Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1904-06-11
suecess With Alfalfa.

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Success With Alfalfa
Previous to i've years ago most OF
the attempts to grow alfalfa in I'LL
nois and neighboring states had re-
suited in failures, but since that time
there have been many successes, and
these successes have led many FAR
mers to embark quite heavily in the
growing of alfalfa. To large extent
perhaps the successful growing of this
depends on the proper incubation OF
the soil with the bacteria that makes
the nodule in which is gathered the
nitrogen from the air to be changed
into q form that can later be used
by the rootlets of the plants for food.
The sending out by the Illinois ex-
pertinent station of large quantities
of in0culated soil has been Q step in
advance and has commenced the mo
culation Of the soil in many widely
separated sections. In the meantime
the apparent fact that the bacteria
that works on sweet clover Is the
same that works on alfalfa is another
sign pointing to the successful grow
ing OF alfalfa in states where it has
been little grown in the past.
There are many sections Of Illi-
nois and Michigan where the writer
has seen sweet clover growing in
abundance. and it is very likely that
alfalfa on such lands will prove sue
cessful. Perhaps one reason why al
falfa has not in the past done well
on such lands is that the bacteria on
the sweet clover did not come into
contact with the roots of the alfalfa
Sweet clover does not in the main
grow in cultivated fields, but by the
hard roadside In fact it Is averse
| to cultivation We would suggest to
| our readers that those living In a
region where sweet clover grows
| thickly by the roadside should SOW
some alfalfa in cultivated field and
carry some soil from the roadside
where the sweet clover grows Tor ino-
| cuiation, and at the same time plant
a patch of alfalfa in place distant
| from the places where the sweet Glow
| er and other alfalfa are growing, but
on the same kind of soil. This latter
| will be a check plot by which the
| success of the other treatment can
| be judged.
A few cases of this kind will prove
| Of little value, but there should be
| several hundreds Of farmers that are
| in position to make this experiment
this spring. The results may be far
reaching, for il way is found to
| ties where it is not now grown It will
add Immensely to the pFoats OF the
| farms in such localities
Spraying for Potato Blight.
| Where there has been trouble with
potato blight, spraying has been re-
| sorted to successfully for the checking
| Of this fungus disease. 1t has been
| found that some varieties Of potatoes
are moro resistant to blight than are
| others, and that as a general thing the
| early varieties are first attacked This
may be due to the possible fact that
the early potato vines reach q partly
| mature stage before the others.
Spraying will delay the attack on all
| varieties but will not entirely prevent
the attacks. But always the spraying
| will give results that will moro than
pay the cost, and will frequently stop
the blight altogether The spray used
| is the weH-known Bordeaux Mixture,
which is made as follows: Four
pounds copper sulphate, four pounds
| lime and fifty gallons of water. Dis
| solve the copper sulphate in hot water
or from q coarse bag suspended in
cold water. Stake the lime separately.
Dilute the copper sulphate to about
twenty gallons and dilute the lime to
ten gallons. Pour the diluted lime
into the diluted copper sulphate. Stir
the mixture while the mixing Is being
done. Then dilute to so gallons. Some
make 1t stronger by dfluting only TO
forty gallons. The sprayings should
be done about July, but this will de-
pend on the time Of planting. Three
| sprayings should do the work. But
it is well to keep a good watch over
| the vines till the middle of August.
Some OF our potato growers that
have had heavy losses from the pres
ence of blight have received great
benefits from the use of this spray and
have increased the yield of their po-
tatoes from 80 to so per cent, the
comparison being made with plots left
| unsprayed. The spray mentioned is
not expensive and can be quickly
used. Its benefits are far in excess
| of cost and labor.
Nurse Crops for Clover.