The Columbus courier. [volume] (Columbus, Luna County, N.M.) 1911-1920, 1915-02-26
ALFALFA ON DRY LAND
There Is No Crop More Profitable
for Hay.
Plant 10 peep.Rooted and Must Have
Soil In Which TO Sink That Long
Tap Root-subsolIer ls
often Necessary.


Most OF this western country can
grow alfalfa. To be sure there are
some failures. especially with those
just starting out, but when the condl'
tions necessary for the crop are known
Il will be Nrown with as much success
as the farmers to the east OF us grow
clover. AS far as It's value is con.
cerned there is no more profitable hay
crop. A ton OF alfalfa Is worth in feed
value about what a ton Of bran is
worth. Say Il is worth SIS and that
an acre yields from n and one'hait
TO three toni per acre, then the crop
would be worth from S22.50 to $4,000
per acre. Easy figures, you say. Yes.
and also they are figures that anyone
with a little effort can obtain
Alfalfa e. a deep-rooted plant and
therefore II must have ground In
which It can sink that long tap root,
writes Leon II. Robbins in Dakota
Farmer Break up that pillow sole for
no root can penetrate that, and II the
undersoil is hard Il should be loos-
ened up as deep as possible. Some
times II Is necessary to use a subsOil-
err. Use a field that Is clean and free
from standing water. II the early
spring water freezes on the field II
will kill the alfalfa by freezing out
the crown Of the plant.
n the field Is not free from weeds
then the farmer should spend at least
one year killing out the weeds on the
field. Summer-tiIl the land to kin the
weeds. Work the field early in the
spring by disking Il, and then pillow
the land so that the blowing will be
finished at least by the irst OF July.
Pillow deep, and by that the writer
means pillow so that the pillow sole Will
be broken up. TIL the field the re-
mRinder Of the season to conserve
moisture and kill every weed. The
next season, disk shallow early In
spring &c conserve the moisture and
work as often as Is necessary with
the disk or harrow until seeding time,
Seed in June. about the 10th to the
25th, after the ground is good and
warm so that the alfalfa will come up
quickly. In many places It is best
to SOW the crop in ows about "a
to 30 inches apart. II sown in rows
two pounds Of seed per acre will do.
When sown broadcast, five pounds
OF good seed is enough per acre.
DO not clip the crop the first sea.
son unless necessary 10 kill the
weeds Clipping sets the crop bach
too much and II is also liable tC
come too late so that the CROP will
not get enough growth for winter pro
lection. II Is best not to cut even q
hay crop too late. or in other words
late enough so that there is not time
between the cutting and cold weather
for the crop to get six inches high
This is also true about pasturlng
Cultivate the crop in the spring with
a spring.tooth harrow. an alfalf,
harrow or a disk run shallow. Thil
win kill the weeds and also form {
mulch to conserve moisture.
Give the crop the best Of care un
iii II Is well established at least
Then the returns will be gratifying
Most all alfalfa fields will need in
oculating. This is best done by dir
from some w-ell.inoculated field. II dir
is used, It should be used on a cloud!
day at the rate Of not less than 90
pounds Of dirt per acre. Scatter IN,
dirt by hand broadcast and harrow I
in at once, Fields that are not inocu
lated never produce well, the plant
always look yellow and sickiy. Max
mum yields are obtained from well
titled, w-ellinoculated Plfalfa fields.