The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1923-03-13

Lack OF a satisfactory crop 10
summer pasture has been one of tn
chief obstacles in the way of profit
able raising of livestock in Latal
county for a number of years. Will
this has been true in general, eacl
year a few farmers have had goot
summer pasture as a result of plant
ing sweet clover. In order to get in
formation as to the practices followed
and results secured b ythese farm
ers, SO that this information might
be given to other farmers of the
county, the writer prepared a ques-
~tionnaire to send to growers Of the
crop. In preparing this survey form
he was assisted by H. W. Hubert, as
sociate professor of agronomy Of the
University Of Idaho.
The QUESTIONABLE was sent to 81
farmers in Latah county and four
farmers in Whitman county, who live
near the Latah county line. Twenty
seven replies were received. OF
these, % gave information that could
be tabulated and summarized. Nine
teen of the % were from Latah coun-
ty and three were from Whitman
county. OF the % reporting, ten had
grown sweet clover at least two full
years. The other twelve reported on
one yea only. The % growers re-
ported a total of 367 acres or an
average of 16K acres per grower The
largest acreage reported was 1853
acres, by j.. Houston McCroskey, of
Garfield, and the smallest reported
was One-ha1f acre.
Twenty-one fields were on clay
loan or silt loan soil, while one
was on a rocky, granite soil. Ten
fields were on %cut-over land; while
IL were on Palouse soil. Twenty
fields were on well drained land; one
field was partly drained and partly
wet; and n field was on low wet
ground.
Twenty farmers grew the biennial
blossom variety, while two used
biennial yellow blossom sweet clover.
Mr.. McCroskey reported on 40 acres
OF biennial white blossom and eigh-
teen acres of biennial yellow blossom.
Fifteen of the sweet clover crops
preceded by oats or wheat. AL
falfa, timothy, red clover, wild grass
and blue grass each preceded one
Growing the Crop
Fifteen farmers plowed in o
ng a seed bed. Of these, eleven
,lowed in the fall or winter, while
our plowed in the spring. Six disk
ID the ground in the spring without
while one seeded in a burn
md made no effort to prepare a seed
,ed. The depth of blowing ranged
rom four to eight inches, with an
.verage of six inches.
Of the fifteen who plowed. ten
lisked their ground in the further
of the seed bed. Others
Jarrowed several times until the seed
ed was fine. In this connection, it
5 worthy to note that fourteen grow
rs report a firm seed bed; seven re-
ort a loose seed bed; while one did
ot report ON the condition of the
eed bed. Of the fourteen growers
sporting a firm seed bed, all report
a uniform stand and all but two +
eported that the stand was thick , I
nough. These two growers planted +
even pounds of seed per acre and j.,
a heavier seeding. Of :
lie seven who reported a loose SEED 6
ed, two reported a poor stand and +
lat the stand vas not thick enough, !
Though they used plenty of seed. /
j. B.. Kitch of Troy, sowed ten
0unds of ~non-Scarified seed per acre j,
the ashes where he had burned a G
and secured a uniform stand n
hich he reports was thick enough o
Id which gave excellent pasture. +
H. H.. Reames, of Potlatch, sowed a
S sweet clover on a field that was T
ined on n side by a strip of s
land that was broken first q
the spring of 1922, the year in q
hich he sowed the sweet clover crop,
ID disked and narrowed once before Fl
e sweet clover was sowed. In seed ~
part of the sweet clover seer of n
e outside row was thrown onto the f.
w ground. Mr.. Reames reports h,
at the seed on the new ground y
me up as well as on the old ground v,
d then made a better growth thru .
t the season. .,
of seeding ranged from y,
Irch 2Sth to June first, with twolye III
sding before April 25th, which 20
uld be counted early. With the in
of one grower, those who in
later than April 25, were in hi
.tions of the county where spring ba
always late so that their seeding e.,
really early. The exception noted on
S on low ground hat could not be ~.
fKeu TO until late IN 90
j. H. Burns & Sons, who farm ne
the northern end of Fix ridge, ~,
red thirty-five acres of sweet n.
yer in October, 1921. This started 70,
fine shape that fall and went -
)ugh the winter all right, but was
ed the following March by freez-
rate of seeding ranged from l.
IN to fifteen pounds, with an ave
of eleven pounds per acre.
ctically all growers who used less /.
l ten pounds of seed per acre re-
ed that the stand was not thick
Ugh. Eighteen farmers used
seed. +
IN fields were sowed with a drill \
eleven were sowed broadcast. -
of one field was sowed broadcast y