Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1888-04-06

catch, and is now high enough TO give
good grszjng in March. A part Of the
plat is black sandy, the other hight sandy.
All looks well, but thst on the
light sandy is the best, while that
on the black sandy WAS up before
some OF the other WAS put in. 1 broad
cast more than enough seed On loose,
sandy pat covered by crab grass. This
spring could not ind single plant Of
alfalfa. The young plants are delicate
and must have good start before weeds,
grass or very cold Westher. After they
get rooted well no weed can shoulder
them out. In Colorado, where 1t is
largely broadcast, or put In shallow by
VIII at drill shut close, they make the first
cutting of crop first sown early, in order
TO cut the weeds rather than the alfalfa
Then tie clover wins the
race. Nothing outgIoWs 1t. The second
year it is the first thing green seen in the
spring On land that Is clean it will DO
well BROADCAST, fifteen 10 twenty pounds
to the scre and narrowed or brushed in
II the land is foul with grass, weeds or
their seed it will pay best to drill it and
cultivate II till 1t gets start. 1t csn be
put in with other grain. The fsvorite
plan is to SOW on wheat or barley, after
severe weather in the spring, and harrow
in. 1t can be put in successfully with spring
oats, late sowing. Oats one way, alfalfa
the other ;or, ANY plan that will enable the
sower to know what he is doing. 1t does
best on sandy land or sand and gravel.
1t will de well on poor sandy land.
1t will fertiliEs itself. The substratum
must be such that roots can penetrate it
going to moisture. Our wells here are
twenty five to thirty i've feet. l DO not
doubt that my alfalfa will have rs feet In
my drinking water. It grows well on
gravel or light subsoil, and even o. clay,
but not well on compact clay land. It's
deep roots enable it TO Withstand drouth
better than any other grass for hay or
soiling, yielding enormously after the
first year. 1t should be cut as II CON-
mences to bloom. Permitted, in bright
weather, to lie in the swath thir y six
hours without stirring, then throw In o
cocks. Before the heat Of the day put und
shelter, or stack and cover. II handled
too much or when very dry It will lose
many leaves and tender shoots Hs.,y
dews will iDiure the hay, rsin will about
ruin 1t. 1t makes, like other clovers, an
open stack that rain will penetrate. A
writer from Utah says: at is the best
thing to renew old, worn out land that
ever saw, AMI there is not weed or any
thing else In this country that csn stand
before It," An intelligent CORE -pondent
Of Country Gentleman, from Denver,
Col says: "Red clover succeeds well
here; In fact, never saw better crops,
and, by some, 1T Is quite extensively grown,
but it requires better land than alfalfa.
Our climate Ia certainly S cool one; too
cool TO raise cora successfully. My farm
is $500 feet above tide water. Here the
growth is not slow; neither Is 1t hard and
woody. Last yesr had forty five acres
of alfalfa meadow, from which 1 cut $50
tons Of well cured hay. 1 moved The
entire acreage three times-one d cid four
times. commenced cutting June IL;
second cutting, (st same place., July ID;
third cutting, (aE same place., September
25. and fourth cutting, COT same feld),
October 20. AT each cutting Except the
fourtb), the plants we're just coming into
blossom, aad were 20 to "a inches high;
at the last cutting, 10 to IL
inches; aggregate growth of 70 inches
from spring to September 20, AND 80 inches
to October 90. Its being stemmy or
wo dy depends on Its thickness on the
ground and the time of cutting" In
Colorado twenty-five pounds are sown
by some, reckoning on some freezing out
the first winter or on poor seed thst will
not terminate. believe that would be
wssteful in Texas, even high up in the
Panhandle. 1t has been estimated by
actual count Of the seed in pound that
twenty FIVE pounds and eleven ounces
would give one seed to every square inch
of ground on an acre, too thick and q
waste. 1t is extravagsnt to SOW poor
seed
In preparing this hasty article three
questions we're before me: Whist is it2
W here will it grow7 Is 1t valuable? To
tee last question answer: More vslus-
bic than red clover. Beyond the import
ant fact, to Texas, inst 1t will not die
out from drouth, we fad the enormous
yield of hay st two to three times the
price OF prairie hsy. 1t is well known In
Britain thst lands become "clover sick"
They must be rested from six to eight
years to bring them TO good red clover
crops again. Tue, they have been fitted
for other crops; poor land renewed. But
slfslfa needsiDo foster-mother nor guard
ian Of estate beyond its tenderest infancy.
Sown on suitable soil 1t will
remain for generations. It has
held ite own at an elevation OF 1000 feet
above the sea In our country. 1t has
withstood 22o below zero. Professor
Rlouut aava nnaitjvolv 900 Ganara1