Clearwater Republican. [volume] (Orofino, Idaho) 1912-1922, 1920-05-07

prepared by the United states Depaie
ment of Agricultural
Clover seed is high priced and
scarce, and good samples will COM
mand prices that many farmers VIII
be loath to pay. The United States
department of agriculture, however,
urges the seeding Of as large an acre
age as possible. The best information
obtainable shows that the foreign mar
ket is quite as bare Of clover seed as
Is our own. The French and Italian
supplies are sold out, and there ap-
pears to be no surplus in Germany or
In Russia. This means that clover seed
will be high for at least two years to
come If not more, and those farmers
who seeded last spring or who seed
in 1920 will have chance to sell their
clover seed crop at good figure. This
Is a time to look ahead, and for Ameri-
can farmers to get the benefit of the
high prices, before Europe has been
able to get back to normal production
and the prices fall.
Watch Quality Of Seed.
In view of the high price Of clover
seed. it is especially important that
farmers pay careful attention to the
quality of seed they buy. The relation
between the purity and termination
Of q sample Of clover seed and its val.
ue to the farmer has been so fire..
quently discussed that II Is not neces-
sary to enter into details. A farmer,
| nj 1oxr, far Lot oP
seed, may really be paying more for
the good seed that will grow than he
would have In sample of higher
price. The only way to decide this is
to secure samples and quotations from
reliable, firms, and have the seed an
alyzed by the state seed laboratory or
by the seed laboratory Of the United
States department Of agriculture.
The attention Of farmers is also call
ed very especially to the fact that
French and Italian seed has been and
Is being imported into this country and
that the experiments so far conducted
by the department Of agriculture in.
dictate that this seed will produce q
plant more subject to disease and less
hardy under American conditions than
plants from our own seed.
In sections where there is no disease
and If the winter is moderate a sue
cessful stand of clover may be secured
with imported seed, but the chances
against success are always greater
than when using American seed. Farm
ers are urged, therefore, to insist upon
a statement showing where the seed
offered them was harvested.
1t Is also time to consider with
more than usual care the means neces-
sary for getting the most out of the
seed sown. 1t will not pay to throw
expensive seed In poorly prepared
ground as was so often done when
clover was cheap. The seed bed should
be well prepared. The best way is not
to SOW the seed in early spring on the
wheat, but to harrow 1t in on the
wheat or to seed with spring grain
In well prepared seed bed. Seeding
alone without companion or nurse
grain crop will often be better, but
not always. If seeding must be done on
rather worn soil, 1t is better to seed
alone especially If the field is not very
weedy. II q special seed bed is pre-
pared 1t should be well compacted. A
freshly plowed and narrowed field is
too open for the best results. The soil
must be compacted or the seed bed will
dry out before the young plants get
their roots down far enough.
Be Sure Whether Lime Is Needed.
Another matter of the utmost i'm.
portance Is to consider whether or not
the field it is proposed to seed needs
lime. Unless the farmer is sure, he
should send sample Of the soil to his
state station and inquire Not far from
70 per cent of the arabic land east of
the Mississippi and north of the south.
ern boundary Of Tennessee needs lime
to bring a good crop of clover. This
TACT can not be too strongly EN-
phasized. II the soil is 'sour" do not
waste expensive red clover seed on
it--let some one else have It. But land
need not remain sour. A ton or two
OF underground limestone per acre
Will, In the average case, put the soil
into condition to grow clover. II Is NOT
necessary to put on enough to com
pletely satisfy the lime requirement
The Pennsylvania station has shown
that lime requirement of 500 pounds
per acre or less did no great harm
out when more is needed It must be
supplied If clover Is TO do well Soil
with n lime requirement OF OOC
pounds or more per acre will usually
not make paying crop of red clover
II the wheat ground needs lime the
clover should be seeded with spring
grain with lime narrowed in ON tbs