The Breckenridge news., 1905-10-11

viii III any .Oouu'l y III tue NOliu
without irrigation. Alfalfa sown IN
Kentu ky under wrong conditions Will
prove a discouraging failure. Neither
the KENTUCKY Agricultural Expert
ment Station nor the Commissioner Of
Agriculture desires to encourage un-
WIS., experimentation or lead men TO
make unavailing efforts TO grow alfalfa
upon unfit soils or with wrong meth
DDS.
Let us consider the few essential
things tnat alfalfa demands. First. a
soil tnat is not sour
Next. soil that is we'll enough
drained so that water does not saturate
it at any time of the year, unless for
day or two following very heavy
rsinfals
Then a soil that Is rich in the
mineral elements that go TO make
plants grow, phosphorus and potash,
and well supplied too with nitrogen.
And, to crown all, a soil supplied
with abundant vegetable matter, or
"humus.
Given these things and KentLcky's
sun and skies alfalfa will grow in any
part of the State and will yield annual
ly four or five cuttings a year of the
richest forage either to feed green or
10 cure into hay.
An acre of proper soil devoted to al
falta Will produce double the amount
of available food for ANIMALS that an
acre of corn will. and of higher class
of nutrients. That Is because the alfalfa
Is so Iich in protein, the muscle and
blood building elements that are 80
much needed III a ration for all young
animals, for dairy COWS or any mi
mals giving milk to their young.
To prepare an acre of land for alfalfa
may ia some instances involve con-
siderable labor and expense. If the
WORK is rightly done 1t will be lavish
ly repaid by the grateful alfalfa plants
and after they have grown upon the
soil for a series OF years they will leave
II rlcher than they tOund X.
If each farm in Kentucky will grow
alfalfa, even if 10 more than two or
three acres, 1t Will enormously IN
crease the prosperity and wealth of
the State. There are sections of Ken
tucky where easily there may be de-
veloped large alfalfa fields There
ale other sections where to grow
alfalfa VIII require thought, effort
expense aud care. Success when reacn
ed will richly reward all this effort.
1t is most unwlse to SOW alfalfa seed
upon lntertile soils or without right
preparation Of the soil and attention 20
a tew important details.
Nevertheless the few things needful
ale of easy attainment--there is no
mystery about alfalfa growing.
Let us take up the essentials Of
altalfa-growing first, that the soil
must be sweet.
It is a new thought to Kentucky
farmer perhaps that soil, are some
times sour They may be sour upon
limestone land, but are more apt to he
sour away from the lime.
If they al waterlogged during part
of tue year they are most apt to he
sour. This acIdity comes probably from
the decay within the soil of vegetable
matter, though some soils very .dehci
ent in humus are acld. An evidence
Of acidity is seen when clovers fail to
thrive and certain weeds appear in the
meadows
Tlo appearance of "sorrcl tie
little red-topped weed that is seen IN
So many Kentucky meadows OF recent
years, Is an indication Oh acidity. A
-urer indication the gradual disap-
pearance OF red clover and the Difficult
ty experienced in making it grow.
Lime is the c are of acid soils though
drainage il, often needed along with
lime. II may be applied to freshly
plowed surface no the rate OF from one
or two tons per acre Of AIR Stacked or
ground Iiue, and in some countries
ground limestone Is used with good re
suits
Lime j., not itself fertilizer but it
makes the land sweet so that clOvers
may grow and by their presence bring
about enrichment of the soil
Alfalfa Is clover. one Of the best,
since It is of very long life and surpris-
ing vigor upon proper soil
Kentucky needs the use Of thousands
~ tons of lime. in connection with
mauure.. Lining poor soils without
mauurug may not bring much benefit
since there may he too little plant food
there even when the -oll is swee tened
The Older region, of the world,
where advanced agriculture has been
practiccd for centuries, use great
amouuts of lime. The writer has seen
great chalk pits in England whence
mad been taken thousands OF tons of