The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1924-11-13
By M. A. Nye,
Blue Valley Farm Service
ANOTHER ALFALFA BoosTE


ANOTHER ALFALFA BOOSTER
Jens Sorenson, living seven miles
north and west of Sank Centre, is an
Alfalfa farmer. He had about eight
acres which was ready for hay this
year. The first cutting filled his
barn and left-three loads stacked out
side.
Mr.. Sorenson does not sell any of
his Alfalfa but feeds all of it. He
believes it is the greatest crop any
farmer can grow. 1t is worth more
than any other. He believes too
many men try it, the first time on
quack ground or ground they have
not prepared, have failure, get dis
gusted, and never try it again. He
says, they do not try hard enough to
get a stand. Any farmer can have
Alfalfa if he is persistant and does
things right.
Mr.. Sorenson has never inoculat-
ed his alfalfa but will do SO with his
seeding next spring. He uses a reg
ular quack digger to keep his alfalfa
free from grass. Alfalfa is usually
torn up with quack digger, spring
tooth or disc right away after the
first cutting or early in the spring.
Next spring Mr.. Sorenson is going
to seed some sweet clover in oats for
pasture, but he doesn't like the looks
of it for hay. 1t is too stemmy and
woody and hard to cure.
Sweet Clover for summer pasture
is a fine crop. Cattle will eat it if
they are gotten used to the taste of
it. One acre will pasture two, three
and four head of mature cattle.
Tramping Alfalfa-Morris Nelson,
living 10 miles north east of Sank
Centre on the Long Prairie road is
trying something little different
with his spring seeding of alfalfa this
fall. csesiss,
He has two acre patch that he
seeded last spring with a nurse crop.
1t came up fine and is a very good
stand.
Since the grain was taken off, the
patch has been pastured some with
cattle. The ground was plowed this
spring and was plowed rather deep
and was naturally not packed solidly
Mr.. Nelson's idea in pasturing it
as to pack the ground very solid
around the young alfalfa roots. The
alfalfa plants should not be pastured
too heavy in trying this, as there
will be scarcely any top growth for
winter protection.
The. patch will be top dressed with
manure this fall to give it a cover
ing for winter.
This experiment of Nelson's is an
out of the ordinary practice with al
falfa and it will be interesting to take
note of the results next spring.
'Hoppers Lag Eggs for Big Hatch
in 1925-Look out for the Warrior
grasshopper in 1925. Counties of
north central and east central Mime
sofa are apparently well stocked with
hopper eggs, and weather conditions
continuing to be favorable, the hatch
next spring and summer will be
something enormous. The Warrior
is to be feared when he comes in
numbers.
Stewart Lockwood, from the United
States Department of Agriculture,
and C. E. Nickel, extension entomo-
logist of the University of Minneso-
ia, recently found heavy infestations
of grass hopper eggs in stump lands
and pastures near Foley in Benton
county. Both men predict that 1925
will likely be bad hopper year in
parts of Minnesota at least.
cit was an easy matter to fill sever
al containers with eggs in a short
itme," says Mr.. Nickel. ''The ground
on the south side of trees and stumps
was found to be favorite nesting
place. The eggs had been laid in pods
in the crowns of the grass or at grass
roots. The pods give protection ano
ensure a big crop unless the weather
is unusually wet or severe. The fact
that no parasites of the hopper were
to be found makes the outlook all the
more omnibus"
Fattening, Marketing the Thanks
giving Bird-Turkeys are best fat
tened on. range, and corn gives the
quickest and best gains, says Cora
Cooke, state poultry specialist with
the agricultural extension service OF
the university. The corn ration
should be begun gradually, for II the
corn is not we'll matured digestive
troubles may develop. 1t is best to
begin with a light feeding of mixed
grain. gradually changing to corn and
increasing the ration steadily. For
the last ten days before the birds are
marketed they should receive all the
corn they will clean up every day,
with the largest feelings night and
II is important, Miss Cooke warns,
to shin turkeys from the farms ten
DAYS to two weeks before Thanksglv-
mo Day. Dealers often have to re-,
ship and if the turkeys are received
too late they may have to be held
over at a lower price.
Good quality turkeys will be IN
strong demand, says Miss Cooke. me
crop Is small. Turkeys well matured
and in good flesh should bring good
mice on the Thanksgiving market.
Z Thanksgiving Table Should be Dec
or.ted-If flowers are not available
for the Thanksgiving table, and the
dinner is served too early to make
candle light appropriate, color1ul
f1.,;ts will make interesting table
dle c says Harriet Goldstein OF
the home economies division, unlyer-
s stS Of Minnesota. Line large, low !,
s.sy snch as a wooden chopplng