River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1913-04-24
NOTES ON STARTING
THE ALFALFA CROP
BY PROF. r. A. MOORE,
Wisconsin College of Agriculture.


Encouraged by ste fact that Wis
consin won the VOLTS championship
in alfalfa hay at the latest National
Corn show, many Badger state far
mers will try the crop on their fields
this year, and establish the state still
more firmly as an alfalfa common
wealth
Although alfalfa is a crop which
must be thoroughly understood If it
Is to be grown successfully, the prin-
ciples OF its culture are relatively SIM
pie.
Among the earliest directions re-
garding alfalfa were the commands to
select fertile, well drained piece of
land, to try only small patch at first,
and to inoculate the soil taken from a
field already we'll established. This
is as good advice now as when first
given.
1t is taken for granted that the far
mer has already selected his field with
an eye as to it's suitability for alfalfa,
| plowed it in fall to secure a deep, mel
low, and firm seed bed, and corrected
any soil acidity. The problem of start
Ing the plant right is now the most
important one
To make sure of properly pre-
pared seed bed in the early spring, run
he disc over the land and then follow
with fine tooth harrow at weekly
intervals until about June l, SO the
weeds will sprout and be killed. This
treatment will conserve moisture and
leat the soil The alfalfa seed is then
'own without any nurse crop, using
20 pounds OF seed per acre. If the
and is known to be very Weedy 1t is
best to continue the cultivation
through June and a portion Of July,
ind then SOW the seed.
The practice of sowing alfalfa with
nurse crop is being displaced by the
method Of sowing the seed alone, and
With much better results, provided
he land is not weedy. The tiny alfal-
a plants should have chance to take
'ull possession Of the ground, which
hey cannot do to advantage If crowd
ed by nurse crop. While expert
ments show that good catches of al
,alfa are occasionally secured by the
use Of nurse crep, yet much better
| catches and more lasting seeding
can be secured by sowing the alfalfa
seed alone The seed can be sown
With hand seeder or a grass seeder
attachment to good advantage. When
sOV'n by hand seeder, or when broad
:asted with a seeder attachment,
slant tooth harrow should be run over
he land once after seeding, to cover
lightly.
X should be sown less than an inch
leep on clay soils, or the tiny plant
cts will not be able to push their way
q the surface. Land pIowed in spring
'Cr alfalfa should be dragged as soon
rs plowed to prevent drying out, and
pIanker or roller should be run over
the land before and after seeding. AL
ways finish by using a fine tooth har-
row so as to leave the surface loose
enough to prevent rapid evaporation.
The alfalfa crop is benefited by light
coating of well rotted manure, or ma
1t should be put on during a dry spell
or after the ground is frozen in the
tall, so as not to injure the plan IS by
driving over them.
Experiments show that on rich soil,
barley is one of the best nurse crops,
although oats or spring wheat may be
used. The nurse crop should be sown
thinly, using only about half as much
seed as where the cereal crop is sown
alone. When alfalfa is sown with
nurse crop, the time of seeding should
be governed by the best time for the
cereal The seeding can be done with
one operation. provided drill or seed
er is used with grass seeder attach
ment. 1t is preferable to let the alfal-
ia seed scatter broadcast and then
run a slant tooth harrow over the
ground once after seeding. Some good
seedlings have been obtained where
the seed was run through the drill,
but the tendency is to cover too deep
ty where this practice is followed. II
the season is extremely dry, it is best
to cut the nurse crop early for hay
and thereby give the alfalfa better
opportunity to grow. Otherwise the
cereal crop can be left to ripen and
harvested in the usual manner Many
good stands of alfalfa have been Sc
cured in this way.