dairying--disposing of the products of the farm as milk and butterfat.
When the latter may be sold to creamery stations and the skim milk fed
to calves and pigs along with alfalfa the profits are greater than from
almost any other form of agriculture. No other business tends so rapidly
to build up the fertility of the farm, and, when judiciously conducted,
no other branch of farming yields more satisfactory financial returns.
Raising and feeding alfalfa will add from 15 to 30 per cent to the
profits of dairying over the use of any other feedstuff that may be
raised or bought. The profit problem for the dairyman is constantly to
find the feed that will decrease the cost of his production.
The diagram below, prepared by the editor of the _Nebraska Farmer_, is
to “represent the digestible protein or milk property contained in
different kinds of roughness. Points represent the decimals of a pound,
and the bars are an exact representation of the superiority of one kind
of food over another for the production of milk. Each bar represents 10
pounds of roughness. The approximate yield is also given per acre:”
Approximate Yield Per Acre.
Corn Stover 6 to 8 Tons 17 Points
-------------
Drilled Corn Fodder 10 to 14 Tons 25 Points
-------------------
Timothy Hay 2 Tons 28 Points
--------------------------
Prairie Hay 2 Tons 30 Points
--------------------------------
Millet Hay 3 Tons 32 Points
---------------------------------------
Oat Hay 3 to 4 Tons 43 Points
---------------------------------------------
Red Top 2 Tons 48 Points
---------------------------------------------------
Red Clover 2 Tons 68 Points
----------------------------------------------------------
Alsike 3 Tons 84 Points
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Alfalfa 6 to 8 Tons 110 Points
----------------------------------------------------------------------
A. S. Hitchcock cites as an illustration of feeding alfalfa alone, the
case of the dairy farms in the vicinity of Moneta, Cal., where the stock
are ordinarily fed no other ration than alfalfa. As alfalfa is not a
balanced ration, a number of local dairymen tried to replace a part of
the alfalfa by sorghum, thus giving a more nearly balanced ration. The
cows, however, did not give as much milk upon this combination as upon
pure alfalfa. “This result may be assigned to the fact that the cattle
were unable to consume a sufficient quantity of the mixture to produce
the same results as the alfalfa alone. These dairymen find they can
secure a larger yield by feeding a little grain; but the increased yield
does not pay for the grain, which is high priced in this locality.”
AN ESSENTIAL IN MILK PRODUCTION
Oscar Erf, professor of dairying at the Kansas experiment station,
writing for this volume, says: “Alfalfa is quite indispensable in
successful dairy operations, being one of the cheapest sources of
protein, that most essential compound in feeds for milk production. The
Kansas station found that for milk 1¹⁄₄ pounds of well-leaved alfalfa
hay, containing a high per cent of protein, is equal in feeding value to
a pound of bran. In case the alfalfa is of a stemmy nature it requires
1³⁄₄ pounds to equal the feeding value of a pound of bran. Alfalfa hay
is worth from $4 to $7 per ton on the farm, while bran costs from $14 to
$20 per ton, hence it is far more economical to feed the alfalfa hay.
“Like other hays alfalfa varies in composition according to the time of
cutting, the soil on which it grows, and its per cent of leaves. It has
been found that three-fourths of a pound of alfalfa hay is equal in
feeding value to a pound of clover hay of equal brightness and quality.
A good stand of clover yields about 2¹⁄₂ tons per acre per year, while a
good stand of alfalfa yields about 5 tons per acre per year. Hence, on
an acre of land, 1100 pounds of protein can be produced by raising
alfalfa while only 340 pounds can be produced by growing clover, the
protein in the alfalfa and that in the clover being equally digestible.
This comparison is chosen from the fact that clover is the next cheaper
source of protein found on the farm.
“At the Kansas station the following experiment was conducted, and
illustrates the low cost of a ration including alfalfa hay for roughness
as compared with a ration in which prairie hay was used. The experiment
was with ten cows. The first ration consisted of 21 pounds of alfalfa
hay and 9 pounds of corn. While the cows were on this ration each
produced an average 26 pounds of milk per day, the milk containing 3.9
per cent of butterfat. To formulate a ration from prairie hay and bran
which had the same amount of nutrients, we were obliged to feed 19
pounds of bran and 15 of hay. Fed on this each cow produced only 24
pounds of milk per day, containing 4 per cent of butterfat. The 21
pounds of alfalfa hay at $7 per ton, which is rather a high estimate,
and 9 pounds of corn at 70 cents per hundred weight cost 13.6 cents per
day. At this rate it cost 3¹⁄₃ cents to produce a gallon of milk, or
approximately 13.5 cents for a pound of butterfat. Estimating bran at
$16 per ton and prairie hay at $5 per ton, the cost of the second ration
was 18.95 cents per day, and milk approximately 7 cents per gallon,
making the butterfat worth 19.7 cents per pound.
“The following two tables show the difference in cost between a ration
in which alfalfa is used for part of the roughness and one which
contains no alfalfa but has the same amount of digestible nutrients:
Alfalfa hay 19 lbs at $ 7.00 per ton $ .066
Corn 7 lbs at .70 per cwt .049
Bran 2¹⁄₂ lbs at 18.00 per ton .0225
-------
$ .1375
Sorghum hay 10 lbs at $ 3.50 per ton $ .0175
Prairie hay 12 lbs at 6.00 per ton .036
Ground wheat 8 lbs at .80 per bu .1066
Cottonseed meal 3 lbs at 24.00 per ton .036
-------
$ .1961
“As shown by the table a gain of 5.86 cents is made by feeding the
alfalfa. Being a proteinaceous feed it can to a great extent be
substituted for cottonseed meal, linseed meal or gluten meal, and will
entirely substitute other leguminous hays and forages, such as soy bean
hay, cowpea hay, clover hay and vetch hay, any one of which is more
expensive, for nutrients contained, than alfalfa hay.
“The Kansas station has found it practicable, from results obtained in
the past three years, to ensile green alfalfa for dairy cows. This is
superior to dry alfalfa, owing to its succulent nature. In the eastern
part of the United States ensiling alfalfa has another advantage in that
all cuttings can be harvested in perfect condition. As a rule the first
cutting throughout this whole territory is liable to be damaged more or
less by rains. By putting the green alfalfa into a well constructed silo
this loss can be obviated and the full value retained. For example: a
man has 40 acres of alfalfa, from which he harvests for the first crop
1¹⁄₂ tons per acre. Estimating the price of good, clean alfalfa hay at
$7 a ton, this would be worth $420. Should the hay be damaged by rain
its value would be greatly reduced and, as has been the case for many
years, such damaged hay could be purchased for $2 or less per ton.
Accordingly this damaged hay would be worth $120. The loss caused by
rain would therefore be $300. Put into the silo this first cutting would
be equal in value to the best bright hay.
