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Maps, plates, charts, etc.. may be filmed at different reduction ratios. Those too large to be entirely included in one exposure are filmed beginning In the upper left hand corner, left to right and top to bottom, aa many frames as required. The following diegrams illustrate the method: Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent Atre filmis i des taux de reduction diffirents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour ttre reproduit en un seul cliche, il est film* i partir de Tangle sup4riejr gauche, de gauche i droite, et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'images nicessaire. Lea diagrammes suivants illustrant la mtthodo. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 Morocorr rbowtion tbt chart (ANSI and ISO TEST CHART No. 2) ^ /APPLIED IIVMGE Inc 'e.^5 EqsI Moin Streel Roch«1tr. Htm fork 14609 USA (716) *82 - OJOO -Phon* (716) 280- 5989 - fax I j DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE CENTRj^L EXPERIMENTAL FA.RM OTTAWA, CANADA ALFALFA OE LUCERN (Medicago aativa, L.) ITS CULT'^jRE, USE AND VALUE Part I.— By J. H. OSISDAIE, B. Agr. Agriculturist of the Central Experimental Farm Part n.— By F. T. SHTJTT, M.A. Chemifi, Dominion Experimental Farms Part m.— By J. FLETCHEB, I1..D. Entomologist and Botanist, Dominion Experimental Farms bxjlleti:n^ :n^o. 46 JUNE, ISO* ('ubiithed by direction of the Hon. SYDNEY A. FISHER, Minister of Agrleulture, Ottawa, Ont. 491—1 fi 111 To the Honourable The Minister of Agriculture. Sir,— I take pleasure in submitting for your approval Bulletin No. 46 of the Experimental Farm series on Alfalfa or Luoern. This bulletin consists of three parts. Part 1 has been prepared by J. H. Grisdale, Agriculturist of the Central Experi- mental Farm; part 2 by Frank T. Shutt, Chemist of the Experimental Farms, and part 3 by James Fletcher, Entomologist and Botanist of the Experimental larms. The economy of growing alfalfa for the feeding of stock an.l for ploughing under to enrich the soil has not yet been fully realized by the farmers ..f Canada. Th» adaptability of this plant to many of the climatic conditions found in this country its deep-rooting habit which gives it the power of drawing moisture and plant food from depths not reached by other plants, and the large quantities of palatable and nutritious fodder it produces, all combine to make it a most desirable crop. Further, tl 3 ploughing under and decay of the roots, stems, and leaves of this plant adds' largely to the available plant food contained in the soil, and thus furnishes nutriment for succeeding crops. It is hoped that the facts submitted in this bulletin will induce many Canadia. farmers to sow some portion of their land with this useful fodder crop, and that th-n the benefits arising from its cultivation may become more generally known. I have the honour to be Your obedient servant, WM. SAUNDERS, Director of Experimental Farms, Ottawa, .Tune 28, 1904. PABTI. Al^ALFA on LnCERHt ITS CULTZVATIOir AVD USE. By J. H. Qrisoale, B. Aoh., Aoricultirist, Central Experimental Farm. Alfalfa or Lucern ii grown in Canada more or less extenaiyely from the Atlantic *x ^- ?"**^° "*^°- ^* »• ^« "taple '<"»«« plant for winter feeding in the drier parta of BntiA Columbia, and it has been grown in Southern Alberta for many years. It it not much known in Manitoba, but is jx jgibk of easy pivipagation in almost all parta of Ontario. It is. and has been grown long and successfully in Quebec, and is not unknown in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. In Prince Edward Island, whether du« to lack of interest or some peculiar climatic or soil condition, it has never, so far as the writer knows, been grown with success. • 1 ^i ?'•' **?" '"'^ ^***' varying success for many years on the different farms included in the system of Dominion Experimental Farms. The first triala in most cases proved more or less discouraging, but experience gradually acquired rendered later openmenta more succeasful. At Ottawa in recent years a failure with this crop has been practically unknown, and stands eight and nine years old can be ahown. At fl^Z "I ^"°»»"1'" « plot 8°'"» in 1896 has been giving crops varying from 1 ton, 1,600 lbs. to 3 tons, 1,500 Iba., annually ever since. It is therefore apparently quite Hardy in that part of the province. It might be stated, however, that 60 Ibe. of seed of unknown vitality was sown to the acre in the case mentioned, a larger quantity than we have ever found necessary. In As^iniboia, at Indian Head. Mr. Mackay sowed a plot of Turkestan Alfalfa m 1900 which came through the winter in good shape, but waa turned under without any crop being harvested. Common alfalfa seed was sown on a half-acre plot at the rate of about 30 lbs. per acre in 1902. It came safely through SS^s'^'iri V r^-3 !">^ ?«^«,« <'"?/* l ton. 1 -12 »«., per acre in the aummer of 1903. At latest reports it is still standing and v . < well. At Nappan, Mr. Robertson tLuT ""^'f^' poor success for three y. -s. At Agaaaiz conditions do not of Zt?v. V'^'k"* ■" f '*^ "^'"''^'*'' '* '" ^''^ extensivr'y grown in some parts of British Columbia, as for instance, in the Kamloops and other of the dry interior Jif r^ »w r^ u "* "^^ .'^ '^°*'"« "* ^*'«"'y' ^'t)erta, and has been credibly informed that it has been growing for over twenty years at Maple Creek, Assa TK.f 1 1." '*'l^" *'*"^ ,'" *'""*'* ^^^'y P™""*'^ to « footer or Ifesa extent Ihat It has not been grown more largely seems due to two things, firat, that very little « known about Its good qualities aa a forage plant and. second that very few know W^nrt,"' ,!"''