158 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[April, 
Something About Sainfoin. 
Frequent inquiries about European forage 
crops show that many farmers are not alto¬ 
gether satisfied with clover, and are looking 
for something better suited to their peculiar 
soils. Many have recently asked about Sain¬ 
foin, a plant which at one time occupied so 
important a place in the agriculture of Eng¬ 
land, that leases specified that the tenant 
should keep a certain portion of the land in 
Sainfoin every year. The plant belongs to 
the same family with Clover and Lucerne. 
Its botanical name is Onobrychis saliva ; it is 
a native of Europe, possibly of England, and 
has been in cultivation for several centuries. 
It has a long and large root; its branching 
and spreading stems, about two feet high, are 
sainfoin (Onobrychis sativa ).— top of stem 
WITH LEAVES AND FLOWERS. 
furnished with compound leaves, like those 
shown in the engraving, and are terminated 
by an oblong head of flowers, which, being 
variegated with crimson and white, are very 
showy. The pod, which has but a single 
seed, is much pitted and veined. In Eng¬ 
land, Sainfoin is highly valued on light lime¬ 
stone or chalky soils, and is there used much 
the same as we employ clover—to be plowed 
up in a regular rotation. Its cultivation is 
similar to that of clover, though it is, like 
lucerne, preferably sown in drills in order to 
facilitate the weeding of the young plants. 
It is highly valued as a soiling crop, and is 
made into hay, though in the damp climate 
of England it is difficult to cure the large 
succulent stems. Either fresh, or dry as hay, 
it is highly relished by domestic animals of 
all kinds. As its large root projects above 
the surface of the soil somewhat, too close 
mowing or feeding by sheep will injure it. 
We are not aware if Sainfoin has ever had a 
fair trial in this country. We have known 
of its cultivation on a small scale, merely as 
a curiosity, but not as a regular farm crop. 
If any one has made a full trial of it, he will 
do a good service to a number of inquirers by 
giving the results. While one American 
writer says it will not succeed in this coun¬ 
try, on account of our hot summers, another 
says “it suffers comparatively little from 
heat or cold.” If it has any qualities that 
make it preferable to clover, our farmers 
ought to know it. The name Sainfoin is 
French, and means “healthful hay” (sain, 
wholesome or healthful, and foin, hay). Some 
writers give it as Saintfoin, and translate it 
as Holy-hay, a name to which it has no claim. 
How Field and Garden Seeds are Tested. 
BT WILL W. TRACT, DETROIT, MICH. 
[Mr. Tracy, formerly Professor of Horticul¬ 
ture at the Michigan State Agricultural Col¬ 
lege, has charge of large test gardens at De¬ 
troit, Mich. Knowing that he has annually 
tested great numbers of samples of seeds, and 
had contrived some apparatus to facilitate 
his operations, w r e requested him to give his 
methods, which he has done,as follows.— Eds.] 
Many farmers seem to think that while the 
garden seeds which they buy of the seedsmen 
may be bad, their field seeds, the corn, oats, 
wheat, etc., which they grow themselves, 
must be good, but this is by no means the 
case. For example ; two years ago I tested a 
large number of samples of seed wheat, 
grown in one of the best wheat sections of 
Michigan, and by some of the best farmers. 
Their samples did not average over 60 per cent 
of vital seeds ; the following spring, the only 
fields of good wheat in that region were those 
which had been sown with seed a year old, 
or with that which had been brought from 
a distance. Most of us can call to mind cases 
where the corn crop of a section was an almost 
universal failure because of a poor stand, 
the only exceptions being fields planted with 
old seed, or that which had been saved with 
especial care. I am certain that any one who 
investigates the matter, will be astonsished 
at the annual loss to the country from the 
use of poor seed. Yet most of this loss could 
be avoided by simply testing the seed before 
sowing it. All reputable seedsmen find it 
necessary to make tests, even in cases where 
they know the seed to be fresh and it looks 
perfectly good, as occasionally even such 
seed is found to be almost lifeless. Our meth¬ 
od Of making these tests is as follows: A 
sample of every lot of seed received from 
growers or offered for sale, is sent to the trial 
grounds, where it is recorded and numbered, 
and 100 seeds counted out for immediate test¬ 
ing as to vitality. After repeated and care¬ 
fully conducted tests we are satisfied that in 
the case of corn, all such vines as cucumber, 
melon, etc., and all small seeds (smaller than 
an apple seed) except grasses, we can obtain 
the most reliable results by sowing them in 
soil composed of equal parts of leaf mould 
and sand. Pots about nine inches square 
and four inches deep, are filled with this 
earth pressed down evenly and firmly. The 
seeds are planted by pressing the planter 
(shown in figs. 1 and 2) containing the sample 
to a proper depth, opening and removing it, 
leaving the seeds at 
an uniform depth 
in a beautifully 
straight and even 
row. They are cov¬ 
ered by pinching 
the earth together 
over them and pres¬ 
sing it down even¬ 
ly, the row being 
marked by a label 
giving the number 
of the sample, the Fig. 2. —cross section of 
date when planted, SEED tranter. 
and the number of seeds. The samples are so 
arranged that each pot is filled with those 
that require the same treatment, and with 
every lot of new samples one or two of the 
same kind of known vitality is planted in 
order to detect any error from unfavorable 
conditions. The pots are set in that portion 
of the propagating bed where they will re¬ 
ceive the degree of heat most favorable to the 
germination of that species, carefully water- 
c 
Fig. 3. —A SPROUTING apparatus, in section. 
a, Saucer of placed earthen ware, with shoulder, 6, to 
receive glaced cover, c. The inner saucer containing the 
seeds, s, is of soft, unglazed ware, w, shows the water 
level in outer saucer. 
ed and tended, and when the seeds are well 
up, the plants and sprouted seeds are counted 
and recorded and the pot refilled for a new lot. 
The propagating bed is the side bench of a 
small greenhouse, with a brick flue under it. 
The bench is about six inches deep at the 
front, and ten inches at the back, and is cov¬ 
ered with sashes which are easily raised and 
hooked up out of the way to permit examina¬ 
tion of the seeds. The bottom of the bench 
is covered with two inches of damp sand. 
Peas, beans, and other large seeds-are placed 
in a sprouting apparatus shown in section in 
fig. 3. They are frequently examined and 
all decayed or sprouted seeds removed. 
Great care is taken to always have water in 
the outer saucer, but never to let it be higher 
than the surface on which the seeds rest. 
In the case of the seeds of grasses, we 
obtained the best results from placing the 
seeds between eight folds of thick brown 
paper. The paper is cut in strips four inches 
wide and two feet long, doubled so as to be 
four inches square ; these are opened, the 
seed placed in them, and laid on two folds of 
similar paper in the bottom of a shallow box 
covered with two folds more, and then kept 
constantly wet. The planter, figs. 1 and 2, 
consists of two plates of tin which move 
upon the hinge b, and are kept apart at top 
by a spiral spring. The seeds being placed 
in the lower part at g, the planter is forced 
into the soil, and the seeds liberated by 
pressing the upper edges together. 