“The cost of a 100-ton silo is $250, hence the owner could not only save
the first cutting, but money besides. Furthermore, it is not
infrequently the case that alfalfa of the first cutting is of a stemmy
nature, and it has been estimated that fully 28 per cent of such hay is
wasted when fed to cows, as they do not eat the coarse stems. This loss
can be entirely eliminated by the siloing, for cows will readily eat the
stems as silage.
“The value of alfalfa silage in influencing the milk flow was indicated
when a ration was fed to sixteen cows, in which 12 pounds of alfalfa
hay, 20 pounds of corn silage, 5 pounds of bran and 4 pounds of corn
meal were used; this ration was afterward changed by substituting
alfalfa silage for the corn silage, and at the same time the bran was
reduced to 1 pound, and the corn increased 1 pound. By these changes the
milk was increased 10 per cent.
“With butterfat worth 23 cents a pound the value of a ton of alfalfa
silage has been estimated at approximately $8. This silage solves the
problem of feeding cows economically in summer, as well as in winter,
under a system of intensive farming.”
W. J. Fraser, chief in dairy husbandry at the University of Illinois,
says: “Corn silage and alfalfa, two of the best feeds for dairy cows,
make practically a complete or balanced ration in themselves. Several
years’ experience in supplying the university dairy herd with various
kinds of soiling crops in midsummer has led to this high recommendation
of corn silage and alfalfa.”
Alfalfa hay has much the same laxative effect as June pasture. An Elgin,
Ill., dairyman, with fifty cows, says: “Every month I feed alfalfa in
winter gives me a month in which I have practically pasture conditions.
The cows show the pasture-effect in the glossy condition of their hair
and in the yield of milk, and have never before looked quite so well.”
_CHAPTER XIII._
Alfalfa for Swine
HOGS WILL EAT HAY
In the preceding chapter it was stated that alfalfa is a valuable
pasture or soiling crop for pigs. It is equally true that they will
actually eat alfalfa hay. A hog is not usually ranked as a hay-eating
animal but an exception must be made as to his eating alfalfa hay. As a
pasture or soiling crop for sows and young pigs, alfalfa proves a
wonderfully helpful ration for milk-making in the sow and for growth in
the pigs. Experiments have shown that pigs make better growth when the
dam is fed considerable alfalfa than those from sows fed the best of
commercial rations, but with no alfalfa. Given two sets of pigs, one fed
clover, rape and soaked corn and the other fed only alfalfa forage, the
latter seemed to grow the more rapidly. For brood sows it is a most
valuable food, either as hay, a soiling crop, or as pasture. The litters
of such sows are generally large and vigorous and the dams have a strong
flow of nutritious milk. Alfalfa meal in slop may be used with profit
where the hay is not to be obtained. It is also claimed that sows fed on
alfalfa during pregnancy will not devour their young, its mineral
elements seeming to satisfy the appetite of the sow, while contributing
to the fetal development of the pigs.
[Illustration: =Five-year-old Alfalfa=
at the time of its third cutting. September 8, and its root development.
Grown at Manhattan, Kansas, on upland prairie having a heavy clay
subsoil]
[Illustration: =Showing Advantage of Early Fall Sowing=
Beginning on the left the seed was sown August 19, September 15 and
October 1 respectively. All were dug up April 13 of the following
spring. Nebraska Experiment Station Bulletin 84]
On a farm of Governor Hoard, in Wisconsin, all the brood sows have for
several years been wintered on alfalfa hay of the third cutting, and
their drink, without any grain until the last two weeks of gestation.
Mr. Hoard says the object was to give the sows a food that should keep
them in a non-feverish state and furnish protein sufficient to build the
bodies of the forthcoming pigs. (Their “drink” was the skim milk from
the dairy.)
“It was a matter of experiment at first, our only guide being what
knowledge and reason we could exercise from what we knew, or thought we
knew, of the philosophy of gestation. The experiment proved to be a
success from the first. The sows went through their work in fine
condition, giving milk abundantly. The pigs came with splendid vitality,
thus reducing our losses from early death fully 30 per cent over what
they had previously been. The hay is fed dry and is thrown into the pen
on the feeding floor without any cutting or chaffing whatever. We have
sometimes thought we would try the experiment of cutting it into
half-inch lengths and moistening it. Possibly it would take less hay in
this way. The sows keep in good flesh, fully as much so as we like.”
A Finney county, Kansas, farmer reports having pastured 30 pigs on one
acre of alfalfa from May 1st to September 1st, when they weighed 100
pounds each and were in fine condition for fattening. Another Kansas
farmer reports keeping 100 pigs from about the middle of April to
September on five acres of alfalfa pasture. A little grain during the
last two months would have gained him many pounds of pork. Many alfalfa
raising pig-growers insist that their pigs can be maintained from May
to October on alfalfa for one-half what it would cost for almost any
other feed.
The Utah station found that young shoats gained one-third of a pound a
day on alfalfa pasture without grain. But the station found also that
the gain was not so great in older hogs. A Wisconsin dairyman reported
that he kept nine sows all winter and spring on alfalfa hay and skim
milk, without any grain, and raised from them 75 pigs, all healthy and
vigorous.
The Colorado station considers that a ration of three-fourths corn and
one-fourth alfalfa hay is the best for fattening hogs for market, but
for young hogs not ready for fattening the proportions should be
reversed. The station does not recommend grinding alfalfa hay for hogs,
probably on the theory that the hog’s time is not worth much at best.
A VALUABLE FEEDING TEST
The Kansas station in the fall of 1898 made a series of experiments of
interest to feeders everywhere. The test was to determine the value of
alfalfa hay fed to fattening hogs that were receiving all the grain they
would eat. The results are related here in the language of the bulletin:
“The hogs fed in this experiment were bought of farmers, and averaged in
weight 125 pounds each. They were placed in lots of ten each, in large
pens, having for shelter some sheds open to the south. The alfalfa hay
used was of the best quality, carefully cured. Blackhulled White
Kafir-corn was the grain used, the hogs being fed all they would eat
without waste. The hay was fed dry in forkfuls in a large flat trough.
The pigs were given more than they could eat, and they picked out the
leaves and finer stems, rejecting the coarser stems. One lot of hogs was
fed Kafir-corn meal dry and alfalfa hay; one lot whole Kafir-corn dry;
one lot Kafir-corn meal dry, and one lot Kafir-corn meal wet.
“The experiment began on November 24 and lasted nine weeks. By that time
the alfalfa-fed hogs became well fattened, and were marketed. We
estimated that it would require four to five weeks additional feeding,
with ordinary weather, to get the hogs that were fed grain alone into
good marketable condition.
“The gain in nine weeks from the different methods of feeding were as
follows:
Gains per hog
in pounds
Kafir-corn meal dry and alfalfa hay 90.9
Kafir-corn whole 59.4
Kafir-corn meal fed dry 52.4
Kafir-corn meal fed wet 63.3
“The gain from feeding alfalfa hay with Kafir-corn meal fed dry, over
the meal alone fed dry, is more than 73 per cent.
