The Kevin review. [volume] (Kevin, Mont.) 1922-1929, 1923-01-11
REMARKABLE SUCCESS OF FARMERS OF
NORTHERN MONTANA 0M GROWING GRIMM
ALFALFA FOR SEED; is GROWING GOLD
BY Murray E. Stebbins

w are in the market for a cal
Ioad or more of northern Montana
alfalfa seed. We want to buy direct
from the growers in order to be sure
of getting genuine northern Montana
alfalfa seed. If we can get in touch
with some seed producers or an or
ganization of seed producers in nor
thern Montana, we would be greatly
pleased"
Numerous inquiries of this kind
from the northern United States and
Canada every year for the past sew
eral years has inspired the writer to
double his efforts in encouraging
production of alfalfa seed in northern
Montana. BY this article the writer
hopes to prove the value of alfalfa
seed production to the northern Mon
tana farmer and rancher.
History Of Alfalfa in North Montana
The introduction of alfalfa into
northern Montana vas about 1895.
In 1899 there were about 1000 acres
of alfalfa in northern Montana and
the greater part of this acreage was
around Chinook in the Milk river val
ley. BY 1907 the alfalfa acreage had
spread to the entire length of the
Milk river valley and a small acreage
on the Missouri river. Still the total
acreage was small, for the fields were
only a few acres in each.
The first record we find of alfalfa
is the Persians using it for horse
feed in 400 B. c.. We next hear of
it being introduced in the year 100
into Italy. This wonderful forage
plant, as its name means when trans
lated, the best forage, was introduced
into Spain in 500. From Spain into
Mexico and thus to the United States
in 1854. Two hundred years ago the
colonists made repeated attempts to
establish it. These attempts were
not successful because of winter kill
ing and lack of lime in the soils. Al
falfa vas only grown in favorable
parts of the United States with much
success and for that reason not much
thought was given to it until 1900
when Professor w. M. Hayes of the
Experiment station of Minnesota
started some studies on alfalfa and
in 1903 that state issued a press bull
letin, No. 20 in which we find the
first mention of Grimm alfalfa.
In this bulletin we read that
Grimm alfalfa was introduced into
Minnesota in 1857 by Wendelin
Grimm, an immigrant from Boden,
Germany. He brought with him fiji
teen pounds of alfalfa seed and sowed
it in the spring of 1858. Just how
we'll this first seeding of the "Ewiger
Klee," or everlasting clover, as he
called it, succeeded, is not definitely
known, but at least enough of the
plants survived to furnish seed for
future sowings and in 1867, 1901
pounds were threshed from three
acres. Mr.. Grimm's neighbors were
trying to grow alfalfa with common
seed from other states but in nearly I,
every case suffered winter killing. In
1904 the United States department
of agriculture became interested In F.,
this hardy alfalfa and purchased :
some for distribution and in 1905 an i,
other lot of 1000 pounds was pur- !
chased for distribution to different .
parts of the United States for test. !
The trials were exceedingly pleasing, {
as we all know, and thus was made .
to agriculturists the hardy 6
alfalfa, the value of which is
North Montana Seed is Hardy n
The reason that alfalfa seed did il
not come into more general use ear il
lier was due to the fact that a hardy E
had not been produced. For Il
e1gn seed, southern seed, middle 81
western seed or extreme western seed n
seed raised in favored localities 81
would not live through the winter. N
Finally, after 46 years of careful sell la
ection under severe conditions, a sc
hardy strain was developed. Expert pl
nents have shown since that this ii