The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1914-01-29
suMMER FALLCW TO SAVE MOS.
TURE-PLOW DEEP - WORK
LAND DOWN WELL, MAX
ING GOOD SEED BED.
ALFALFA FIELDS
LAST FOR YEARS
Follow With Packer - Disk to Kill
Weeds-Use Pegtooth Harrow to
Level Ground-Seed Should Be
Put in Moist Soil.
By j. G.. HANEY, Agricultural Exten.
sion Department.

BY J. G. HANEY, Agricultural Exten-
sion Department.
International Harvester Co. of New
Jersey.
The preparation of a seed bed is es-
sential mainly as a means OF storing
moisture. When the rainfall is under
twenty inches, the land should be
plowed ten inches deep and summer
fallowed or, if the soil would drift
from such treatment a thin planting of
corn may be grown on the lane to pre-
vent drifting. If it is not necessary
to consider storing moisture it is pre-
ferable to precede the alfalfa by a
cultivated crop, such as corn, pota-
toes, or beans. If possible the land
should be MANFRED.
a Firm Seed Bed Essential.
Alfalfa requires a firm seed bed. For
his reason it is not advisable to pillow
the land Immediately before seeding,
as it is almost impossible to get the
soil sufficiently firm again.
In western Kansas, herds of cattle
are rounded up and driven over the
fields to pack the sell after blowing it,
If, in order to get the land leveled up
and in shape to seed, it is necessary to
plow just before seeding, this blowing
should be as shallow as possible, and
packer. roller, and harrow used to
make it solid again. Before seeding,
the surface of the field should oe pro-
vided with perfect drainage by the
use Of l~eveler, grader, and pillow.
bitches may be made broad with slop-
Ing banks, so as not to interfere with
seeding or moving. Alfalfa will not
grow where water stands and freezes
over it in winter or gets stagnant in
summer.
If good surface drainage is provided
SO that the crowns of the plants have
plenty of air and the soil is sweet,
there need be very little concern as
to how deep it is to the water table.
In regions OF plentiful rainfall it is
advisable to plant alfalfa on land hav-
ing good natural drainage.
The land seeded to alfalfa will not
need to be prepared again for six to.
ten years, hence, three or four times
| as much work can well be put on it
in preparation for alfalfa. A satisfac-
tory preparation made on the 1 H c.
farm at Grand Forks. N. D., in 1918,
was as follows:
The land was in wheat in 1912
(should have been fall plowed but
we did not get the farm until March,,
was MANFRED during the winter, dou-
Dle-diske6 as early as possible, plowed
as soon al dry enough (about the mid
die Of May, and pillow followed by
Campbell s~ub-surface packer and har-
row. Wila oats started SO the land
was double-disked ten days later. and
narrowed the second day after disk
ing. AS the land was rather cloddy
and no rain fell. a frog-foot roller was
used. A LAND leveler was then run
both ways as the field was full of dead
burrows and back burrows from prev
ious forty years blowing. The land
~leveler was followed by the peg-tooth
harrow.
Abou ten lays later. another line
crop of weeds was double-disked and
the harrow used later. The middle of
June the field vas narrowed and rolled
again with a frogfoot roller, just pre-
vious to seeding with the grain drill.
The single disk drill loosened up the
surface sufficiently for a soil mulch.
Except in a few dead burrows which
were flied with loose, dry dirt, the
seed was put in moist soil about one
Inch from surface. Regardless of the
fact that there was not a rain Of one
half inch at any one time previous to
July list, and the rainfall for the sea-
son was as follows: April. LOS in:
May, 1.52 in; June, LII In; July, 2.86
In, we have a good, thrifty stand of
alfalfa. The field is even and in fine
condition and should continue to yield
for ten years, though we will doubtless
not leave it down that long.
ALFALFA MAKES MORE WHEAT
H DAcfurin0 Tnr a%o IN EaIl KilIad