Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1924-06-12

Oh this state of dormancy regardless
Of weather and growing conditions
Late Fall Cutting Three
or four cuttings of the crop are often
made in Wisconsin. When conditions
are favorable, the plants may survive
in spite of late fall cutting, but under
adverse conditions-an one never
| knows when these conditions will set
/ in-serious damage may result. In one
trial late fall cropping increased the
winterkilling of hardy Grimm alfalfa
from Z to 80 per cent and of common
from IS to SO per cent. In another
trial where three crops of common
were cut in the full bloom stage 95
per cent winterkilling occurred com
pared to only "a per cent winterkilling
where only two crops OF the common
were removed In this same test the
removal of the third growth of Grimm
in the full bloom stage increased the
winterkilling from s to "a per cent.
Late fall cutting not only increases
the percentage of winterkilling but
previous experiments have shown that
it reduces the vigor Of the following
seasons growth.
New Seedlings Lessen WinrerkiIling
Losses-The age factor of alfalfa is an
important one in reference to the win
terkilling problem. Nemerous tests of
the station have shown that new seed
ings of alfalfa are much harder than
old stands In this years trials eight
year old Grimm winterkilled seriously
while adjacent plots of two year old
Grimm, receiving the same cutting
treatment, came. through with very
slight injury The superior hardness
of the younger alfalfa offers partial
If the soil conditions on the farm can
be made sufficiently favorable so that
alfalfa may be included in four, five
or six year rotation, new seedlings will
be started every year or SO and total
loss of the alfalfa acreage on the farm
is not apt to obtain, particularly if the
seed of hardy strains is used. In JEFF
ferson, Waukesha and Green Counties,
tremendous winterkilling losses occur
red and to considerable extent they |
have been due to a lack of new seed |
ings. From 1881 inclusive, the old |
stands produced such abundant yields |
Of hay that the necessity of new seed |
ings was not felt. Where dependence |
is placed on old stands of alfalfa for |
the next seasons crop, disappoint- |
'ment is very apt to be experienced |
when hard winters occur.
Location of Winter injury in Alfalfa |
PIants-An examination of several |
fields of alfalfa which looked quite |
promising in the month of April |
showed that they gradually dried up
and died out as warm weather fol /
lowed What appeared to be fairly /
healthy growth and good stand in the !
early spring vanished almost complete
ly. An examination of 1900 plants
from five to eight years old was made
by Messrs. GRADER and Nelson to deter
mine the fundamental cause of this
phenomenon. Three hundred and
thirty-four of these plants had live
green crown sprouts at the time the
examination was made. The roots
were all healthy and firm, but "a per
cent of the crowns were decayed and
soft, while the remaining Sc per cent
were partially injured and rotted. In
all instances living or green shoots of /
the plants could be easily pulled out
of the rotted crown. During warm
weather which normally would stimu
late growth, the injured crowns or
portions of the crown dried up and the
sprouts soon died
These results indicate that the buds
and shoots are more hardy than either
the crown or the root of the plant and /
that the crown and upper portions of
the root of the plant and that the
crown and upper portions of the root,