“The gains per bushel of feed were as follows:
Pounds
Kafir-corn meal dry and 7.83 pounds alfalfa hay 10.88
Kafir-corn whole 8.56
Kafir-corn meal fed dry 7.48
Kafir-corn meal fed wet 8.09
“Ten hogs in nine weeks were fed 656 pounds of alfalfa hay; and as shown
above, for each 7.83 pounds of alfalfa hay fed with the dry Kafir-corn
meal, the hogs gained 3.4 pounds over those having dry Kafir-corn meal
alone--a gain of 868 pounds of pork per ton of alfalfa hay. These
results are not due to the feeding value of the alfalfa alone, but also
to its influence in aiding the hogs to better digest the Kafir-corn. The
alfalfa hay also gave a variety to the ration, making it more appetizing
and inducing the hogs to eat more grain. The ten hogs having grain alone
ate 3885 pounds of dry Kafir-corn meal, while the ten hogs having hay
and grain ate 4679 pounds of the Kafir-corn meal and 656 pounds of
alfalfa hay. The hay-fed hogs ate more grain and gained more for each
bushel eaten.
“In a former experiment pigs were pastured through the summer on alfalfa
with a light feeding of corn. After deducting the probable gain from the
corn, the gain per acre from the alfalfa pasture was 776 pounds of pork.
“These facts indicate that to produce pork most cheaply the Kansas
farmer must have alfalfa pasture in summer and alfalfa hay in winter.”
The Kansas station also found in another test that one acre of alfalfa
produced pork worth $20.30, while one acre of rape produced pork worth
$10.05.
The Iowa station director estimated that one acre of alfalfa pastured
was worth at least three acres of blue-grass for pigs. It is claimed by
Kansas farmers that an average acre of alfalfa will pasture 15 pigs,
while some report having pastured 20 or more pigs per acre. Those who
have used alfalfa as a soiling crop for pigs admit, however, that one
acre so utilized is equal to two if not three used as pasture.
It is argued by feeders that as many hogs may profitably be allowed with
cattle that are being fattened on corn and alfalfa as when fed corn
alone, as the feeders believe in cleaning out the feed-racks every few
days and giving the left-over stems to the hogs. If necessary, a little
corn is added to the hog ration.
A NEBRASKA TEST
The Nebraska experiment station, from a hog-feeding test made in 1903
reported the following:
“With the alfalfa hay worth $7 per ton, the leaves, containing 40 per
cent more protein, would be worth approximately $10 per ton. The shorts
cost $12.50 per ton delivered. The dairy department charged 15 cents per
hundred for the skim milk used. Corn was delivered to the barns at 30
cents per bushel. Adding the usual rate of 6 cents per hundred for
grinding, the corn meal cost $12 per ton. At these prices, each hundred
pounds of gain in the several lots cost as follows:
Lot 1, corn alone $4.48
Lot 2, corn and skim milk 3.97
Lot 3, corn and shorts 3.53
Lot 4, corn and alfalfa 3.40
“This experiment shows that at the market prices quoted and the
proportions used in the experiment, skim milk will make corn bring four
cents more per bushel, wheat shorts eight cents more, and alfalfa leaves
nine cents more. Assuming that only five per cent of the 252,520,173
bushels of corn produced in Nebraska this year is being fed to hogs as a
single food, these figures would go to show that $1,000,000 more wealth
would be added to the state if wheat shorts or alfalfa were substituted
for one-fifth of the corn fed.”
CUT ALFALFA EARLY FOR HOGS
It is especially important that alfalfa intended to be fed to hogs
should be cut early. An experiment at the Kansas station showed that a
ton of early cut and well-cured alfalfa, fed with grain, produced 868
pounds of pork while a ton late cut and poorly cured, fed with grain,
produced only 333 pounds. For fattening hogs it is well to feed about
one ton of well-cured alfalfa hay with each 250 bushels of grain.
Farmer’s Bulletin No. 215 of the United States Department of Agriculture
declares that alfalfa is an ideal pasture plant for hogs. “There is no
danger from bloat and with a limited number of hogs there is practically
no injury to the alfalfa field. Vigorous alfalfa will support 15 to 25
head of pigs per acre. It is best to limit the number of pigs to that
which will be insufficient to keep down an alfalfa field. Cuttings of
hay may then be made at intervals and the growth thus rejuvenated. On
the average pigs weighing 30 to 60 pounds in the spring will make a gain
of about 100 pounds each during the season. Although pigs may be grown
and fattened upon alfalfa alone, it is best to combine the alfalfa with
some kind of a grain ration. Alfalfa by itself is too rich in protein to
give a balanced ration. Where pigs are pastured upon alfalfa alone they
may be prepared for the market by feeding for a few weeks upon corn. It
is still better, however, to feed a third to a half of a ration of corn
or other grain during the time of pasturing.”
The great mistake made by too many who attempt to pasture swine on
alfalfa is in overstocking. There is a tendency to keep within a small
pasture more stock than it can comfortably support, with the result that
the stand is gnawed, trampled and rooted out, while the animals fail to
prosper as they would under more rational treatment.
One of the most extensive and successful swine raisers in Kansas tells
the author this: “Twenty-five years of pasturing hogs of all ages on
alfalfa has proven conclusively to me that with a fourth to a half grain
ration, while they are on such pasture, will produce in them a greater
growth per day than when in dry lots on full feeds of corn. Hogs will
maintain a reasonable growth, but not fatten much, on alfalfa pasture
alone; I believe it profitable to feed them some grain while running on
green alfalfa. If it is desired to full-feed hogs, they will make a
rapid fattening growth by increasing the grain ration while on the
pasture, and with the full grain ration the meat will be nearly as firm
as those of the dry lot, where grain alone has been fed. I find no
distinction on the market between alfalfa-fed swine and those purely
grain-fed, and they sell price and price alike. The general health of
the alfalfa-fed hogs is equal to that of those maintained on any other
feed, and they are prolific.”
The Kansas station realized $11.90 per acre from rape pasture and $24.10
per acre from alfalfa pasture in ninety-eight days. These results were
obtained from the following experiments, which were begun July 25 and
concluded October 31.