•'"""" /"-^ ''' P^""" ""^ ""-J ™°i«ture iSuh^mert. I. J^ u /" "I observance of its peculiar requirements succees may not S hoped for, but a careful study of. and compliance with these is a. ply repaid by almort certain auccpss and large returns. ^ ^ h'ihobi; THE PLANT. Lucern is another name for Alfalfa. It is a leguminous plant just as are peas beans and clovers. Plants of this family are all rich in protein (aee part H) AlfaJfa IS a perennial, that is a plant capable of living many yeare under favour- able condition*. It IS upright and branching in its habit of growth, the mature olanta varying m height from 1 to 3} feet. Its leaves are three parted, the leaflets beinir narrowly oblong in outline. Ita flowers are purple, and are arranged like those of tt« vetch rather than as those of the clovers. It sometimes produces seeds in Canada m small quantities. The stem is rather woody, which characteristic develops very rapidly as maturity approaches The leaves are attached by slender stems which become very brittle when the flomewhat matured plant is dried. 491—1} The roots penetrate deeply into the soil. It has a tap root (aee illuatration paga 19) which has been known to go to great depths where the subsoil wu permeable. The rootlets bear nodulea which enable it to secure its nitrogen supply from the •Ir. ' The young plant conaista of a number of low branches springing from a simple basal stalk at the crown of the root. These branches ascend directly aboTe ground •nd form a compact tuft. On the old plant, however, certain of the more robust stems •longate underground aad become new branch-producing stodu. In this way the simple stock or rhisome becomes two or many-headed.' (For fuller deacription of [ilant and illustration see part III.) SOILS. l\ ' As just stated, alfalfa is a deep-rooted plant, hence iu considering soil suitable for this crop the character of the subeoil must always be of priiaary consideration. Two qualitiea are absolutely necessary in the subsoil for an alfalfa crop to succeed. It must be well drained to a depth of at least 2 feet, and it must be possible of penetration by the roots of the alfalfa plant to n similar or greater depth. Any field likely to be under water, or the soil saturated with water at any time, for more than thirty-six hours at a time, is quite unsuitable for alfulfa- Any field with a hard-pan subsoil within two feet of the surface will prove unsatisfactory for alfalfa. The most suitable soil conditions for securing a good stand of plants and securing good and contii. .ous crops afterwards, are a light sandy loam in good heart over a deep loose alluvial subsoil. A subsoil rich in plant food is of course very valuable, but, while fertility in the mibsoil is important, permeability is still more to be sought after. A sandy subaoil while not in itself so rich in plant food is likely t > give much better results than a clayey subsoil under a similar surface soil. Upon the fertility and physical condition of the aurface soil more than upon any other factors depends the success of the first year. The success or failure of later years depends in a great measure upon the subsoil. SOIL PREPARATION, To insure a good stand three conditions are necessary in the land selected : 1. Freedom from weeds. 2. Excellent physical condition or tilth. 3. Abundance of plant food. Freedom from weeds may be secured by sowing immediately after a hoed crop as potatoes, corn or roots, or by sowing after a complete or a partial summer fallow. Clover sod, stubble, or even old meadow ploughed shallow in August, rolled and cultivated at frequent intervals during Septeihber, and receiving proper treatment in October, may be expected to give good results. In October it should be ploughed again with a subsoiler attached to the plough, or ploughed with two ploughs, one with- out a mould bo<»rd following in the track of the other, and stirring the subsoil as much as possible, or cultivated lengthwise, crosswise and angling with a strong stiff-toothed cultivator, to be followed by a double mould board plough, leaving the whole field in ridges about 7 inches high and 22 inches apart. Such treatment insures a seed bed permeable to early roots, fairly rich in plant food, and in excellent physical condition. The latter condition is insured by the retention of the humus or decayed vegetable matter (roots, fallen leaves, Ac, of prerioue crop) in the surface soil, and by the facilities for drainage afforded by the ridging of the surface soil and consequent exposure of the upper subsoil to the effects of the frost- In the spring as early as possible the proposed alfalfa field should be prepared for seeding. The preparation should consist of frequent cultivations, harrowings and rollings until the seed bed is perfectly smooth and mellow. i ^ ( ; SOWING THE SEED. Alfalfa may be started iucceufuUy with a nurae crop. When prefemd it may b« town alone. In either caae, a liberal seedinf of good germinable teed ia neoesiary. Before purchase a sample of the seed should be secured and tested for germination. It should show over 90 strong germinable seed to the 100. Such teed should be sown at the rate of 25 lbs. to the aore. Seed showing a less percentage of germination must be sown more thickly. Particularly strong heavy soil may be exp < '^ to give aomewhat better reauJIto when a nurse crop is used. Oatf, wheat or barley may