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EXPERIHEHTAL FABMS. J. H. QRISOALE, B. Agr., Director, M. O. MALTE, Ph. C , Dominion Agrostologitt. DITISIOH or FORAGE PUiNTS. SWEET CLOVER-THE TRUTH. BY M. O. Maltk, I'll. D. During the last twelve months or so the interest in Sweet Clover, shown by farmers in different parts of Canada, bits assumed surprising proportion?. Numerous articleo lu the agricultural press and still more numerous 'letters to the editors' of the agricultural papers hare discussed the sweet clover quertion. but so far no definite ooncluiions as to the merits or demerits of the sweet cloTer hove been arrived at A certain number of the writers cannot conil mn it strongly enough claiming tliat It IS a 'nuisance' and a 'peat' whioh when introduced on a farm will spread beyond control and which will lessen the value of the farms. InsUnces have been -luot«J, in which the selling price of farms has dropped as much as two thousand dol- lar* on account of their being overrun by sweet clover, wilfullv introduced bv their owner*. On the other hand a great number of writers are enthusiasts who look upon sweet clover as a forage crop of extraordinary value which, unfortunately, has been misjudged and altogether underestimated in Canada. Articles have appeare.! in which the writers remark that 'colleges across the bonier are loud in its praise' and that It 18 a ' staple crop in Europe,' etc. Tlie result of those contradictory Matcineiits in that the unfortunate farmer who IS unfamiliar with tJie plant in qiiwtion is at a loss as to its real value. In the following parugrat>hs a few facts will be given which, it is hoped, will help to dear the situation. VARimiM, Under the name of Rweet clover arc rctu^iiiwil a number of leguminous planU cliaraoturited by a very |)ronounce«l sweet o«loiir. They all belong to the same genus vi«: Mthlotus, and are often called molilota. Although calM sweet clover, they hav« not much in common with the true clover^ rrprrsentwl by the Red, V.'hite andAlsikc varictiea. A* a matter of fact, they are more related to alfalfa than to any other liviiminous plant tltti— 1 \l There are two varieties of sweet clover In Cunada, the white and the yellow. The former (MelUotua alba) is the more common and is considered somewhat superior to the latter {MelUotus oficinalig). Both these ?weet clovers are biennial. ..e. live two ' A third variety, called MelUotus imUca. is a small annual plant, which is grown in California, Utah and other western states of the Union. In Canada, only the White Sweet Clovor is of any agricultural interest. ORWiy AND DISTHIBHiO.N OV WIUTK SWEET (^VEK. White Sweet Clover, also called Bokhara Clover, is a native of Asia. It was introduced into Europe over two thousan.l years ago and was brought to America about the middle of the eighteenth century. In Canada it is now found quite com- monly, especially in the eastern provinces. BEQIIRKMENT^ AS TO SOB- Sweet clover can be grown succos^ully on almost any kind of soil. It is ofton found in sterile, dry places where nothing else will grow on account of lack of food It will thrive surprisingly well in sandy fields, on stiff clay, in «our soil, on clkali land and in many other places where most farm crops prove a failure. This ability to live and in fact, to do well in soil where the food supply is scant, is largely responsible for the glowing praise bestowed upon sweet clover during recent years. SWEBT CLOVER A3 A SOU. IMPBOVKR. Like most other biennial plants, sweet clover develops a strong and somewhat fleshy tap root which penetrates the ground to a considerable .Icptli. Its nuvierov. branches break through even very compact soil, thus making it porous and penetrab!* to air and water. The fleshy nature of the taproots makes them dcay readily when the plants, after the end of the second y**r. die. Considerable humus can also be added to the soil by incorporating with it the rather rank top growth For these reasons Sweet Clover is no doubt of great value on ol.l, worn-out land and on soil the mechanical condition of which needs improving. Ivike other Wuminous plants Sweet Clover through the iu-,sistanoe of .-crtain bacteria has the faculty of gathering nitrogen from the air circulating m the soil Soil deficient in nitrogen will consequently bo improved through the growing of Sweet clover. .... ^l * In tliis connection it must be mentioned that the bacteria occurring on the rooU of Sweet clover, seem to be identical with those occurring on tlie roots of alfalfa. At my rate they act in exactly the .same way as the alfalfa bacteria, and soil from a sweet clover field .mi therefore Ih- ns...l to a.lv.intairc for iir iihttion of fields pre- pared for alfalfa. F.