Thirty shoats, averaging fifty-two pounds in weight, were divided as
nearly equally as possible into three lots of ten each. Lot I was fed on
a grain mixture of shorts one-half, corn meal one-fourth, and Kafir-corn
meal one-fourth, in a dry lot. The other two lots were fed the same
grain ration, but one received rape pasture and the other alfalfa
pasture in addition. Each lot was given what grain the hogs would eat up
clean, and each had access to water and ashes. The weights of grain
consumed and gains made are as follows:
--------------------+---------+--------+---------------
| Grain | Total |Grain consumed
Feed | consumed|gain, in| per 100 lbs.
|in pounds| pounds |gain, in pounds
--------------------+---------+--------+---------------
I. No pasture | 3,801 | 1,023 | 371
II. Rape pasture | 3,244 | 1,076 | 301
III. Alfalfa pasture| 3,244 | 1,078 | 300
--------------------+---------+--------+---------------
The gains of the three lots are very nearly equal. The dry lot consumed
557 pounds (or seventy pounds for every 100 pounds of gain) more grain
than the pasture lots. The lot on rape required one acre of pasture,
while the alfalfa lot used a trifle less than one-half acre.
The lot without pasture required 3.71 pounds of grain to produce one
pound of gain. Assigning the same value to the grain fed the hogs on
rape pasture, we have 877 pounds of pork credited to the grain and 199
pounds credited to the rape. At six cents per pound, the price at which
hogs were selling at the close of the experiment, this would be a credit
of $11.90 per acre for the rape. In a similar manner, the alfalfa is
credited with 201 pounds of pork, equal to $12.05, and as there was only
a half-acre of alfalfa, this makes a rate of $24.10 per acre.
The cost of preparing the seed bed and seeding the rape was $1.80 per
acre. It was seeded in the feed lots, on soil that would otherwise have
remained idle or would have grown up to weeds.
The shoats on pasture enjoyed their diet and seemed satisfied. Those in
dry lot seemed to be hankering after something green, and their
appetites seemed unsatisfied without some kind of roughness. They would
even nibble at straw, in a vain attempt to satisfy their craving.
“The experiment,” says Prof. D. H. Otis, “emphasizes the superior value
of alfalfa pasture. Where alfalfa is not available, or where variety is
wanted, or it is desired to utilize otherwise waste land, Dwarf Essex
rape, seeded at the rate of six to eight pounds per acre, any time from
early spring to late summer, will furnish an excellent diet that is
greatly relished by the hogs.”
J. E. Woodford, of Coffey county, Kansas, April 1, 1905, placed ten
choice pure bred Poland-China brood sows from twelve to eighteen months
old that were due to farrow in the latter days of June, on a five-acre
field of alfalfa. They were given no other feed than the alfalfa
pasturage until they had farrowed and their pigs were a week old. After
that the sows had in addition to the alfalfa some bran slop until about
August 20, when new corn was fit for feeding. He says: “The sows from
the time they were turned on the alfalfa until the last week in June
made a remarkable growth, besides gaining somewhat in flesh. They did
well with their pigs, reared an average of seven to each sow, and as
sucklers they were a sight to see. The pigs were the most attractive
bunch ever raised in Coffey county, as admitted by our breeding
competitors. We weighed a gilt from this lot when six months and five
days old, and her weight of two hundred and twenty-five pounds was not
above the average of the whole lot. In our lifelong experience in
rearing swine we have found nothing of the grass kind for them that in
value approaches alfalfa.”
A plat of thrifty, well-established alfalfa suitably fenced and used for
pasturing swine of whatever age can scarcely fall short of being among
the most profitable parts of any farm upon which swine husbandry is
given attention.
_CHAPTER XIV._
Alfalfa for Horses and Mules
J. W. Robison, a Kansas breeder of Percherons, who ranks among the
foremost anywhere, raises his colts to three years at an average weight
of 1700 pounds and his four-year-olds at 1900 pounds, ready for the sale
yard, on alfalfa, except such limited quantities of grain as will make
it more nearly a properly balanced food, and incidentally expedite
growth. His opinion, fortified by sixty years of experience, is that
alfalfa as pasturage and hay constitutes by far the most excellent and
economical frame- and muscle-forming food available to the live stock
industry. His colts have alfalfa as their first green food, and, if
foaled in winter, are taught in a few days to nibble the cut hay. He
also says colts reared mainly on alfalfa have equal spirit and vigor and
better dispositions than those given much grain. His brood mares are
made to rely on alfalfa as their main ration, and for three months
before foaling it is practically, unless in midwinter, their only feed.
As a result they are always in ideal condition, their colts are
delivered easily, the mares give an abundance of nourishing milk, free
from feverish tendencies, and the colts are robustly rugged from their
beginning. The cost of rearing colts and horses by this method, he
says, is less, quality and rapidity of their growth considered, than by
any other of which he has knowledge.
The well-known J. E. Wing, of Ohio, says: “There is no one thing so good
for the work horse as alfalfa. He needs less grain, and has more life
and spirit than when fed upon any other hay, yet even working teams can,
on account of its richness, be fed too much. This puts an undue strain
upon their excretory organs to eliminate the unnecessary food substances
from the tissues. The overfeeding of alfalfa hay to horses has in some
localities caused the use of it to become unpopular, and to raise an
outcry against it. The writer has fed no other hay to his
horses--working teams, driving horses, mares and foals--for many years,
and has yet to observe the first instance of evil result, save that the
driving horses when not used regularly become soft and easily sweated.
GOOD FOR WORK HORSES
Until recently it was not thought in the eastern states that alfalfa was
an especially good feed for horses. On the somewhat noted Watson ranch
at Kearney, Nebraska, the grain supply became exhausted one summer when
the prices were high. There was an abundance of alfalfa hay, and
although it was in August and the horses were at heavy work, such as
plowing and ditching, the entire force of eighty was kept on alfalfa hay
and but little grain, without any injurious effect. They relished the
hay, did the hard work every day and looked as sleek as if on pasture.
Since that time alfalfa hay has been the principal ration for all of the
farm’s work horses, colts and driving stock.
In western Kansas farm horses have been wintered on a daily feed of 10
pounds of alfalfa hay and some corn stover, and thin horses fattened on
alfalfa hay and a little corn.
CRESCEUS EATS ALFALFA
Again, the prevalent notion that it is not good for driving horses has
been contradicted by hundreds of farmers who use it for such horses, and
by hundreds in western towns who use it for delivery horses, dray
horses, and light drivers, as well. In parts of California it is the
only hay fed to horses. “Cresceus, the great race horse, is said to have
been raised on it and it is said that he is fed no other hay, even while
on the racing circuit.” The same was said of Sysonby, the fleetest
Thoroughbred in the races of 1905. Many of the city transfer companies
in Denver, Kansas City and Omaha use alfalfa hay, claiming that it
enables them to reduce their grain ration, while their horses seem
stronger and look better than they did with the former feed of corn and
timothy.
TOO MUCH HAY FED
It is no doubt true that Americans feed their horses too much hay. It is
common among horse owners to let horses stand to full mangers when not
at work. In London the cab horses, for example, are given hay for but
two hours a day, in the evening. At the end of two hours the mangers are
cleared. Careful testing in decreasing the timothy hay ration one-half
has not shown that the horses required any more grain than before to
keep them in equally good condition.