be used for this purpose. It ii probably better to «ow somewhat less thsn the regular amount of grain to the acre, ol the tort chosen when sowing sa a nurse crop. Some growers advise about half m bushel of seed of the nurse crop to the acre no matter what kind is used, but, with climatic conditions such as maintain in Ottawa, it would not be adriaable to sow such small quantities. The drier the climate the smaller the amount of seed of the nurae crop it is advisable to sow. It would seem wise to sow the usual amount of seed per acre of the nurse crop selected (oats 2i bus., wheat 1) bus., and barley 1] bus. per acre) for the Maritime Provinces, Quebec and Eastern Ontario ; about half the regular seeding in central and western Ontario ; no nurse crop in Manitoba nor in the North- west Territories; and in British Columbia more or less than half a seeding according to the particular district. With l.ght soils it is usually better to use no nurse crop, but the state of fertility of the particular field should always be con-idcred. A light soil rich in plant food and humus would indicate strongly the use of a nurse crop. The wed should be sown only after the field is in a state of almost perfect tilth. No cultivation, or at most very little, should be giren after the seeding is done. The seed may be sown either broadcast or in drills. Sowing the seed from the grass seed spouts of the average seeder is probably the best method. The spouts should be pointing backwards rather than forward. The ground should be rolled shortly after seeding, and the surface lightly scratched with a brush harrow, a breed weeder or a tilting harrow fairly well tilted back. This latter operation is to pr vent evaporation and is necessary only in dry times or in localities having small rainfall. Any person sufficiently interested to try a small plot should prepare the seed bed thoroughly as indicated above, then sow in rows from 7 to 9 inches or further apart. Another method which we have found very successful is to sow shallow ia r'ws about 15 inches apart and cultivate between the rowa. The treatment prescribed f«>» the first season ' without nurse crop ' should otherwise be the same as r larger ar*>««. TREATMENT DURING FIR3T SEASON. The first summer is a critical time in the l"fe of the alfalfa plant. Without Nurse Crop, — Young alfalfa plants are very tender and must be given no rough treatment before they are well established, but the field must be mown and mown often during the first year to insure success. Blooms should nevrr b-? allowed to appear. The crop should be cut as often as it reaches 8 to 10 inches in height. Frequent cuttiiga keep down weeds, aid root development and encourage growth. The clippings sliould, in almost every case, be left on the field as a mulch. As wide cutting a mower as possible should be used and the sickle bar should be tilted to avoid cutting too close. With Nurae Crop.— During the growing period of the nurae crop no attention ia .'cesaary. As harvest time draws on, however, careful watch must be kept to see that the young alfalfa plants are not being smothered by lodging grain. If success with alfalfa is the chief aim, no crop should be allowed to lie lodged upon it for more than a day or two. When harvesting the nurse crop the binder should be set to cut 5 or 6 inches from the ground. Shocks should not be allowed to stand for more than two days on tlie same spot, they would smother out the young alfalff.. It is not advisable to allow live stock of any kind to graze upon an alfalfa field the first season, but it is not advisable to leave a very high growth to be crushed down by the wintrr .now. The bett plan ii to cut at a height of about 6 inchea from the fround in September and then leave untouched for the r«»t of the leaaon. FEKDINU VALUE. A» a feed for atock alfalfa may be uMd in iereral wayi. For the exact com- poaition and oumparative feedir value »ce Part II. Pa$tur».—It i» frequently uied aa pastUTe' and judising by our experiuienU here haa no equal among forage planto for pain lability, gwaing capacity per acre and food value. All claioea of live stock aoon learn to like it and thrive upon it. Aa a paature for dairy cowa it cannot l>e surpaased. Sheep thrive upon it exceedingly. Swine are very fond of it and do well upon it as n aol«> feed. Horeea eat it with avidity and improve in condition upon auch pa«ture. In a trial here with dairy eowa it seemed to be worth much more than any of the grassea or clovers tested at the saue time (red clover, alaike clover, timothy, brotne grass and orchard grass). It should not. however, be pastured too closely at any time. Such treatment would be particularly dangeroua the second season. Sheep allowed to crop it closely do very great injury, .\nother disadvantage is that the trampling of the stock hardens the soil and si. vly but surely kills out the catch. Precautions must be taken too, where it is grazed, to prevent injury to the animals grazing. Cattle and sheep sometimes blont when allowed to eat it wet with rain or dew. Such stock should be turnetl in only when the alfalfa is dry or when they have just had a feed of some other forage. Bloating occurs very seldom, but it occurs occasionally, and it is well to avoid any possibility of loss in this way. Hogs and horses are not subject to bloat. Ai Entilage.