Vol. LXXII., No. 4232. 
NEW YORK, DECEMBER 6, 1913. 
WEEKLY $1.00 TER YEAR. 
GRASS AND ALFALFA IN VIRGINIA. 
How “ Intensive Culture” Pays. 
[We are sometimes told that the Middle South is not 
naturally a grass country. It is true that for many 
years much of the hay used in Southern cities was 
brought from the North. Modern experience seems to 
be knocking over half a dozen old ideas a day in this 
rapid age, and here we give the record of a modification 
of the “Clark” system of grass culture in Virginia. Of 
course this rather expensive method would be beyond 
the reach of the farmer who is without capital, lie 
would be obliged to work in a slower and simpler way. 
This article, however, shows the possibilities of that 
Virginia soil.] 
I have owned this property since May, 1907, and 
while 1 took no part in its management for nearly 
abouts. We broadcast 800 pounds per acre of basic 
slag, into which we mixed about 31 pounds per acre 
of mixed Timothy. Red-top and Alfalfa, the latter 
only about four pounds per acre, to provide inocula¬ 
tion. We used a broadcast lime sower to distribute, 
and after rolling the seed into the land we left the 
field. 
Despite local prediction to the contrary, the out¬ 
come was a most pronounced success, and nearly 
three tons of hay per acre was harvested at the 
first cutting. Hitherto Alfalfa has failed in this 
section, but from the light sowing in the seed mix¬ 
ture, we obtained almost a stand of Alfalfa all over 
the field; so much in fact that after cutting our 
It is doubtful whether a better stand of Alfalfa 
were ever obtained and the yield has been more 
than satisfactory. We took off 4 (A tons of baled hay 
per acre in three cuttings, and had I cared to do it, 
could have taken a fourth and probably a fifth 
cutting. I preferred, however, to send it into the 
Winter with a good growth in its first year, and 
what I may have lost in hay I have gained in pork. 
We turned the hogs into the Alfalfa and I have 
never seen pigs thrive as ours have done during the 
last 60 days. 
I became impressed with the idea that a solution 
of the grass problem lay in the sowing of a mixture 
of grasses. This idea I exploited in a seven-acre 
STARTING A HEIFER TO IIELF MAKE UP THE SHORTAGE 
mixed grasses m June of this year, we made a fine 
four years, 1 was on the ground a part of the 
time, and learned much by observation. I became 
impressed with the idea that the lack of success in 
many operations was due to a lack of confidence in 
our land. I saw grass seed and clover drilled 
(buried) with resultant poor stand of grass and al¬ 
most no clover: was told that the land would not 
bring grass to form a sod, such as I was accustomed 
to see in the North, but I noticed that weeds took 
tip the land not occupied by grass, and 1 argued 
that where weeds would thrive grass would grow 
if the seed were sown under proper conditions. I 
procured a heavy disk plow and broke a piece of 
suitable land, plowing to an average depth of nearly 
19 inches. I kept drag, roller, disk harrow and 
smoothing harrow, working back and forth until 
1 had the best ordered piece of land ever seen liere- 
secoml cutting of Alfalfa in July and a light third 
cutting in August The growth of Alfalfa in the 
field described encouraged me to sow eight acres in 
Alfalfa a year ago, and the success seems phenom¬ 
enal. 
The land was plowed deeply and ordered to per¬ 
fection: the season being very dry. we completed 22 
operations over the land, including the first distribu¬ 
tion of limestone and the .final rolling. We used 
over three tons of ground limestone per acre, half 
before plowing and remainder after the field had 
been dragged. We also used 1.200 pounds per acre 
of ground rock phosphate; 120 pounds per acre of 
muriate of potash; 800 pounds per acre basic slag, 
and 30 pounds per acre of Alfalfa seed, broadcasting 
seed and fertilizer and following with the roller. 
field 1 had been growing for two years, preparatory 
to creating a permanent pasture for work stock. We 
turned under a crop of rye, limed the field and sowed 
to peas, turned the peas under and prepared a per¬ 
fect seed bed. Nitrate of soda was used on the 
rye and we used 1,000 pounds per acre of ground 
phosphate rock when the rye was turned under. 
We sowed 42 pounds per acre of a seedsman’s mix¬ 
ture. with 800 pounds per acre of basic slag, broad¬ 
cast and rolled into the land. In February wo 
scattered about 10 pounds per acre of mixed clover. 
This field also has proven a success; the mixed 
grasses gave me a cutting of about two and one 
half tons of baled hay per acre, and at this writing 
the clover stands so thickly that the grass stubble 
is almost hidden, and the entire field presents the 
appearance of a mature pasture; as fine a sod as 