Horses do not need a heavy ration of alfalfa hay. Fed with grain,
probably 10 or 15 pounds of it is equal to a manger full of other hay.
As they become accustomed to the alfalfa it may be increased a little,
and the grain decreased. It is a rich food and should not be used as
freely as hays with less protein.
Prof. L. A. Merrill of the Utah station made six tests of alfalfa hay in
comparison with timothy for horses under varying conditions of work, and
found that it was less difficult to maintain their weight with alfalfa.
The appearance of the horses in every comparison was in favor of the
alfalfa-fed horse, and no ill results were noted on their health by
long-continued alfalfa feeding. Fourteen-hundred pound horses at hard
work could be maintained in condition on 32.6 pounds of alfalfa hay per
day, and at rest 20 pounds was sufficient for the same horses.
The quantity of hay fed on most farms could be reduced at least
one-half.
With all its merits alfalfa hay is by no means a properly balanced
ration for all purposes, and those unacquainted with this fact are
liable to feed it, exclusively or otherwise, in such quantities as are
both extravagant and harmful. D. C. Smead, a veterinarian of note, in
writing about using the hay in too great quantities, especially in
feeding horses, says this:
“There is more danger in deranging the digestion or man or beast by an
excess of protein than by overfeeding on a carbonaceous food. The
proteins in food are more easily acted upon by the digestive fluids, and
thus more easily digested and carried into the blood, where an excess
means work for the kidneys to carry it off. We can founder a horse more
easily on wheat than on corn for this very reason. Alfalfa has a
nutritive ratio of practically 1 to 4. An ordinary 1000-pound horse, if
given all it will eat of it, will eat from thirty to forty pounds in
twenty-four hours. As the alfalfa contains about 11 per cent of easily
digested proteins, you will readily see that the horse would be taking
into his system nearly four and one-half pounds of protein.
“About two and one-half pounds of digestible protein is all that an
ordinary horse or cow of a thousand pounds weight, when at work or in
milk, can utilize. In the alfalfa hay we have nearly twice as much as is
needed. If it were not for some of it being physicked off, we would soon
have an animal with overworked kidneys or muscular stiffness of a
rheumatic nature. In case of a mare in foal, when fed on alfalfa and
nothing else, the chances are she would drop her colt prematurely, or if
it went full time, the colt would be a nice, fat, little, plump fellow,
with little vitality and with a tendency to rickets or bowel disease,
all because the alfalfa was too narrow a ration.
“Now if we fed this mare alfalfa hay once a day or even twice a day, in
moderate quantities, say fifteen pounds, and gave her one feed of straw
or timothy hay or corn fodder, which are carbonaceous foods, with a
quart of oats a day to impart a little nerve force, we would have her
practically on right lines. Alfalfa, good as it is, is not an
all-sufficient food for any animal. The danger lies in sections where it
is being thrown to the animals relishing it so well and the owner having
it in such abundance that it will come to be considered all-sufficient,
and then trouble is liable to follow. But fed with judgment it is the
best of all protein foods, and will enable the farmer to feed wisely and
well many of the unmarketable rough foods he raises, like straw and corn
stover, the one balancing the other.”
Here and there are horses with digestive apparatus not suited for the
best use of alfalfa, but they are rare exceptions rather than the rule.
PRODUCES RAPID GROWTH
One of the foremost horse breeders in America, who constantly maintains
upwards of one hundred head of various ages, writes the author this:
“In my experience of twenty-five years in pasturing horses on alfalfa,
results have convinced me that it produces more bone, muscle and blood
in horses in less time than any other pasturage with which I am
acquainted. But I believe it profitable in raising the best horses to
also use a moderate grain ration, to stimulate rapid growth and early
development; my horses, however, have shown no ill effects from
pasturing on alfalfa without grain, or other feed, and I have found such
pasturing conducive to health and prolificacy, maturing animals equal
for service to any reared otherwise. I have raised three-year-olds grown
on alfalfa and a light grain ration to exceed a ton in weight, carrying
all the good qualities of the breed to which they belonged. Further, I
find using alfalfa as a horse pasture a much more economical method of
raising horses than any other.”
[Illustration: =Alfalfa One Year Old Showing Effects of Inoculation=
Plants on the left inoculated with “nitro-culture,” those on the right
not inoculated]
[Illustration: =A Good Type of a Four-year-old Alfalfa Plant=
grown on Kansas upland. Height, May 28, 36 inches. The crown shows the
effect of splitting with a disk harrow]
_CHAPTER XV._
Alfalfa and Sheep-Raising
The day is not far distant when the free “range” will be practically
eliminated from the stockman’s assets. His stock must be reared on
cultivated crops instead of by grazing on grasses that cost nothing.
Pound for pound alfalfa is more fattening for young lambs or old sheep
than clover. Lambs soiled on alfalfa cut daily make a phenomenal growth
and are as a rule free from disease. They may be carried through the
summer on a light feeding of green alfalfa and general pasture or farm
grazing, and fattened in the fall on alfalfa hay and cowpeas or a little
grain, at a generous profit.
Thousands of sheep and lambs are every year brought from Colorado and
Montana to western Kansas and Nebraska and fattened for market on
alfalfa hay and grain, making for these commodities a convenient market
at good prices.
HOW TO PREVENT BLOATING
Pasturing sheep or lambs on alfalfa is dangerous, although there are
sheep raisers who make it a main reliance. One man reports absolute
freedom from loss for several years, and his method is to have his sheep
pen adjoining the alfalfa field and early in April when the alfalfa is
just beginning to put on its green, he arranges a “creep” for the lambs
to go through into the field, and lets them stay there at pleasure. They
soon wean themselves; the “creep” is then closed and a safe pen in the
alfalfa field is used for shelter from rains and protection from dogs.
When necessary to fasten them in at night to guard against dogs or
wolves, he cuts green alfalfa each evening to give them with a little
grain in the morning before turning them back to the field. The lambs
grow rapidly and none ever bloat. Nevertheless, most sheep raisers will
continue to reckon alfalfa pasture too expensive when it costs so many
animals for the privilege of its use. Safety is the exception, and not
the rule.
Owners of large flocks of sheep claim to be able to market lambs from
alfalfa pasture, or when soiled, at one-half to one-third the cost of
maintenance with any other crop. Green or cured it seems to hasten
development and the lambs are in fine condition for fattening in
October, or the ewes to put into the breeding pen.
The Nebraska station in a winter experiment of 98 days with one hundred
50-pound lambs, divided into different lots and variously fed with
prairie hay, alfalfa hay, shelled corn, wheat bran, oats and linseed
meal figured at the prices then current, reached these results:
1. The alfalfa-fed lambs consumed 1.34 pounds of alfalfa hay and one
pound of grain per day as against .88 pound of prairie hay and .89 pound
of grain consumed by the prairie hay fed lambs.