—^ixed with corn or red clover it is exceedingly valuable for making into ensilage. We have never tried it as an ensilage plant by itself. It has been so used, however, elsewhere and haa given good results. In districts where wet weather usually prevails in June the conversion of the first cutting into ensilage would be the most practical way of saving the crop in palatable and luitritioua form. Aa Soiling Crop.— It is as a soiling crop for dairy cattle that alfalfa is par- ticularly valuable. It makes a very rapid early spring growth and is usually ready to out before any other green feed. It may be cut for thia purpose before any blosroma appear, and will thus admit of being cut about four times in the season in this district. No other soiling crop approaches it in value as a feed for milk production. It may also be u/sed as a soiling crop for pigs. Where so used it may be expected to reduce the cost of producing pork by from 26 to 60 per cent in comparison with pigs fed on grain alone. To give the best results when used for this purpose it should l)e cut before any b;os8oms appear, even earlier than when cut to feed to cows. Feed all the pigs will eat up clean. It should be fed both morning and evening. To summarize, alfalfa used as a soiling crop may be expected to produce from 15 to 24 tons per acre of the finest kind of gre, i. forage, most palatable, very nutritious and suitable for hcrsas cattle, sheep and swine. Aa Hay.— It i j hay crop that alfalfa has won fame and place in British Columbia and the United States, and it is undoubtedly p.ssible of extensive use for that purpose wherever it can be successfully grown in Canada. Under favourable soil and weather conditions it may be expected to produce from five to six tons of hay to the acre per annum. Alfalfa hay, well made, has no equal as a dry feed for live stock, but no other kind of hay requires as much care, skill and experience or information in the making as does alfalfa. ^ • 1.^1.1°* '*'^°* ^eins to blossom its stems begin to turn woody. Plants far advanced in the blossoming stage have very woody stems, easily lose their leaves and then mnke unpalatable, indigestible and generally inferior hay. It is evident, therefore, that to secure good results the crop should be cut at an early stage. Experience has shown the beginning of the blossoming stage to be the best time. The very best time is when about 10 per cent of the blossoms are in • i bloom. U is than in ito Wt fwdinc condition and will come aloDg most rapidly for tha next cutting. If the cutting be delayed not only will the hay cured be of an inferior quality, but reooTery will 1« slow and incomplete, enUiling a am»i1?r total Tield for the yenr than would otberwia#> haT<- been produced. THE MAKINQ OF THE HAT. No more than can be oonreniently handled in one day ahould be c t oi-e t'-ne. It ia beat to cut in the morning as soon na free from dew. Leare in the t..^ath, ' r . /.!- ierably ahake up with the tedder at intervala till late afternoon or until the .uy ia well wilted, but not dry enough to loae iU learea, then rake into win('row«. If rain threatena put intc cock for the night and open out in the morning to finish curing. It ahould be cured until It will keep without beating, but not made ao dry as to eauae the leaves to drop off In the curing and housing it should be handled aa little aa posaible, as each hanu 'c means the loaa of a oonaiderable number of leaves, and the leavea are, by very m- ., the more valuable part of t!^ up. Alfalfa hay should, if at all posaible, be ma<' . ^)>out getting wet with rain. After being exposed to rain in the curing it is t. • •<,■■ -th nearly ao much for feed, losing probably half its value. The rain not only c ^ many more leaves to fall off, but seems to remove much of the nalatability, digestibility and food elementa of the remaining leaves and stems. It should be well protected when cured, as it abtiorba rather' than sheds rain. If ctored in stacks, a thatch, a canvaa, or a lapping board roof ahould be put on. ITS FERTILIZING NEEDS. Just as when sown to clo■. -•. For a : u! Jiscussion of its value in this connection see Part 11, but an examine -. of the cut in page 12 will show the depth of root that the plant throws out. These roota are valuable not only on account of the plant food they supply when decomposing in the soil, but are valuable because they open up the subaoil and render it more permeable to surface water, so improving the aoil very materially. Undo- dly the long roots bring up from depths not reached by the roots of other planta much of the food required by the plant, hence the importance of such roota and the grent value to agriculture of the plant that is able to produce them. SUMMAEY. 1. Sow sufficient seed. 2. Sow good seed, that is germinable aeed. 8. Sow on well-prepared land in good state of fertility. 4. Sowing without nurse crop overcomes in some measure poverty of ail. 6. Proper prepa ition of the right kind of seed bed and careful ^oservanoe of directions for first year treatment are necessary to insure a long series of remunera- tive crops. 