The Glasgow courier. [volume] (Glasgow, Mont.) 1913-current, 1921-02-11

x Mr.. CARRIER, the author of this *
y article is an authority on alfalfa =
> and is especially interested in max +
# ing the buying of Grimm alfalfa :"
= seed safe for the eastern farmer. =
i This article is taken from a paper y
: prepared by him for the Ninth An *
= nual Convention of the Montana y
y Seed Growers. It is a clear cuts
* statement of the alfalfa seed facts 4
= worthy of careful study by the =
T. tana. The article recently APP =
* pearcd in the Montana Farmer =
= and copies of it have been mailed i
s. out in pamphlet form to the diff 4
= ferent county agents of the state i
= in the hope that it shall arouse s.
i further interest in the develop i
s. ment of alfalfa seed productions
+ which is now being taken up in =
d earnest in many of the Montana s.
f. farming communities. *
* THE EDITOR. i
* x Il * i 4 * i = = 4 s. = i 4 i *
To those of US here in the middle
western and eastern states where eli
matte conditions are such hat we can
not. as a rule, grow alfalfa seed sue
cessfullv it is somewhat of a mystery
as to Just why the hardy winter re-
resistant varities of alfalfa such as the
Grimm, Baltic and Cossack, are not
more widely grown out west for seed
purposes than now obtains.
Grimm alfalfa seed, the most widely
grown and commercially important
variety of the three mentioned. sells
at from so to 100 per cent above COM
mon native Montana seed. 1t is no
harder to GROW, it yields as well and
following hard winters it yields better
than your native alfalfa and it lasts
longer. There may be some who will
question this assertion.
is Common Native Montana Seed
Good Enough?
| have had western growers tell me
this: Our common native alfalfa is
hardy. We do not need Grimm. Why
we have fields here in Montana all
the way from 10 to IS years old still
standing in excellent shape. What
further proof do you want for a hardy
alfalfa? Furthermore, we have real
winters out here-the kind that make
YOU long for the sunny south!'
On the face Of it this looks like
a very formidable argument and one
that appealed to us four or five years
ago, but since then has lost its APP
peal. We have tried out experimental
ly alfalfa seed from several old
fields in Montana and South Dakota
seed that was represented to us as
being very hardy by virtue of the age
of the fields from whence it came
only to- find hat when one of our real
hard killing Wisconsin winters came
along-these cold field alfalfa plots
winter-killed for the most part the
same as adjacent plots which had
been seeded with ordinary native al
falfa from the very same states. Yes,
and the Grimm variety in these very
tests came through with flying colors.
AS soon as the western seed grow
ers came to realize that with our
abundant autumn rainfall and with
winter Notwithstanding is a
much more serious problem in Wis
consin tan obtains out west, they
viii grow Grimm or other hardy va
rites Of alfalfa seed. The fact that
our Wisconsin alfalfa acreage is cut
down every few years from 25 to sc
per cent by hard winters should be
sufficient proof that the native west
ern seed We have been using (includ-
ing that from Montana) is not hardy
enough to answer all u requirements
Fields seeded with common Montana
grown alfalfa that last ten years IL
Wisconsin are very rare n hard t(
find but no so in Montana. Our far
mers generally prefer to leave theil
fields as long as they produce well but
that is not very long if hard winters
make their appearance. | am mention
; ing these matters to emphasize that
/ while nder contain western conditions
Grimm may not be greatly superior tC
: the common native alfalfa, it is much
} harder and more permanent and yields
} more in the states east of Montana
. otherwise there would be no object If
, ou' farmers paying a premium fol
Grimm seed.
; Grimm Seed Needed in the East.
| would not have occasion to write
this message if we could grow ou1
E own alfalfa seed but we cannot. W.
have too much rain. We have to de
pend largely on you western seeC
growers, and the question is, care
you going to grow the kind of seeC
that we want and need-for which WI
are willing to pay ar extra price o.
are you going to continue growing ;
! kind of alfalfa seed that may be al
. right for you but is not all right fol
G us. We are the consumers of you
Seed-We are your customers and i
you appreciate the value of satisfied
Observation-Disclosures US with genuine
sure-enough, true-tO-name, ~dependabl;
E Grimm alfalfa seed and we will pa,
E you we'll for it.
How tbnut tho lyar DrOIucfion nf