Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1954-08-19
.On the Farm

out most of Maryland has caused
farmers to look anxiously at the
new pastures and hay seeding.
that were made this spring to de
termine whether a successful
stand is established.
In many cases farmers are con
sidering blowing these hay anc
pasture crops, and making new
paintings. It's not an easy decis
ion to make.
The University of Maryland
has developed some guides to
adequate stands" that should
help farmers decide whether to
reseed.
Agronomists at the college say
research has shown that many
grass and legume seeding stands
that do not appear adequate dur
ing dry weather actually have
enough plants to produce good
yields the next year.
In normal years it has been
found that Seeding stands are
frequently much thicker than are
needed and that many plants are
eliminated by competition before
the hay year. AS an example, a
study with red clover, over two
years at eight locations in the
State, showed that during the
Seeding year from 20 to 30 plants
were found per square foot. In all
cases competition among these
plants had reduced the stands to
an average of 8 to 10 plants per
square foot by the time the first
hay crop had developed.
Some guides to adequate stands
during the seeding year, develop.
ed by the Agronomy Department,
are as follows:
/. Red clover or alfalfa-S to 10
plants per square foot are ade-
quate for maximum yields of hay.
AS few as four healthy plants per
square foot offers better chance
for good hay yields next year
than reseeding this fall.
2. Ladino clover-four to six
healthy plants per square foot
are adequate for maximum yields
next year. AS low as two plants
per square foot can develop into
productive stands if conditions
are favorable for growth this
fall and early next spring.
Emphasis on judging new
Seeding stands is placed on the
legumes because if legume stands
are arequate and grass has been
ceeded at recommended rates,
enough grass will usually be pres
ent.
eff adequate moisture becomes
available by mid-August," the
agronomists advise, seeding of
any of these grasses and legumes
can be made the latter part of
August with a good possibility
that productive stands will devel.
OPP by next spring.
However, we urge farmers to
inspect the stands carefully to be
sure that the present stands are
not adequate before they attempt
reseeding. In the past too many
stands have been reseeded be,
cause plants were small and a
careful check was not made be.
fore tearing up the stand.
IF stands are adequate in part
of the field and are too poor in
other parts it may be wise to re-
seed only the section where the
stand is poor" the crop speciali
SITS continued.
Get down on your hands and
knees and check carefully. If the
plants are there, even though
they are small, they are a better
bette for hay next spring than
new seedlings made this fall"
Small grains offer the most
promise for pasture to reduce the
use of stored feeds this fall and
next spring." the ogronomimts
advised.
If small grains are needed for
pasture, they should be on vel
drained soil. If the soil has q
tendency to be wet, the animals
are likely to damage the sol
structure. An ideal way to seet
small grain for grazing is to disk
an old sod, leaving the sod neal
the surface to help keep the ami
mails from damaging the sol
while grazing.
The agronomimtSs make these
recommendations for the individ
ual crops:
Rye has proved to be the beSt
small grain for grazing purposes
The Abruzzi or Balbo varietie!
are preferred. Rye should be seed
ed any time after August Is thai
moisture is suffient for it,
growth and will furnish grazing
about 80 days after seeding.
Barley is good second choice
using the Kenbar, Wong or Ken
lucky No. l varieties. Barley
makes rapid growth after seed
ing but should not be seeded ear