Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1918-05-18
Are For short Flaw Crop.

Alfalfa and other tame hays are
badly damaged by the dry winter, and
will make only light crops. Corn can
be planted yet and make a lot of feed,
U does not takeEthes place Of hay.
Last year on the ! II. G. farm we
seeded milletson land that had been
In oats the ear. before. A large
i amount of bats came UP with the
fmil!et and Y cut when the top
grains began to turn, OF show ripe
ness. This mixture of oats, and millet
made the finest. hay we i.ever=fed.
We failed. to getsa. atchssofatimothy
and clover with wheatllast year, and
have plowed thisS Hand and will seed
1t to millet and oats We will sow
millet and one 'busheI of oats. We
will seed this b~eforeithe$ first Of June.
In this section oats and wheat are
seldom considered as hay crops. They
make excellent hay if cut in the dough
stage, and are used almost exclus-
lively in the Pacific northwest
Washington. Oregon and Idaho.
Millet is a crop that is not appreci-
ated by the farmers in the northwest.
1t can be sown late in he season. pro-
duces good! hay, and il the larger
varieties are grown, a good grain crop
a often be produced which will
take the place of barley or, other
grains for all classics OF i've stock.
There is very seldom "a time when
there is a surplus OF feed in the
5northwest, and it is probable that the
coming year will SEGA greater de
mand. for feed of all kinds than ever
:: before. So there is a certainty that
millet will come into good advantage
at this time.
Millet Docs Best on Good Soil. i
While 1t is true that millets, the
same as any other crop, will do hes,
on rich soils, they will also grow on
soils that are not suitable to any
other crop. particularly on soils that
are too wet to be properly seeded
earlier in the season. However. il the
millets are expected to do the best
! they should be given good soils, the
y same as any other crop. They. do
especially well on fresh turned grass
sod and in many cases are grown or
this class of soils. and are particu.
larry valuable in this relation because
they help to rot the sod and put il
in shape for following crops.
Millets Usually Sown As Catch Crop
Millets are as a general thing not
used in the regular rotation but are
sown on land that 1t is desired tc
have cleaned up, or where the Other
=, crops have failed, or on land that. wa:
TOO wet CO De, Seeded at the proper
time in the spring. Under such con
ditions they work in splendidly in The
cropping system.
The millets are generally grown fol
the hay and for this purpose are Gu
before the seed is matured.. However
1t is possible to secure a fairly goo6
= crop of seed and also hay, at the
same. time. although the best hay i
made by cutting the crop before thu
seed is fully matured.
When the seed is the main consid
Grafton, it should be allowed; to full,
mature before the crop is harvested
as a larger, yield and d better qualit!
of seed will be secured.
) Millct or Sudan Grass.
The strongest competitor of mile
in the .drier and southern parts Of thi
d region is Sudan grass.E However. i,
the vicinity Sf. : ySSpYdall
makes a remarkable yield Of hay, an,
as the seed of this crop is relativel,
cheap, it may be advisable for som.
to make more extensive trials o
Sudan grass. In some respects Sudal
grass is superior to the millets, ant
our experience is that it will max,
fully. as heavy. or heavier yield, al
though it does not mature seed in thi
vicinity.