2. The alfalfa-fed lambs made fifty-two per cent greater gains than the
lambs fed prairie hay and the same grain ration.
3. The lambs fed prairie hay with corn and 16 per cent of oil meal made
26 per cent larger gains than the lots fed prairie hay with a grain
ration of shelled corn, or shelled corn with 25 per cent of bran or oats
added.
In the twenty-fifth annual report of the Ontario agricultural college
are some interesting reports on feeding lambs on various foods. The
feeding periods were 74 days for the first experiment and 42 for the
second.
By these tests alfalfa hay was shown to be slightly better for the lambs
in every way than clover hay under practically equivalent conditions.
The first and second cuttings of alfalfa were equal in value; the third
cutting was slightly better than the first.
W. L. Carlyle, dean of the Colorado agricultural college declares
alfalfa hay is the basis of the feeding industry in northern Colorado.
“Without alfalfa our agriculture would be of very little moment. Alfalfa
forms the basis of all our sugar-beet growing. It not only enriches the
soil in which it grows, but prepares it for the growing of sugar-beets
in a way that no other crop or system or cultivation can, and while
doing this preparatory work it yields an enormous tonnage of the most
valuable feed for fattening sheep and cattle. Usually lambs are given
free access to the hay and are allowed to eat all of it that they will.”
Lamb feeding in northern Colorado has been carried on quite extensively
for a number of years, and with such success that “Fort Collins lambs”
are recognized in the eastern markets as superior to anything that is
shipped from any other section of the country. The name “Fort Collins
sheep” has extended to all of northern Colorado, just as the “Greeley
potato” is the term given to all potatoes grown in the northern part of
the state.
In recent years many thousands of old ewes have been fed at the various
sugar factories upon beet pulp, alfalfa hay and corn. The old ewes
thrive much better upon the beet pulp than the lambs or younger sheep.
It produces a very desirable sappiness of flesh, and when these sheep
have been on this feed with alfalfa hay for two or three months and are
then finished with corn, they bring the highest price on the market.
_CHAPTER XVI._
Alfalfa and Bees
THE BEE FERTILIZES THE ALFALFA
It has been discovered that the honey bee is of even more importance to
the alfalfa than the alfalfa is to the bee. The wonderful strength and
speed of the bees take them long distances for their food and they have
recourse to a great variety of plants. But the peculiar construction of
the alfalfa blossom renders it unable to fertilize itself and its shape
makes cross fertilization very difficult. In the marvelous “balance of
good” in nature, alfalfa, like thousands of other plants, is aided in
its lease on life by the insect world. It is not known just how many
insects or birds assist this remarkable plant, but the honey bee is the
most conspicuous, the most industrious, the most eager, and certainly
the most useful.
Careful observations have been made of seed pods grown near colonies of
bees, and also of those so far from any bee colonies that it was safely
assumed no bees had visited the fields producing the pods. In every case
it was found that those from nearby fields had from 50 to 75 per cent
more seeds than the others and that they were larger and more perfectly
developed. In Colorado and western Kansas, where bee culture has been
greatly developed in recent years, it is found that the alfalfa seed
crop in fields nearest to bee colonies is much heavier and of better
quality than that of fields but a few miles away.
At the Kansas experiment station a small plat of vigorous alfalfa was
covered just before coming into bloom with mosquito netting supported on
sticks. It was therefore known that no bees nor other insects could come
into contact with the blossoms. Later a careful examination disclosed
that the pods which had formed were entirely without seeds.
HOW THE FERTILIZING IS ACCOMPLISHED
As suggesting something of the relation of bees and like insects to the
cross fertilization of alfalfa blossoms and consequent increased seed
production, Prof. S. J. Hunter, entomologist of the University of
Kansas, who has spent much time making critical observations of bees in
the alfalfa fields of the Middle West, writes the following for this
volume:
“Every farmer is familiar with the evil effects of continuous inbreeding
among live stock. In plant life this same continuous fertilization of
one plant by its own pollen works no less injury to its race of plants.
To prevent such inbreeding among plants nature has devised several
means. One of these is illustrated in the alfalfa blossom. If the reader
will tear away the purple blossom exposing the true organs of
fertilization, it will be seen that the central round body, the stigma,
designed to receive the pollen grains, is higher than the surrounding,
elongated, pollen-bearing anthers. It will become evident, then, that it
will be possible and most likely for the pollen to drop to the base of
the flower without coming in contact with the stigma, and the flower
will thus go unfertilized. This is as nature intended it should be,
namely, that the plant should go unfertilized if it could be fertilized
only by the pollen of its own blossom. Provision, however, is made for
cross fertilization, that is, fertilization from the pollen of another
flower.
“The color of the flower itself, its fragrance, and finally the sip of
nectar secreted at the base of the flower, are all intended to attract
flower-frequenting insects. Chief among these is the honey bee. The
fragrance of the flower draws the insect from afar. The color of the
flower reveals its exact location to the insect and when the tongue of
the bee is inserted into the flower, in quest of the coveted nectar, the
stamens and pistil spring up, striking the under part of the
hairy-covered head. These hairs are barbed and readily retain the
pollen, so that the flower both discharges its own pollen and also takes
from the head and breast of the bee pollen previously collected from
other flowers. Obviously, the first flower which the insect visits is
not cross-fertilized. Practical observations upon the relations existing
between the honey bee and the alfalfa plant are of value in illustrating
the effects of the bees upon alfalfa.
“A case in point: A hundred well matured pods were collected upon an
alfalfa field less than one-half mile away from a large apiary. A
similar number were taken from another field. The two fields were as
nearly identical as possible in the matter of soil, culture, and
conditions governing the vegetable growth of the alfalfa plant. The
second field, however, was about twenty-five miles away from a colony of
bees. No bees were observed in the field and since there was no timber,
nor other place of shelter where bees might possibly live, it seemed
reasonably safe to say that there were no wild bees in the vicinity. An
examination of the seed pods from each of the two localities was made
and the number of seeds counted. In the field near the apiary the
average number of seeds in a pod was found to be 5.58. The seeds were
plump and the pods were numerous upon a cluster. The pods themselves had
several spirals. In the other field, the one remote from a known colony
of bees, the average number of seeds in a pod was 3.35. The seeds in at
least one-third of the pods were small and shriveled. The pods were few
in the cluster, short, and with but few spirals. The seed crop of the
first field could be estimated on this basis at two-thirds greater than
that of the second field.
“It is a well-known fact that the seed yield per acre for Red clover is
comparatively small. Red clover belongs to the same family of plants as
alfalfa and it, too, is dependent upon insects for fertilization of its
flowers. The work, however, is restricted largely to the bumble bee,
since but few other insects have tongues long enough to reach down to
the nectar of the clover blossom and consequently do not visit the
clover blossom and bring about proper formation of seed. So in
proportion as the bumble bees thrive, the clover flourishes. Alfalfa,
however, is not so limited in its number of insect assistants, since the
flower itself is shorter and the nectar accordingly accessible to a
greater number of insects.”
