KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI 
15 
GRUNDY COUNTY SWEET CLOVER 
SEE PAGE 18 
for information 
about inoculation 
of all legumes 
GRUNDY COUNTY 
SWEET CLOVER 
GROWING FOR HAY 
First, the new growth of Sweet 
Clover comes, not from the crown 
of the plant as in Alfalfa, but from 
the side shoots from the lower part 
of the main stem. For this reason 
whenever a second growth the 
same season is desired, the first 
cutting must be made high enough 
to leave six or eight inches of stem 
to produce side shoots. For a good 
quality of hay, Sweet Clover must 
be cut early, before the plants be¬ 
come tough and unpalatable. When 
sown in spring, Sweet Clover makes 
one cutting of hay the first season. 
Since the first season’s growth 
does not tend to become so tough 
as the second season’s, this cutting 
may be delayed until the plants 
have grown as big as they are 
going to. You can tell when it is 
time to cut by watching for the ap¬ 
pearance of crown buds which 
come out shortly before growth 
ceases. Remember, the mower knife 
should be set to cut about six 
inches above the ground or no fur¬ 
ther growth will result. 
Sweet Clover hay should be han¬ 
dled and cured the same as alfalfa 
This is a variety of biennial that 
is distinctly different from the com¬ 
mon White Sweet Clover. It grows 
only 3^ to 5 feet high, has some¬ 
what finer stems and matures 
about two weeks earlier. It has no 
advantage over the common type 
for pasture or plowing under. When 
Grundy County is used, the second 
crop may he plowed under in am¬ 
ple time to put the land to alfalfa 
that fall. The seed is very small, 
therefore it does not require as 
much to sow an acre as to sow the 
common type. We recommend sow¬ 
ing about 12 pounds to an acre. 
YELLOW BIENNIAL 
SWEET CLOVER 
This variety is a biennial type 
like the common White Blossom 
and is handled in the same way. It 
is not as coarse as the White, there¬ 
fore, it is inferior for pasture or 
soil improvement. It makes a 
smaller, finer growth, matures and 
produces a better quality of hay. 
HUBAM or ANNUAL 
WHITE SWEET CLOVER 
TO BUILD UP THE SOIL 
When grown for this purpose, 
Sweet Clover is usually sown in 
mid-summer, either in corn or fol¬ 
lowing grain, and plowed under the 
following spring. By this time it 
will have made a heavy root 
growth, and, if inoculated at time 
of sowing, will have accumulated a 
quantity of nitrogen. Both roots 
and tops decompose rapidly when 
plowed under 
This is an annual type of Sweet 
Clover making its entire growth the 
first season, maturing, seeds, and 
then dies. As a soil builder, it has 
no equal. It can be sown in the 
spring with small grain and plowed 
under for fertilizing the same fall. 
For pasture, however, it is not to 
be compared with the White Bien¬ 
nial type. Experts say that honey 
produced from it is the best of any. 
Sow about 15 pounds per acre. 
