1921.] 



Notes on Foraoe Chots. 



21 



November survived. Two new varieties have been placed on 

 the market by the Svalof Plant l^reeding Station, and for spring 

 sowing they appear to be more productive than the common 

 kind. They produce more leaf, and there is a difference in the 

 character of the flov^^er. 



The Pea. — The pea has considerable claims to be regarded 

 as the most important forage crop for feeding to cows and pigs. 

 For sheep,, in the green state, it is less suitable than vetches, 

 and if fed in too large quantities will cause stomach trouble, but 

 the dried haulm is prized by flockmasters for feeding to sheep 

 folded on roots. At all stages of growth the pea plant is a suitable 

 food for pigs, a fact which was well understood in byegone times, 

 as the following statement from Mills' Practical Husbandry 

 shows : — 



" The farmers of Staffordshire frequently sow on poor light 

 shallow land, a small white pea, which they never reap but turn 

 in as many hogs as they think the crop will fatten, and let 

 them lie upon it day and night." 



Peas succeed on a wide range of soils, and can be grown suc- 

 cessfully in all parts of the United Kingdom. They give the 

 highest yields of forage on land containing a considerable per- 

 centage of clay, and they prefer a lumpy tilth to a finely pre- 

 pared soil. Field peas may be sown for forage at any time from 

 the beginning of November until the middle of June, and a 

 succession of pea forage can be obtained by sowing at ii^tervals. 

 The pea is a useful crop for reclaiming very light soils if sown 

 early in the spring, while it can be cultivated successfully in many 

 districts on the New Red Sandstone, where satisfactory crops of 

 oats cannot be obtained. This land is poor in lime and rich in 

 magnesia and overrun with the weeds funiitorv and mayweed. 



Experiments with Field Peas. — Tn the soiling experiments, 

 the garden pea was first used, bnt failed entirely owing to an 

 insufficient root svstem for field conditions. Experiments were 

 (tarried out later to test the relative value of field peas, with the 

 following varieties: — Svalof Grinding ])ea. Svalof Concordia, 

 Svalof Capitol. Svalof Solo, Crolden Vine. Bangalia. Kaiser, 

 Wisconsin Green, English Gray, Dun, and the ^Taple ]^ea. 



Of these the English Gray, Dun and the ^fapl*^ pnn-od the 

 most luxuriant growers, but the Golden Vino also gave gCK^d 

 results. All field peas have succulent stems until the flowering 

 period, but after that time the stems hardc^i rapidly, whereas 

 those of the garden pea do not become so woody. Tnfinit(^ pnins 



