Evening Republican, Volume 15, Number 193, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 16 August 1911 — STARTING ALFALFA [ARTICLE]

STARTING ALFALFA

Alfalfa is the king among hay crops, the queen among soil Improvers, the prince among drought resistant plants. It comes nearer to giving something for nothing than anything else on the farm. It will produce more hay per acre, and hay of a high feeding value. While giving that valuable crop of hay it will at the same time leave the soil richer in nitrogen and humus every year that it occupies the land, and supplies tie very things that the grain crops take out the fastest and leaves the soil in the greatesi need of. Still the whole story Is not told, as. weeds cannot grow readily after the alfalfa gets a good stahd and if they should grow a little the alfalfa is cut before the weeds are ripe so'they cannot go to seed. The roots go deer and so open up the soil better than the subsoiler. The one disadvantage lx* growing alfalfa is that it is a little difficult to start; so vb.ii a good stand Is secured it ought to be left for sev-| eral years. It is not a good rotation crop like clover. This is really no great drawback though, as it will produce a crop that is worth more than any other crop that can be grdwn. Alfalfa will grow on any good soil that Is well drained; In sand it will not do so well, and hard pan interferes with Its root growth. Standing water is death to It. When starting alfalfa it must be kept in mind that alfalfa has bacteria living in nodules on its roots. These germß furnish the plant with nitrogen which they take from the soli air. They put it Into a form that the plant can use and so supply the alfalfa with the nitrogen that it needs and more too. The alfalfa plant has in a measure lost the power of taking nitrogen from the soil as the other crops do, so it can not make much growth alone. It in turn furnishes the germs with food 5f a different kind so it 1b a co-operative affair, each furnishing that which it can secure the easiest. 'When the alfalfa is starting It does not have the germs on its rootß and so is very delicate and must be given good care. The best way to do that is to get some soil from a field that has been growing alf&lfh successfully for a few years and sow it on the new field at the rate of 200 pounds per acre.

The best way to prepare the soil Is to manure for a crop of corn —clean cultivate the corn —then sow the alfalfa on the disced corn stubble, putting In eight to ten pounds per acre—and with the drill so as to get the seed buried, one to two inches —do not sow any nurse c, j wirti it. A bare fallow that has been kept free from weeds will also be a good preparation as will also pota'y ground. But In any case it should oe manured. When the alfalfa is up eight to ten inches it should be cut back. This will not hurt the alfalfa: in fact will do it good—but will te hard on he weeds. The amount of sev-d sown snould vary with the rainfall, under irrigation, or where the rainfall is abundant, more seed than specified above should be sown. It has been found 0y evperimentß that where the plants were nine Inches apart three cuttings were secured in 1910 and he yield was nearly 2% tons, while'where the plants were only two inches apart only one cutting of about half & ton was secured In digging out the roots it was found that where the plants were far apart the rods went down seven to eight feet wh.te in the case of the plants that were close together the foots did not go down more than three feet.