6. Before sowing be aure that a sufficiency of plant food exists in the surface aoil to grow a good crop (40 bushels to the acre) of oats. 7. Do not sow on poorly drained land; 'well drained' should mean drained to a depth of at least two feet. PARTIL ALFALFAt A FODDER AHD A FERTILIZER. ALFALFA AS A FODDBR. BT Frakk T. Shutt, M.A., Chbhist, Dominion Expehimental Farms. Alfalfa merits attention, both a« a fodder and as a fertiliser. As the former, it furnishes a large amount of forage especially rich in flesh-forming constituents and as the latter it may he employed with advantage to maintain and increase soil fertility by the addition of considerable stores of nitrogen and humus. Alfalfa is a legume — a class of plants including the clovers, peas, beans, vetches^ &c., and characterized by possessing a large proportion of nitrogenous matter (crude protein) in their tissues. The legumes are further remarkable for their peculiar and valuable property of being able to draw upon that inexhaustible store — the air — for the greater part of the nitrogen they possess. It is this latter fact that distinguishes the legumes from all other plants and which has given them the name of ' nitrogen collectors.' All other plants are ' nitrogen consumers ' : that is, they draw their supply from the soil and consequently by their growth leave the soil poorer in thi» element. For many centuries it was considered that the growth of legumes enriched rather than impoverished the soil, increasing the yield of subsequent crops of grain, roots, &c., but the definite knowledge of the fact and how it was brought about dates back but a few years and must be regarded as the most important discovery in agricultural science of the nineteenth century* Without discussing in any detail the constituents of fodders and their function in the animal economy, it may suffice for present purposes to point out that the value of a forage crop depends chiefly on the amount of ' dry matter ' it furnishes and the relative richness of this dry matter in flesh-formers or protein. In the following table the composition of a number of our more common coarse fodders is given, allowing a comparative study to be made of their relative feeding values. CoMPOsmoN of Coarse Fodders. Name. w.... ' I*ry Crude Water. , ^^^{^^ | p„tein. Alfalfa, green .1 nay HM Clover, ureen . II hay . . . Timothy, preen nay ■lime gram, green . hay . . . Com forage, green . M silago Mangel* Per cent. Per cent. Per cent. 4 8 14 S 4 4 12 3 2 3 5 9 3 1 7 4 1-8 17 14 Ether Extract or Fat. Per cent. 10 2 2 11 3 3 0-9 2 5 11 25 OB 8 2 Nitrogen- free I Extract I Fibre, or Carbo- j hydrates. : Aih. r cent. 123 Per cent. 7 4 427 250 13 5 8 1 38 1 24 8 15 4 8 8 450 390 134 7 42 1 27-2 12 2 50 110 00 5-5 09 Per cent. 2 7 7-4 21 «-2 1-6 4 4 2 1 6 5 12 14 11 It is evident from the foregoing that alfalfa, in common with clover and other legumes, furnishes a more nutritious fodder, weight for weight, than the grasses. * The m«an« by which th* legumes are able may be briefly stated as follows: There are in the soil which are able, uden attached to the nitrogen of the air existing between the organised form to their host plant, enriching attachment and growth of these bacteria on the roots of the legume, and these nodnles, are to be found in sises varving from that and frequently scattered in large numbers to appropriate the free nitrogen of the air certain micro-organisms or bacteria present the roots of the growing legnme, to ntilis* particles of the soil, and to pass it on in sob* itH tissues of root, stem, and leaves. Th* canse the formation of nodnlea or tnberolas swarming with their countless inhabitaata, of a pin s heed to that of a pea or larger, over the roots of the plant. Indian corn or roots, and it, therefore, only remains to present certain particulars respecting its composition at various stages of growth and to detail the amounts of real cattle food obtained per acre by a greater or lees frequency of cutting during the season. THE YIELD OF ALFALFA FBOM TWO AND FOUR CUTTINGS, RE8PECTIVELT. In the irrigated districts of the Western States, alfalfa is the most important and most valuable of all fodder crops, being cut from six to eight times in a season and yielding in all from eight to fourteen tons per acre of fodder of a high protein content. Experience in Canada, though limited as yet, shows it to be a forage plant of wide adaptability and capable of producing profitable crops when once established. Though somewhat difficult to cure, owing to the readiness with which the leaves drop off in drying, it possesses characteristics which make it of special value for pasturage and soiling, viz., its very early growth in spring and its property of quickly sending up an aftermath when cut. To obtain data regarding the relative yields — both as to amount and feeding value — when cutting the crop two and four times, respectively, during the season, certain experiments were made in the year 1901 on the Central Experimental Farm at Ottawa and the results of this investigation may now be presented. The plot of our experiment was sown in May of the previous year, so that the results indicate returns from the second season's growth. Half the plot was cut twice and half four times, and the several yields weighed and analysed. The following are the data : — Table I. — Yield and Amount of Dry Matter from Two and Four cuttings, respectively. I Average Date of Cutting. { Height of Two ClTTINGS— I'KB AcKK. KoiB Cittisgs-Pkr Acre. Planta. Weight of n... \t..... Crude Crop. i^fy Matter. p,.j,,^i„ Inches l Ton». Lb«. i Tons. Um. Lbs. Weight of ,^ M»,t„r '• *^""'* Crop. '''y *"»"*' i Pmt-in Protein. June 4 .. 21 July 15 Aug. 1 „ 19 •30 +39 "Via ++20 \ 12 i.eoit ""*' 326 '■'3" ...... 