THE HONEY PRODUCT
Alfalfa raisers find it to their advantage to have a few stands of bees.
As the original cost is slight and the bees provide their own food, go
after the raw material for the manufacture of honey, demand but slight
attention and make such bountiful returns, bee culture has come to be a
valuable “side line” for the farm. As blooms are to be found in alfalfa
districts every day from early May to late October, the bees have a
constant opportunity for service.
Alfalfa honey is white and clear, in an extremely delicate comb, has a
delicious flavor, and an aroma that is delightful. One authentic report
from a western Kansas county is of a single hive that contained nearly
two hundred pounds, and of another having ninety-six pounds. The owner
of these had twenty-five acres of alfalfa which in one year yielded him
over one hundred tons of choice hay besides the honey. The next year he
increased his apiary to fifty stands.
While the average yield per hive elsewhere varies from fifteen to thirty
pounds, the average in the alfalfa-growing territory is far higher. Thus
the financial returns of alfalfa may be greatly increased and in some
instances doubled by having, say, two colonies of bees for each acre. Or
if only a part of the alfalfa raisers in a neighborhood keep bees, this
ratio could be doubled or trebled by those who do. Unlike other
trespassers on neighbors’ fields the bees do the neighbors a distinct
favor, by fertilizing their alfalfa.
_CHAPTER XVII._
Alfalfa and Poultry
BETTER THAN MEDICINE
At first it might seem that too much was claimed for alfalfa if written
of as a specially valuable adjunct in poultry raising. The poultry
industry of the United States is making wonderful advances, and the
volume of its returns is enormous; the figures are well-nigh incredible.
One of the handicaps is disease. Poultry men are a unit in saying that
where alfalfa in any form can be supplied to poultry disease is almost
unknown. Fowls like it green, and whether allowed the run of the field
or it is given to them daily they eat it greedily and thrive. Many
farmers say emphatically that the hens lay more and larger eggs when
allowed alfalfa in any form. Its nitrogen contributes to the albumen of
the eggs and to the growth of the young chickens.
MAY INFLUENCE EGG FERTILITY
Scientific tests of feeding alfalfa to poultry have not been made, but,
no doubt, will be in the near future. If it is found that the eggs are
larger when the hens are given alfalfa, it may also be found that the
percentage of fertility is greater. For years the complaint has been
made by farmers and poultrymen that there are too many infertile eggs.
The financial losses are great if a fourth or third of the eggs used
for incubation prove infertile. It would seem that the same elements
that contribute to the growth of the hatched chicken should also add to
the vitality of the embryo, increasing the percentage of fertility and
adding to the vigor of the newly hatched chick.
AIDS IN PREPARING FOR MARKET
The growth of young chickens is greatly aided by alfalfa. One man
reports an experiment with five hundred capons, hatched early in March,
that averaged in December nearly eight pounds and sold in the city
market at nineteen cents per pound. They were given the run of a patch
of alfalfa for a time and ate little other feed. Later they were put in
the yards and fed with alfalfa cut into short lengths, with a little
grain; still later alfalfa meal was added, with a little wheat. Then,
finally, alfalfa hay was cut and steamed and added to the ration. The
cost of maintenance and fattening must have been small compared with the
large returns.
This item is from the Harper, Kansas, _Sentinel_: A subscriber tells us
that the mites and chicken lice were completely driven out of his barn
and hen house, as soon as he had alfalfa hay put in his barn and used it
in the house for nests. He says that before the hay was cut, it was
impossible to keep a horse in the barn or to have a hen hatch a nest of
eggs, but neither mites nor lice can be found now. This is a new use for
alfalfa, but if it does the work, it will be lots cheaper than buying
poisonous decoctions and spraying pumps to get rid of lice and mites,
the greatest pests to poultry raisers.
_CHAPTER XVIII._
Alfalfa Food Preparation
The growing appreciation of alfalfa as a stock and dairy food and the
expense of baling and shipping it as hay, the loss of leaves, and the
liability to heat and mold unless well cured, have led to the
manufacture from it of several food preparations. These in some cases
are made by simply grinding into a meal, and in others by mixing the
meal with molasses, or a variety of food products, and assumed
condiments and appetizers.
The Colorado station in a feeding test concluded that the ground alfalfa
was not an economical feed for fattening pigs. With cut alfalfa hay
costing $8 a ton and ground alfalfa $16 a ton the cost of producing one
hundred pounds of gain with the former was $2.62 and with the alfalfa
meal $3.12. With corn and cut alfalfa hay fed in equal parts by weight
the cost of producing one hundred pounds of gain was $2.72. With corn
and alfalfa meal fed in equal parts by weight the cost was $3.96. It is
not improbable, however, that better results would have been obtained if
a less proportion of ground or cut alfalfa had been fed. It is also
probable that the hog’s grinding machinery is better adapted to his
digestive apparatus than is any other.
PROFESSOR COTTRELL ON ALFALFA MEAL
It is worth while, however, to consider the arguments in favor of
grinding alfalfa. Prof. H. M. Cottrell says:
“Grinding alfalfa increases its digestibility. How much has not been
determined. Grinding increases the digestibility of corn and oats as
much as 14 per cent, and of wheat 10 per cent. It is probable that there
is a greater gain in digestibility from grinding alfalfa, a coarse feed,
than there is from grinding grain.
“When alfalfa is to be fed at a distance from the place where grown it
must be baled for shipping. When the bales are opened and scattered in
feeding a considerable part of the leaves is wasted. Over 8 per cent of
the protein in alfalfa is found in the leaves, and the loss of protein
from leaves wasted in feeding baled hay is frequently from one-fourth to
one-half of the total amount in the original hay. With ground alfalfa
there is no waste in feeding either from leaf or stem. Alfalfa ground is
in the best condition for shipping and handling cheaply and without
waste.
“Ground alfalfa is not only a good feed itself but when mixed with grain
aids in the digestion of the other feeds, enabling the feeder to get
more out of his home grown grain.
“Experiments have not been made to determine the exact value of this
diluting effect of alfalfa meal in increasing the feed value of heavy
grains. Tests have shown that corn-and-cob meal has the same feeding
value as an equal weight of clear corn meal. Practically worthless
ground cobs by their ‘lightening up’ the heavy corn meal add 20 per cent
to the feeding value of the meal with which they are mixed. It is
reasonable to believe that a rich feed like ground alfalfa has even a
greater influence when mixed with corn meal. The more intimate the
mixture the greater the benefits from alfalfa, and for this reason
ground alfalfa is far superior to the whole hay.
“Grinding alfalfa hay reduces the power needed to digest and assimilate
it. It takes power for an animal to chew the feed, digest it and bring
about the chemical changes that convert it into flesh or milk. All this
energy is taken from the actual food material in the alfalfa.
