AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
17V 
LUCEME-A VALUABLE CHOP FOR PAS- 
TGRAGE AND HAY. 
In a morning conversation with Mr. J. F. 
Clou, upon the Lucerne crop, we gathered 
the following items : Mr. Clou formerly re¬ 
sided near Lyons, France, but now cultivates 
a farm between Poughkeepsie and Hyde 
Park, on the Hudson River. Three years 
ago, he sowed three acres of Lucerne on a 
rich, moderately dry soil. The plot was 
first sown with oats, harrowed in, about the 
last of April. The ground, naturally fertile, 
was deeply plowed and sub-soiled, and a 
good coat of manure applied. This tho¬ 
rough preparation is desirable, since the Lu¬ 
cerne crop is expected to remain without re¬ 
sowing for many years. The deep tillage is 
also essential, as Lucerne is very deep-root¬ 
ed. In the south of France, the long large 
roots are often dug up, dried, and sold in 
bundles as firewood. The ashes are white, 
strongly alkaline, and considered very valua¬ 
ble. 
On the field above referred to, after har¬ 
rowing in the oats, 16 pounds of Lucerne 
seed per acre was sown broadcast, and cov¬ 
ered with a light harrow, and afterwards 
rolled. A large crop of oats was taken off 
at the usual season, and two weeks after, the 
field was covered with a green mass of Lu¬ 
cerne. When over a foot high, a part of it 
was mowed, and the rest pastured. This 
Mr. C. now considers bad policy. He ad¬ 
vises to leave the last growth of each sea¬ 
son as a mulch and winter protection. 
The next season, (the dry summer of 
1854,) five distinct cuttings (one a month,) 
were made, besides leaving the last growth 
over for winter. The first cutting was 25 
to 30 days earlier than that of any other 
grass. Each cutting was full H feet in 
height. During the entire drouth this 
field continued green and luxuriant—the 
deep roots extending below the reach of the 
sun’s effect. 
Last spring (1855) a fire, on the 12th of 
May, destroyed Mr. C.’s barns and other out¬ 
buildings, including hay, grain, &c. The 
Lucerne field was immediately resorted to, 
and furnished an abundant supply of feed for 
the farm stock. 
Now, (April 14,) the field presents a green 
appearance ; and on one side, where the sur¬ 
face was protected by a coat of leaves from 
trees near by, the grass is already three to 
five inches high. 
Another sandy field on a side hill, was 
sown last season in a similar manner to the 
above, and is covered with a thick, green 
mass. This fieldhas a southern inclination, 
which adapts it better to the growth of this 
crop. If the ground be too cold and wet, and 
far North, there is danger of Winter-kill, 
The heaving of the ground breaks or draws 
out the long roots. 
From his own experience and observation 
in this country, and especially in France, 
Mr. Clou is quite confident that Lucerne is 
one of the best of grasses, especially for Vir¬ 
ginia, and even further North. 
We now, as heretofore, earnestly com¬ 
mend this subject to the attention of farmers. 
Let those who can, try an acre or two at 
least. The seed can be obtained at most 
Agricultural stores. The price this spring 
is about 25 cents per pound. 
In addition to what is said above, we find 
in the American Farm Book the following 
description and illustration, with the direc¬ 
tions ior cultivation.—E d ] 
Lucerne ( Medica - 
go saliva ,) is one of 
the most productive 
plants for forage, 
ever grown. It was 
extensively culti¬ 
vated by the Greeks 
and other nations 
of antiquity ; and it 
has been a promi¬ 
nent object of at¬ 
tention in Italy, 
Spain, France, Hol¬ 
land and Flanders. 
Its relative value as compared with clover 
(T. pratense ), is decidedly inferior, while its 
absolute value per acre, is much greater. 
It was early introduced into this country. 
Chancellor Livingston published his experi¬ 
ments with it from 1791 to 1794, by which 
he estimates that he cut in one season, at 
the rate of 6 1-5 tons per acre, in five cut¬ 
tings, yielding a profit of #ver $35 an acre. 
It bears three or four crops per annum,con¬ 
taining from three to eight tons of hay. 
Those who have cultivated it, pronounce it 
hardy, and as capable of successful growth 
in this country as clover ; but to reach the 
highest product, it requires a richness of 
soil and carefulness of cultivation, which 
would give an enormous produce to its more 
humble rival. 
