The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1874-05-08
A." ALFALFA" CULTURE.


journal Knows About it.
Observing during a short visit to the
Atlantic states that lucerD, or as it is
called further west, alfalfa, is attracting
deserved attention throughout the
south and west as forage and pasture
plant, and having read an interesting
letter on this subject from your cores
pondent at Lebanon, KY, who refers to
its culture and value in California, /
suppose few facts about its growth on
the Pacific coast may not be unaccept-
able.
Alfalfa, or Chill clover, as it is fire.
quently called, has for some years been
rapidly increasing in popularity in Cal
ifornia.
Large tracts of land there, which
were formerly used only to pasture
hundreds of thousands of cattle, horses
and sheep, are now boing devoted to
the raising of small grain and other
crops. So greatly is the area of wild
pasturage diminished in this way, that
some plant is earnestly sought to in
crease the capacity of the acreage de-
voted to the rearing of stock. Alfalfa,
or lucern, is believed to be that plant,
and all our experience tends,,t to confirm
thebelief.
With us, in certain localities, it is
not only cut in large quantities as hay,
but is pastared by all kinds of stock as
soon as it has become aUeL-r0Oted,
which is likely to be within one year
where the soil is sufficiently moist. In
an irrigated region i'll San Joaquin Val
ley, I have seen $50 head of mixed stock,
hogs, sheep, COWS and horses, kept in
q
of alfalfa. It is considered a very safe
estimate to say one acre of alfalfa will
keep ten sheep in good condition dur
ing the year.
Twenty acres of such pasturage, kept
moist enough, and, with a division
fence making two ten-acre lots, if cut
for hay and pastured alternately, will
easily keep 200 head of mixed stock
through the year. 1t is not well to
allow stock to run on it when the soil
is wet and muddy. When cut for hay
the yield is enormous. Many can vouch
for the following facts
In Kern county, the extreme south
AIn portion of San Joaquin Valley,
where a considerable amount of land 10
irrigated by the abundant waters of
Kern river, fed, as it is, by the PER-
tains, large quantities of alfalfa are now
raised.
They cut it for hay every six weeks,
if desired. 1t is very common to cut it
five or six times a year, with a yield of
from one to two tons of hay per acre. I
know of one instance where it was cut
seven times during the year 1873, and
yielded about ton and a half at each
cutting.
You see, then, with land properly
irrigated and mown, we can in Califor-
MIA count on eight or ten tons of such
hay per acre. There all kinds of stock
live on it, and eat it greedily, either as
hay or when growing. Its roots go very
deep to water, from four to six feet be-
ing no uncommon depth for them to
penetrate.
One sowing every ten years is usually
considered sufficient. With us the seed
is worth from 20 to 25 cents Fer pound.
Where it is so successfully grown-in
Kern county-it is considered best to
SOW about twenty pounds, or one-third
of bushel, of seed per acre.
A favorite mode of sowing is after
blowing to SOW the ground first with
wheat or barley, then to SOW the alfalfa
seed and put it in with light harrow,
or merely run large brush over it. 1t
is. considered very important not to
cover the seed deep. The reason for
sowing with wheat or barley is on &C
count of our hot, dry climate to shade
and protect the young alfalfa, which is
very tender plant, until it is firmly
rooted and becomes rank. The hay
made by the first cutting is necessarily
better for the mixture of small grain.
The dryness of our atmosphere, as of
Chill and Peru, is no doubt well suited
to the culture of the valuable pasture
plant. The moisture of the climate of
England is believed to be the chief rea-
son why it has not been so highly
valued for forage there. The greater
moisture of the climate and longer win
tiers of the Atlantic States will natural
ly tend to make alfalfa less productive
here than it is in California, but the
farmers of the southern, northern and
western states will probably in future
years value it as one of their best hay
and pasture plants. Some one writing
about its cultivation in Georgia says:
" 1t must never be pastured," and adds,
" live stock pasturing it bite out the
crown of the plants and kill them"
May this not be caused by grazing it,
when too young, or too continuously?
In California it is constantly grazed by
all kinds of stock, even hogs, without
injury after it is year old. May not
the same result follow, if it is Judi
ciously pastured elsewhere?