The Thibodaux sentinel. (Thibodaux, La.) 1905-1912, 1910-10-15
DRY FARM ALFALFA
Expected to Do Much Towards
Benefiting Crops in
West.
Roots of Plant Go Deeply Into Soil
Improving Its Texture and Giving
1t Greater Capacity to Absorb
and Hold Water.

Prof. A. M. Ten Eyck, superinter
dent of the Fort Hays Branch Exper
ment station, in a recent address dc
livered before the Western kansa
Farmers Conference, spoke at lengtl
on drouth-resisting crops. In speak
ing of alfalfa he said:
The second great crop of centra
and western Kansas, and also In SOM
sections of Nebraska, Oklahoma ant
Texas, Is alfalfa. To be sure, the croI
is most successfully grown In those
counties in Kansas which have suffi
cient rainfall, to produce good corr
crops, and, in fact, these two crops
corn and alfalfa, fit well together
both in their relation to the soil and
| as a combination feed for stock OF al
| kinds. Wherever 1t thrives well
! there is no other crop grown which
will produce so much forage of so high
feeding value as alfalfa. Throughout
central Kansas four cuttings OF hay
are usually harvested each season and
a total yield of four tons per acre in
a season is considered only fair
crop.
AS yet, alfalfa is not grown extern
sively in the western counties of the
state, except in localities where irri-
CATION is practiced, but the crop Is
gradually creeping up the river val
leys and into the creek bottoms, each
year pushing its area of successful
cuJtnro n littIo forfhor uoct ond ~
has even succeeded on the uplands in
many of the counties, where it was
not thought possible to grow it few
years ago. The method of planting
the crop in rows and then cultivating
promises to make this crop safe and
profitable one in those semi-arid re-
gions where the soil is suitable to al
falfa growth.
Alfalfa starts slowly, and it is rath-
er difficult, especially in the more I'M
favorable locations, to get stand, but
when the plants are once established
they are extremely hardy, surviving
drouth and hot winds more success
fully than almost any other crop. Dur
ing periods of extreme drouth alfalfa
does not grow much. Sometimes only
one cutting is produced in season
on the uplands in western Kansas, but
the plant through its deep and extern
sive root-system is able to get suffi
cient supply of water to sustain life,
and when rain comes it revives and
grows anew.
At the Kansas station alfalfa roots
have been traced to depth of over |
nine feet, while at the Colorado Elk
pertinent Station DIR. w. P. Headden |
has washed out the roots of an old |
alfalfa plant to the depth of nearly
lHA---faet Various REPORTS have
been MADE, without goou authority, of I
hiding alfalfa roots at e~>a~.era~tv-.
depths. 1t is without doubt one OF
he deepest roofing plants grown on
he farm.
| believe that alfalfa will do more
or western agriculture in the next
80 years than all the other crops
which farmers may be able to grow in
his region The soil of western Kan
las and of much Of the western plains
8 usually rich In the mineral elements
# plant food. but as stated before, 1t
8 often lacking in humus, which be-
omes especially noticeable If the land
las been farmed continuously to
wheat for a few years. By growing
.lfalfa it is possible to increase the
supply of humus in the soil, and the
cots of the plants penetrating deep
nto the subsoil disintegrate and deep
n the soil, and altogether greatly i'm
,roye its texture, giving it greater ca
,acity to absorb and hold water The
beneficial effect on the soil of growing
Italia is only incidental to the rapid
of the crop throughout
he west The great value of the crop
S a money-maker is the main factor
which is introducing it into the agri-
ulture of the central west. Where
Italia can be successfully marketed
# fed, no other crop grown in the
vest will yield so great net profit
er acre in a series Of years.