>r the same reason, sweet clover can he used, on poor soil, as n preparatory crop for alfalfa. ATTRArTIVKNKSS TO STOf^K. One of the most serious objections raised against sweet clover is the statement that farm animals do not like it and that they .-annot be induced to eat it unle« starved. Its dlstastefulneaa to stock is, as i« well known, due to the preseiice of a hitter element, called cumarin. which is especially noticeable in the wild pkinta. On the other hand, it hat been claimed that animab are very fond of it and pre- fer it to other kinds of fodder. Observations made by the writer indicate that cattle and hordes at least carefully avoid sweet clover in pasturei. where other plants are at hand, and that, to most animals, the hay is far from attractive. But domeatic animals, like human l«in«s. can develop a t»He for and grrow very fond of food which they at first refuse to touch. Whether animals, unfamiliar with sweet clover, will like it or not from the beginning ■M.o depends "pon what time of the year they be-'pastured on it. If turned on to it early in the ^nng when the plants are very juicy and tender, they will have less objection to it than later wlien the plants are better developed. This is due not only lo the fact that early in the spring the animals arc hungry for green fcvd. but also because that the young plant* contain a much smaller amount of cumarin than the older ones and consequently are less bitter. SWEET CMnKR FOR HAY AND PASTURi:. As a hay crop, sweet clover cannot compete with alfalfa. Full crops can be relied upon only every second year, whereas a well-established alfalfa field will yield largo crops during many consecutive years. In feeding value it is also inferior to alfalfa, holding less protein and less carbonhydrates than the latter. Where alfalfa can be grown with reasonable success, sweet clover should, therefore, by no means bo intro- duced. The principal advantage of sweet clover for pasture lies in its ability to shoot very early in the spring, to remain green during periods of prolonged drought, to eon- tnue growth until late in the fall, and to stand close grazing well. As a rule there IS no danger of sweet clover producing bloating. But even with all these good quali- ties It IS doubtful whether it will ever be of general importance as a pasture crop in any part of Canada. It will be useful only on soils too poor for other pastures. The statement sometimes made that, in Europe, gweet clover has been cultivated for hundreds of years as a staple crop for hay nnd pasture, has no foundation what- ever. As a matter of fact, it is, in Europe, generally looked upon as a weed pure and simple. OB.IECTIONS TO SWEET CLOVER. Apart from what already has been said against sweet clover, there are a few other objections of a more serious nature, which should be given due and careful considera- tion by farmers before they decide to introduce sweet clover ns a farm crop. CIIAR.\CTER OF TlfR WEKD. It is often claimed that >w,vt clover, on account of being a biennial plant, can- not assume the character of a weed, ff properly handled. Being a biennial it lives only two years and if the plants are prevented from going to Peed the second year, there should be no danger of sweet clover spreading all over the farm. Theoretically this is perfectly correct and sounds well, but in practice it turns out to be quite differeut. The writer goes so fur ns to say that sweet clover, when once introduced on a farm, will prove almost iiicpos-.ihle lo Kct rid of. no matter what precaution be taken Many a farmer, believing that he had d.«tr..,vcd every sweet clover plant on his farm before it had had any chance to set seeds, has been painfully surprised to discover that, in spite of all. sweet clover (wddenly ni)iK-nred in the most unexpected places In praetico even the most ciircful eradicative methods and the most careful effort to prevent it from going to wn-d have too often proven in vain. Over and over again It hai. been discovered that seed, in spite of the most .•arofiil attention, has been devel- oped and drop,).»d to the ground. Only a fe«- such overlooked seeds will be sufficient to start a weed crop which very soon will provr detrimental to a well managed farm Kven grnnting that sweet clover may be clucked or quite suppressed in well euK tivuted and clean-kept fields, there are always places on a farm where sweet clover once iiitro