The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1904-12-03

MR.. COUNCILMAN ON "ALFALFA
CULTURE"

DR.. H. ]. Patterson, director of the Maryland
| Experiment Station, has received an interest
| ing letter on alfalfa Culture" from Mr. Charles
/ A. Councilman, of Baltimore county. Mr.. Coun-
Gilman received letter from Mr.. A. s. Hitch
cock, of the United States Department of Agri-
| culture, in which he said: II have been In
formed that you have an alfalfa field Of about
100 acres which is giving good returns, and which
has been in alfalfa for number of years. As
we receive so many inquiries from Maryland
concerning alfalfa and hear so many failures Of
this crop 4hould be glad to have information
concerning your Methods In response to this
request Mr.. Councilman sent to Mr.. Hitchcock
copy of his letter to DIR. Patterson which is, in
| part, as follows:
ssYour investigation through the agency of
W. T. L. Taliaferro in his bulletin No. IS on the
'Adaptability of the Soil of Maryland to the
Growth of Alfalfa has opened up an interest
which will certainly eventuate in great good to
the farmers of our State.
"In this particular / wish to urge that you
bring before the board of trustees at its next
meeting a recommendation to the effect that
you be given authority to secure the use Of 10
acres of land for series of years in each of the
five tobacco growing counties of Southern Mary
land, viz: Prince Georges, Charles, st. Mary's,
Calvert and Anne Arundel; that you be author
lied to devote sufficient money to the proper
preparation and seeding of these tracts of land
to alfalfa and the proper protection of the same
from trespass by stock or otherwise; that selec-
ton be made at central positions where the re-
suits will gain the widest publicity, and that
men be selected who will heartily cooperate
with you in making these experiments sue
cess.
I'm personal experience of several years I
l. 49, Erl&- IL
l have found that no claims made for it are over
estimated, and I am convinced that Maryland
soils are well suited to its successful cultivation
In this connection wish to give my experience
with this plant trusting that it will lead others
to do likewise, and thus lay the foundation Of q
more profitable agriculture for my associates in
our common vocation.
I'm growing alfalfa in Maryland, when the
conditions are right, it is more trouble to OBJ
tain a stand than it is of red clover, and when
good stand of alfalfa is obtained 1t is good for IL
or 10 years, and will give you from five to six
tons of alfalfa. besides grazing 20 hogs to every
acre of land you have in alfalfa.
"In starting the crop prefer to take clover
field the year before and cut the first and second
crops of clover and let it remain on the land,
and then late in the fall pillow as deep as can
and turn all under. and during the winter I
spread rs bushels of unslaked lime to the acre.
In the spring, about the first of April, as soon
as the ground is dry enough to work, I harrow
and roll the field and work it down to fine seed
bed and let it stand until about the first of May.
This will germinaJe the weed seeds in the
ground. l get earth from my old alfalfa and
spread about 500 pounds to the acre. then
harrow thoroughly, so as to kill all the young
weeds that have started, and make fine, smooth
seed bed. then take Thompson wheelbar-
row sower and SOW 80 pounds of the best alfalfa
seed that can buy Il prefer either the Salt
River Valley or Ozark Valley seed), cover
with a Lewis smoothing harrow and roll the
field. I then let the field rest, unless / should
happen to strike dry spell of weather after the
sowing. as the dews will terminate the seed,
and the young plant at this period of its life
cannot stand dry weather. and many in conse-
quence will perish. and this is the cause of SO
many poor and irregular stands of alfalfa.
Nov. on the other hand, if you have had
sufficient moisture the young plants have made
rapid progress. and about June 10th to July LIST
the alfalfa will be IL or 10 inches high and will
commence to show yellow spots on the leaves.
1 then run my mower over the field and let the
clippings remain on the field. Now again is
critical time IN the life of the young plant. The
fox tail, wild carrot. crab grass and other sum-
mer weeds will give it struggle for its exist
ence. again run the mower over the field to
keep the weeds down, and about the middle of
August to September LIST NOW again. / then let
it rest until winter keep all stock and teams of
the field, and during the winter if you find any
weak spots or poor knobs In the field top dress
the entire field so good, but this must be done
when the snow is on the ground. as stock or
teams running or working over an alfalfa field
when the ground is frozen. without snow, has a
tendency to kill it out.
"By April 25th your field will be well started.
and when about five inches high turn the hogs
in at about 10 pigs to the acre. A 6-weeks-old
pig turned in at this time, you can take up the
first of November, and they will average 125
pounds. When the field is about two-thirds in
bloom cut for hay. Start your mower as soon
as the dew is off, and in the evening, if you have
good hay day, rake and put in small slender
cocks Let the cocks stand in the field fora day
or so and then store in your mows, sailing at
the rate of peck of salt to the load. You will
cut your field three times the second year and
four times the third year and after.
Mr.. Councilman then devotes considerable
space to the raising of alfalfa and tobacco in
Southern Maryland and concludes as follows:
"a ton of alfalfa hay, well cured, has the feed
ing value of ton of wheat bran. That lotion
silo may be filed with balanced ration found
on five acres of corn and COW peas planted
together and harvested together; that an acre
of Irish potatoes, properly cultivated and re-
curing but five months from seed time to har-
vest, will pay as much as two acres Of tobacco
requiring IS months from planting to market"