IMPERIAL UNIVERSITY 
College of Agriculture 
Bulletin No. 9 
Tokyo,, Koraaba, BeL. 1891. 
Experiments on the Cultivation of Lespedeza bicolor, 
Turcz. (Hagi) as a Forage Crop, 
BY 
Dr. O. Kellner, T. Yoshii, and M. Nagaoka. 
Lespedeza bicolor Turcz., var. intermedia, Maxim., com¬ 
monly known by the name hagi or miyagi no hagi 1 is a wild 
leguminous plant which is found in all parts of Japan, from the 
north of Hokkaido to the south of Kyushyu on uncultivated 
land in the plains as well as in the mountains up to a con¬ 
siderable height. Its stems grow i—2 metres high and, if 
allowed to stand for several years, attain a diameter of 1—1.5 
centimetres and become so woody and ramified that the plant 
has much the appearance of a shrub. If cut in the winter or 
spring, the roots throw up in April or the beginning of May 
numerous strong shoots which produce small pink coloured 
flowers in August or September and small very hard seeds, 
one in each pod, towards October. The character of hagi 
as a leguminous plant, and its general appearance enables us to 
conclude that fodder made from it in a proper stage of growth 
will have nutritious qualities. Farmers seem indeed to~haye 
experienced its feeding value to be good, as they occasionally 
collect it from uncultivated lands, though they have never tried 
to raise in the fields. 
The frequent occurrence of this plant on poor soils and its 
continual growth without any supply of manure induced us to 
cultivate it experimentally on the farm as a forage crop. In the 
early spring of _i886 we collected hagi roots from the neighbour¬ 
ing waste land and planted them on a plot of 25 square metres 
in row's, 40 centimetres distant from each other and with a 
i For the botanical determination of this plant we are indebted to Messrs. 
Shirai and Matsumura, professors in the College. 
