready, we would advise that the land 
be deeply plowed, harrowed at once, and the 
sower or seeder immediately follow the har- 
row. The covering should follow at once for 
two reasons: Ist, to prevent the seed from 
being picked uy by birds, and, 2nd, to get 
them in moist land. The covering should not 
be effected with an ordinary harrow, but 
should be done with a drag made of two 
