The French Broad hustler. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1896-1912, 1911-06-01
INOCULAHNG FOR THE LEGUMES
Uhen incubation is Necessary an d Why-some Wrong Ideas About
Leg umes.
Leg unnes.

AOS
AT no previous time in our his
EOry has the South been SO thor
s011ghly interested in legumes. 1t
=Tx equally certain that more has
been published during recent
years and more information
spread broadcast about these I'M
murtant plants than ever before
Hnt sn1r correspondence shows
tkhaE many people do not yet un-
Nerxtand some Of the important
aaGfs (which make these plants OF
anecial interest and value to the
farmer. = ID
ThaRe may be some people who
vyet doubt the Importance OF soil
IuUcnlation for the growth OF le-
dufes. Among these are vari-
~uEEz KINDS and degrees Of unbe-
.Eaef, due to experiences which
they have failed to interpret cor
mecfIy. For instance, a man
wzxfEs some legume on land
which so far as he knows has
uzgr grown the plant before and
without artificial incubation the
u5Enles appear on the roots OF
mAe plants and the crop is a sue
GEES Or on the other hand, he
Mzfts a 1egume and attempts, to
NnOcnlate the soil, but nc nodules
aEyEar OR the roots of the plants
~d.the crop is a failure. In the
FA tease, he makes a mistake if
inc concludes that incubation is
newer necessary and in the other
Ease it is equally erroneous for
hmm to conclude that incubation
1srHuf generally effectual. In the
mrzra the soil had in some way
already been inoculated, and in
the second case soil or other con-
tdSff7Ons Were not suitable for the
HE of these bacteria.
Bacteria Absolutely Necessary to
= Enrich the Soil.
The ronly point about which
@heEe can be no exception is that
nj the legumes r to enrich the
40H by gathering nitrogen from
Ehe air certain bacteria must form
nnfnIes onsthe roots of the plants.
$50 FAR as the growth of the
plants Is concerned, it makes lit
Gle difference whether the bacteria
are already in the soil, are al
RTed there in manure or soil, or
"szeed, or r put there from
sG9tnres bought for that purpose.
hut before the plants will obtain
The nitrogen they need largely
mUn the air instead Of from the
SOIL, the special sort of bacteria
-xAnired by the particular le-
cKHnRe lin question must live and
thrive ana form nodules On the
rO66soOf the plants. Soil from a
field Iwhere alfalfa, melilotus
Ineete Glover) or bur clover has
HuEn VIII inoculate soil other
EE GLOVER, but any one of these
HHps. Perhaps soil from a field
wMeh has grown alfalfa is bet
fBE Tor inoculating alfalfa and
bur GLOVER, bu tany one Of these
VIII do for inoculating any Of
fThe oThers.
Red clover, small white clover,
and uerimson clover will also ino-
~EuIaSe for each other.
The vetches and English, Cana
dian and garden peas also inocu-
Life Tor each other.
Large seeds like the cowpea
and soy bean seem to carry mo
EU4Af1ng material or else the soils
are more generally inoculated al
ready
IT Is not a question of fertili-
EflsYn, preparation, or the grow
ing Of dissimilar legumes on the
land previously, but simply the
presence of the bacteria. They
are more likely to already exist
IN q sweet, well pulverized soil,
well filled with humus and more
likely to thrive when put in such
soil but being living things they
gan only come from others of
Ghelr Kind.
Legumes Get Nitrogen From the
Soil.
There seems to be a general
impression that all the nitrogen
used by these plants or all they
contain, is taken from the air.
This is certainly an error. On
INCH Land sa lrge part of the nj
frugen in the legumes may have
came from the soil and when sui
Phafe of ammonia or other nitro
EenexaS fertilizer is used, there
wYHbe a few nodules on the