2!»7' "445' :' lio-ir ■'384 Sept. 18 Totals i 16 1,920 4 742 1,411 Tons. Lbs. Tons. Lbs. | Lbs. 6 920 1 610 522 4 "t the mineral matter or ash constituents of the green crop are, by the decay of the latter in the soil, set free in a condition more or less immediately available to plants. Hence, although such a method of manuring has not added to the total store of mineral food in the aoil, it has materially enhanced its value by conversion into more assimilable forms. A consideration of the data in the foregoing table , »hows that in total yield of crop, alfalfa atood second. It V ^jSiI '""* ^'°™ *^" legume we obUined the largest amount of P IP^ \. humus-forming material in the stems and leaves, as well I .4 \ ) as in the roots. It also afforded the most nitrogen per acre, nearly half of which was in the roots — a feature in which it stands alone among the clovers experimented with and one of great importance when the crop is intended for soiling or curing. The extensive or rattier deep-root system is of much value in the mechanical improvement of the soil; it also serves to bring to the surface layers much plant-food ordinarily out of ^*- reach of farm crops. The mineral matter exceeded by 300 pounds per acre the amount in the Crimson Clover crop — the next beet in this respect More than half of the 1,100 pounds of ash constituents recorded as stored in the yield per acre, wns contained in the roots. Talcing into consideration all the important require- ments, from a chemical standpoint of a crop for green manuring, the alfalfa gave the beet results in the present investigation. v. IS PART ni. LUCEBH OR ALFALFA. (Medicago taiiva, I .) Br James Fletcher, LL.D., f.R.S.C, F.L.S. The frequent demands for information con(«ming Lucern or Alfalfa from all parts of Canada make it advisable to publish a note, giving briefly some of the more important facts ^ jring on the cultivation of this legume, as well as a reference to such success as has attended the efforts of enterprising farmers who have experimented with it. Its great value in the seni arid districts of western North America, and in many parts of South America, can hardly be overstated. This has doubtless led to the numerous trials which have been made from time to time in almost all parts :>{ the Dominion. Notwithstanding that these attempts to establish lucern amsng the regular fodder crops of Canada it must be acknowledged to have not been so far very successful, Fig. 1.— Lucern: a, b. 8«ed pod; c, seed — 1, b, c, enlarged. (Jared G. Sn.ith, Farmers' Bulletin No. 31, United States Deji mt of Agricnltare.) yet, from careful observations and inquiries made during a period of many years, the writer feels justified in recommending farme.s in all parts of the Dominion to give this clover a much more extensive trial than up to the present time it has received. These experiments should naturally be made on a small scale at first, until the suit- ability of the locality has been proved. Lucern has been styled ' a fickle crop,' owing to the irregular results which have been obtained in growing it in the same district, or even in two fields close to each other in the same locality. The most important requisite for success is a permeable, well-drained subsoil, in which the water level does not rise higher than eight or ten feet below the surface. Provided that the actual soil in which the plant grows is tolerably fertile, and that it f M has been well prppareo, luoern will suocred on soils of a very diverse nature, ranging^ from the lightMt of sandy loams to heavy clay. Luoern or Alfalfa (Meditago tativa. L.) is an i.pright branching, deep-rooted smooth perennial plant, belonging to the natural orr'er Leguminose, to which alac belong the various cloven, pease, beans, vetches and a milar plants. For all practical purposes of the farmer, it may be regarded as a clover, and may be put to the sam» uses. It is precisely the same plant as is frequently spoken of under its other name. Alfalfa, and is not as some of our correspondents have thought, a true grass, such as tiucothy, June grass or millet. The name Lucern, by which th 4 plant is known in Europe and moat parts of eastern North America, is not derl/ed from the Swiss Canton of Lucorne, but is said to be a corruption of the old Cataline name 'Userdas,' whence came ' Laouzerdo ' used in the south of France, and this word, by easy corrup- tion, has changed to lucern. The other name, Alfalfa, is of Arabic origin, and was taken with the plant into Spain by the Moors. The Spaniards naturally called th* new plant by the name used ior it by i;^: introducers, and then brought it with them under that name to North America, where .t is now widely used, partic 'irly in th» West, where lucern is most grown, and where Spaniards were formerly numerous. The cultivation of lucern probably dates further back than that of any other fodder plant known. An interesting account of its history is given in the United State* Farmers' Bulletin, No- 31- Lucern is a native of valleys of Western Asia, and has been found wild in Beloochistan, Afghanistan and Cashmere. It has been cultivated aa a fodder plant for more than two the i and years and was introduced into Greece at the time of the Persian war, B.C. 470. It was brought to Mexico and this continent at the time of the Spanish invasion, since which time it has slowly and gradually spread over the whole continent, until it is now cultivated it.dic or less over vast areas north and south of the equator. Lucern grows to a height of from one and a half to over three feet at the time of flowering. The proper time to cut the crop is when about one-tenth of the flowers have turned purple. The leaves consist of three oblong leaflets, which are notched at the end and borne each one on a slender stalk. The purple pea-shaped flowers are in long, loose clusters and occur all over the upper part of