Dry Farming In Colorado 
23 
really lias a greater value to the dry farmer than the average 
price of alfalfa hay would indicate. 
Varieties .—Experimental work has shown that the best 
varieties to grow on the dry lands are the Baltic and Grimm. The 
Baltic and Grimm are very much alike. In fact the Baltic is a 
selection from the Grimm. These two sorts are superior for both 
hay and seed production. 
Preparation of the Seed Bed .—Alfalfa will probably occupy 
the land for a number of years, so every possible precaution 
should be taken to get it started right. In order to do this a 
properly prepared seed bed must be provided. The seed bed 
should be moist to at least 2 feet in depth in order to insure suf¬ 
ficient water to germinate the seed and keep the young plants 
growing for a considerable period. Of course, rains may come 
and render all of these preparations unnecessary, but it should be 
understood that rains sometimes fail to come for a period of three 
months. If the seed bed has been properly prepared, the young 
crop will stand this long a period of drouth. In preparing such 
a seed bed, it is often necessary to follow complete or partial 
summer tillage. Alfalfa does best on land which has been plowed 
and afterwards well packed. The surface should be granular 
rather than fine and dusty. The granular or “small cloddy” sur¬ 
face takes up moisture better than a dusty surface, and blows less 
easily. Usually the best time to plant will be from May to July; 
more often May is the preferable month. 
SWEET CLOVER 
In Colorado, sweet clover has been considered a serious pest 
until very recently. Now many are coming to recognize the value 
of this crop. As a soil renovator there is no legume that will 
give as quick and desirable results as sweet clover. When cut 
at the proper time it makes very nutritious hay and produces a 
very fair yield. In many places where alfalfa is difficult to start, 
sweet clover will do well. It is sufficiently valuable to be given 
a thoro trial in many dry-land sections. 
Varieties .—There are three varieties of sweet clover which 
may be encountered. The white sweet clover, the yellow sweet 
clover and the small annual sweet clover. The two first named 
varieties are biennial, that is, the plants live two years. The 
annual yellow sweet clover is not agriculturally valuable in any 
o'f our territory. In most sections white sweet clover is prefer¬ 
able. In regions where the altitude is from 7,000 feet upward, 
yellow sweet clover is to be preferred over the white. 
Soil Preparation .—The soil for sweet clover should be pre¬ 
pared exactly as for alfalfa. 