Manner of Cultivation .—It must have a 
deep, dry, loamy soil, free from weeds, and 
well filled with manure. A suitable crop to 
precede it is corn or potatoes, heavily man¬ 
ured and kept clean. Then plow in the fall, 
and add 40 bushels crushed bones per acre ; 
and early in April, harrow thoroughly, and 
sow in drills, from 1 to 2! feet apart, at the 
rate of 8 to 10 pounds of seed per acre. Stir 
the ground and extirpate the weeds with the 
cultivator and hoe, carefully pulling out by 
hand any that may be found in the drills. It 
may be lightly cropped the first year, and 
more freely the second, but it does not at¬ 
tain full maturity till the third. The roots 
strike deep into the ground, and being a per¬ 
ennial, it requires no renewal except from 
the loss of the plants by casualties. It 
should be cut before growing too large, and 
cured like clover. 
Liquid manure is good for it, as are also 
gypsum and ashes. Bard-yard manure is 
occasionally necessary ; but to avoid weeds, 
it must be thoroughly fermented to destroy 
the seeds. It is sometimes so wn broadcast, 
but the rapid progress of weeds and grass in 
the soil, will soon extirpate it if they are suf¬ 
fered to grow ; and the're is no means of ef¬ 
fectually eradicating them but by cultivating 
the Lucerne in drills, and the hoe and culti¬ 
vator can then keep the weeds in subjection. 
It is one of the most dbsirable plants for soil¬ 
ing. From the care and attention required, 
the cultivation of lucerne is properly limited 
to an advanced state of agriculture and a 
dense population, where labor is cheap and 
products high. In the neighborhood of 
large cities, it may be advantageously grown, 
and in all places where soiling is practiced. 
A FARMER’S EXPERIENCE WITH SPRING 
WHEAT. 
To the Editor of the American Agriculturist •' 
In response to the invitation in your 
April issue, I give you my practice and ex¬ 
perience in growing spring wheat. I plow 
all the ground I can in the fall, ten inches 
deep, keeping for the purpose a team weigh¬ 
ing from 1,300 to 1,600 pounds. My soil is 
undulating, consisting of clay on the emi¬ 
nences, and muck in the depressions. 
I have used three varieties of wheat of late 
years, viz.: Fife, China and Black Sea. I 
have about concluded to discontinue sowing 
the Black Sea, thinking that I can raise the 
other two varieties as cheaply and as safely 
against rust, while they will bring me from 
one to two shillings more per bushel in mar¬ 
ket. I have raised principally the Fife, the 
past season. I obtained $187:1 per bushel 
for 613 bushels, which was as much as was 
paid for China at the time. The miller says 
that it does not make quite as white flour as 
the China, but that it makes enough more to 
enable him to pay as much for it as for the 
China. 
The Fife variety has two advantages to 
the farmer over the China : First, it does not 
shell so easily in the field, and second, it is 
not so apt to crinkle down by wind and in 
rainy weather. 
The past season demonstrated this per¬ 
fectly. My Fife stood up nicely, while the 
China was down almost as badly as the 
Black Sea. This was the case as far as my 
observation extended. 
I have a heavy cultivator, drawn by my 
“big team,” which mellows the ground 
almost as deep as it is plowed where it has 
not packed down during winter (as is some¬ 
times the case with fall-plowed land, where 
it has been imperfectly drained). Fall-plow¬ 
ed ground should be as effectually drained by 
dead-furrows or otherwise, as if sowed to a 
winter crop. Where the ground is not per¬ 
fectly mellow, I cultivate twice in a place 
before sowing, and always follow twice in 
a place with the harrow after sowing. 
Grass or clover seed is sown after har¬ 
rowing and before rolling, which leaves the 
surface of my land in a beautiful condition 
—much better than it can be made by spring 
plowing. 
I always aim to sow my wheat as soon 
after the 1st of May as possible, and do not 
care to sow it any earlier, lest it should not 
escape the wheat midge. By this late sow¬ 
ing my wheat has escaped this pest, while 
that of my neighbors, sown ten days to a 
fortnight earlier, has suffered severely. My 
wheat the past season yielded 755 bushels 
from 35 acres of breadth. 
Owing to the wetness of the season, it did 
not do as well on the muck land, which pro¬ 
duced too rank a growth, and blasting from 
one-half to one-fourth of the length at the 