the plant. The pods are spirally twisted and contain several yellow kidney-shaped seeds, which are about ose- half longer than red clover. The root system consists of a single tap-root, which under favourable soil conditions will run down to a great depth, an average of ten or twelve feet being common, and th^re are authentic records of the roots having penetrated to a depth of over fifty feet, This deep-rooting habit gives the plant great agricultural value as a soil improver by carrying the materials for humus and nitrifi- cation of the soil a long way oelow the surface, and also because the plants not only derive much of their nourishment from depths not .eached by ordinary crops, but the vitality of the plant is projected from drought, and when the roots decay, channels useful in the drainage of the subsoil are opened up. Thj young planflet, which for some time after starting from the seed is slender and delicate, is well shown at figure 2. When the stems pre cut or grrazed off, the stalk dies down to the very base and new buds are produced on the upper part or crown of the root. The planis do not reach full growth until the third year, when they present the appearance shown at figure 3. The crown of each plant by that time produces a great many stems and forms a strong tuft of excellent fodder. Owing te the smallness of the plants the first year, farmers are sometimes disappointed at the appearance of the crop ; but if, when th« seed has been sown broadcast, one plant can be saved to every five or six inches, the stand will be thick enough. It is best to sow lucern in drills seven or eight inehes apart. This plant has no running root-stocks, and there is not the slightest probability of its ever becoming a troublesome weed. It spreads only by seed. When it is desired to dear it from land, it can be easily done, although it will require a good plough and a strong team of horses. The roots, once cut below the surface, do not produce new shoots, but die. Under irrigation the plants are easily killed by flooding the fields for three or four days in hot summer weather. 15 Fig. 2.— Lncern seedling, 6 we«ks old. Fig. 3.— Lucern, 3 years old. (Jared G. Smith, Farmer*' Bulletin No. 31, United States Department of Agriculture.) Liicern is a long-lived perennial, and it is not often advisable to lay down land to this cron uuless it can be left undisturbed for several years. The heaviest crops are borne after the third year. On the experimental grass plois at the Central Experi- mental Farm, we have cut three crops a year, aggregating an average of five tons of cured hay to the acre for nine years, and this too was upon a piece of gravelly and by no means rich land. Ex-Govemor Hoard, of Wisconsin, tells me that there are plots of lucern now growing near some of the old Spanish mor.asteriec in California which were sown fifty years ago. As stated above, when a piece of well-drained suitable land is to be sown to lueem. it should be tolenibly rich, or ir. the condition known to farmers a-s ' in good heart,' that is, fit to give profitable returns from any ordinary farm crop. If it is not, it will be better to put on a good heavy dressing of barn-yard manure, plough deeply and grow a crop of corn or potatoes for the first year. Lucern may be sown either in •spring or eummer. but does far better when sown in spring. The seed bed must be deep, well firmed but mellow, and with a smooth surface. The disc harrow, roller, and smoothing harrow, should be well used before seeding, until the land is in the very best condition possible. When the young plants are well up, 8 or 10 inches, the field should be mowed and all weeds must be kept down carefully for the first year with scythe and hoe. Any w"r>k epots should be picked up, if neoe«8ary, by sowing some more seed before August. 16 11 ,." °"* Py* •"* °' •»«''* ^r the roller, com roota ■hould be raked off the land befon aeedUng. When aown alone, fifteen to twentyflTe pounds of luoem aeed ahould be uaed to the acre, and it is generally conceded, particularlj in the Weet, where there u aometimea a lack of moiature, that it thrivea beat when aown without a nune crop. Howerer. ezoellent result, have been sometimpa aeoured when the aeedins haa been done with a light crop of barley or wheat With a good stand, a light crop of hay may be taken the first autumn; but it ia better to cut and leave this on the field as a winter muloh. Every apring the field ahould be harrowed before the shooU appear, with a heavy harrow to looaen up the aurfaoe and kill weeds. This treatment, with an autumn dreaaing every thi«e or four years of short barn-yard manure thoroughly composted so as to destroy weed seeds. wiU keep a well-establiahed field of lucem in good paying condition for a great many years. Some fields in California, Kansas, Virginia and Colorado have been giving oropa continuously for over twenty-five years. Weeds and irregulariti<» in the surface of tte l«nd are the two chief caus<>s of failure in keeping lucem fields up to a paying atandard. This shows the importance of very great care in preparing the land before aeeding. and. aa the field remains under the same crop for many yeam, more than ordinary outlay la justifiable at the outset. Where lucem is to be grown under irrigation in the West, Mr. Jared O. Smith adviaee (Farmers' Bull. 81, p. 12) that the seed be ' drilled or aown broadoaat in spring as soon as the ground is warm and when danger of hard frost is pact It is best to' eow without a nurse crop. Where the land ia under ditch, the fields should be irrigated before seeding and not again until the seedlings are at least six weeks old. The first six weeks or two monhs in the life of the plant is the critical period of ita growth. It is at this time very susceptible to any sudden change of temperature or to an excess of water in the soil. If the land be irrigated il'.rectly after it has been ploughed and harrowed, the soil becomes a reservoir of water necessary for the growth of the young plants, and no further irrigation will be required until the alfalfa is well establuhed. The seed should be covered very lightly, to a depth not exceeding an inch. A light hsrrow or brush will be sufficient.' 'Land on which alfalfa is to succeed must be well drained, as in the East. It is a mistaken idea that alfalfa fields must be kept continuously water-soaked. The plant cannot make its best development with wet feet. The soil must be deep, rich and mellow, and the ground water not less than six or eight feet below the surface. The soil in which it most delights is dry and well drained, and if, in addition to these qualities, the lay of the field is such that water can be turned on once or twice during' a hot, dry summer, the very beet conditions for the growth of alfalfa will he attained.' It is sometimes desired to grow lucern mixed with grasses, and this may be done in many parts of the country if varieties are chosen which will not smother out the young seedlings. Mr. D. O'Hara, of Bonaparte, in the Ashcroft district of British Columbia, haa grown a mixed crop of lucem and Awnless bromc with the greatest satisfaction, and reports that others have done the same, and further adds the inter- esting information that in such a mixture the lucern is protected to such a degree that in winters, when grown nlone. it has winter-killed, while, mixed with some grasses, the plants have come through without injury. In the West, undoubtedly the beet kinds of grass for mixing with lucorn would be the awnless brome or the western rye-grass, which might be mixed in the propartion of ten pounds of lucern to six pounds of the grass seed. Awnless brome does not as a rule make a very heavy growth the first season, and therefore it would not crowd out the somewhat delicate lucern seedlings, nor deprive them of too much soil moisture- The lucern. being a very deep-rooted plant, would be well suited for cultivation with either of these grasses, the root systems of which are much nearer the surface. In the East, meadow fescue, tall oat grass and orchard grass might be used for the same purpose. Timothy flowers too late to make a go \ mixture although it has been used to a considerable extent ' IT In localitiea when the inowfall is licht or cannot be relied on to remain thzongh- out the winter, a light top-dreating of manure in autumn or during the winter ia very useful in protecting the young plants. It is probable that lucem is one uf the moat Taluable fodder plants known, and that it has a very wide range of usefulness, by far greater than up to the present time haa been disooTered. It yields heavy crops of from twelve to twenty-four tons to the acre of early, succulent green feed, or from three to six tons of cured hay of the highest quality. In all conditions it is palatable and attractive to every kind of stock and has, besides a special value on account of the large amount of nitrogen it contains. This valuable plant food increases considerably the utility of manure from animals fed upon lucern and other leguminous plants. Like all other membem of the clover family, this has on its roots nodules or galls inhabited by myriads of minute organisms known as nitrogen-gathering and nitrifying bacteria, which perform the useful offices of collecting nitrogen from the air and changing its condition, so that plants can make uso of it as food. The abundance of these nodules varies with the soil in which the plants grow, and the vigour of the plants is directly affected by their abundance. When the seed is sown on new land, there are not nearly so many of these important bodies on the roots as where a crop of lucem has previously flourished, nor are the plants so vigorous. It haa been found that the soil may be easily inocul id so as to be able to grow better crops, by scattering some soil from an old lucem ; Id or from a spot where the wh akMMt indUUnciiialiable, •i.Hon^ the TurknUn variety i« ntber mofe Ticoroiu in (nwth. The facti Riven above will, I tnut, induce some who liaT* not afawdy dona ao, to ti7 : mall plot of thi» valuuble fodder plavt. Durinff the la«t hundred jt^n, outside certain regions in the Weat and South, reports of sucotases and failures havt been about equally divided, and there rnunt be aome reaaon for the differencee in reaulti. I lun inelinad to think that these are chiefly due to a laok of eare in choosinc suitable land and in preparing the seed-bed for the reeoption of the aeed. Luoert has succeeded so far north and under such severe winter eonditiona that I cannot think that low temperaturea have been the chief cauae of failure. A coverinff of snow is a great pioteotion to the roota, but our beds at Ottawa have several times been exposed to temperaturea many degrees below aero when entirely b:ire. The seed of thia clover ia cheap, is eaaily obtained in all markets, and the value of the nitrogen collected by the plants, even if they live for only one year, will by far exceed the coat of ti>« aeed and all labour expended. I i J 7 4!)1 - ."? I I I K£ [)lri.i.. 46.J ■4.