Experiments show that a much larger amount of food value is used up in
this way with coarse feeds than with concentrated fine feeds. In corn, a
concentrated feed easily worked up in the animal’s body, three-fourths
of the protein actually in the hay is digested; and in straw, a still
coarser feed, only one-tenth. Forty-eight per cent of all the energy in
coarse hay is used up in chewing and digesting it, while only twenty per
cent of the energy in oats is used in these processes. This shows the
value of preparing feed in such a way as to require the least effort on
the part of the animal to use it.
“In a well constructed mill it requires one horse-power ten hours to
grind alfalfa sufficient for a month’s ration for a dairy cow in full
milk. This indicates what a saving the grinding of alfalfa makes in its
effective use by an animal.
“Experiments show that good alfalfa hay and wheat bran have practically
the same value in feeding for milk. In a test made of bran and alfalfa
meal, two lots of cows were selected that were giving equal weights of
milk. One lot was fed bran, the other lot the same weight of alfalfa
meal. For each 100 pounds of milk given by the cows fed bran, 141 pounds
were yielded by the cows fed alfalfa meal.”
As an example, “Alfamo” is the name of one of the numerous new feeds on
the market, having alfalfa meal as its principal ingredient. After a
year of experimenting with grinding and mixing various feeds it was
determined by the manufacturers that a feed made of three parts alfalfa
meal and one part beet-sugar molasses would possess a very high value.
The ingredients are mixed by a special apparatus and subjected to a
process which retains and preserves the high nutriment of the feed.
Prof. Samuel Avery of the Nebraska station made an analysis of “Alfamo,”
which showed the following composition:
Per cent
Moisture 2.74
Protein 15.04
Carbohydrates 50.48
Ash 13.87
Crude fiber 17.85
Professor Avery also states: “This feed was made by mixing molasses with
alfalfa meal which contained 16.15 per cent protein. It will be noticed
that the protein content is not greatly reduced, while a large quantity
of nutritious matter has been added in the molasses. An analysis of the
molasses used in this product, showed practically fifty per cent sugar,
and it should be remembered that the sugar in molasses is all digestible
and ready for the animal without extra effort on the animal’s part,
which is not so in corn or other foods, strong in carbohydrates from
which the starch must be extracted by the digestive apparatus.”
SOLVING THE TRANSPORTATION PROBLEM
Several mills for the manufacture of alfalfa foods have been and are
being established, and it is reasonable to assume that the use of these
foods will become quite general in cities and districts remote from the
alfalfa regions. Whether or not the actual feeding value is appreciably
increased, or the nutritive constituents made more thoroughly available,
is as yet not determined by sufficient tests, nor has it been determined
by any station test that any factory food preparation is more economical
than alfalfa hay, where the hay can be obtained well cured and with a
reasonable proportion of its leaves. It is altogether probable, however,
that alfalfa meal will be more economical in distant cities than baled
hay. If these preparations of alfalfa prove to be satisfactory to
consumers in distant markets, it will lead to the multiplication of
mills in the alfalfa regions, thereby decreasing the cost of
transportation and giving the grower a wider and probably a better
market. The use of the meal or the food preparations is likely to prove
most especially valuable for dairy cows and poultry.
_CHAPTER XIX._
Alfalfa for Town and City
While the preceding chapters have dealt with almost every phase of
alfalfa, it is thought well to emphasize the advantages of its more
general use in cities and towns. In the minds of many there is an
undefined impression that alfalfa is for farm consumption only. Often
when first introduced into a community, farmers who raise more than they
have stock to consume, complain that it is difficult to sell in small
towns.
THE TOWN COW NEEDS ALFALFA
Milk producers who know it best concede that alfalfa is an invaluable
feed in the dairy, closely akin to wheat bran in results and usually
much less expensive. In the average small town or city there is about
one cow for every ten or fifteen people. Therefore, in a town of one
thousand population, there will probably be seventy-five to one hundred
cows. If alfalfa will increase the quantity of their milk and butterfat,
giving a product at a lower cost than the concentrated foods, it should
be more used. But as yet it is not generally used, because it is not
understood and appreciated.
The best time to secure a supply is when it is being harvested and can
be taken directly from the field. If the mow is large enough for three
or more tons, a ton can be stored from each of the different cuttings,
and be cured in superior condition almost regardless of the weather. It
would be found a most economical feed for the family cow and, if fowls
are kept, it could constitute one-third of their ration, adding to
growth and to the egg supply.
A CHEAP FEED FOR HORSES
The larger users of hay in the towns and cities are liverymen,
deliverymen and teamsters. These have been unacquainted with or doubtful
of the utility of alfalfa and have never given it a fair trial, or
possibly any trial at all. Those who have used it and thought its
effects harmful have perhaps not understood its highly nutritious
character and may have fed it in too large quantities. Having such a
large protein content it should not be used with the same prodigality as
prairie hay. For driving horses it should be cut when more matured than
for other stock, or when about half in bloom, and should be well cured.
Fed then, in reasonable rations of from ten to twenty pounds a day,
livery horses may be kept in vigorous thrift with a small additional
quantity of grain, and thus a saving be made of twenty to thirty per
cent in cost of maintenance. In the alfalfa districts there may be found
many liverymen who, having had experience with alfalfa hay, feed their
horses little of anything else. In the last few years there has been a
growing demand for alfalfa hay for southern towns and cities.
The coat and general appearance of horses fed alfalfa are improved, as
compared with those fed timothy or prairie hay and the tendency to
constipation and indigestion is greatly lessened. It is rarely that an
alfalfa-fed animal of any kind is constipated.
_CHAPTER XX._
Alfalfa in Crop Rotation
MAINTAINING FERTILITY
It is a fundamental principle of the best agriculture that every acre
should be kept constantly at its highest productive capacity. In one
sense the farm is a great machine for the production of food. All
prosperity must originate on and emanate from the farm; the farmer is
really the only original producer. The measure of the world’s material
success must be the relative amount of the product of the farm. As lands
decrease in fertility, the cost of living increases in direct
proportion. As fertility decreases, land values decrease and rural
population decreases. Already there are districts in America that are
almost depopulated because of the barrenness of what was, but a short
while ago, fertile land.
The fundamental principle of maintaining fertility is to restore to the
land annually those chemical elements taken from it by the crops grown.
A prominent importer of horses relates that he was once entertained on a
great horse farm in France, whose owner told him that much of the farm
had been in cultivation for over eight hundred years and was, he
believed, as productive now as ever in its history.
Alfalfa ranks as the greatest fertilizing plant known to scientific
agriculture. All cereal crops use large quantities of nitrogen. A field
cropped for years in corn or wheat will come to have too little nitrogen
for the production of a profitable crop. Alfalfa, as has already been
stated, after the first few months of its life obtains its whole supply
of nitrogen from the air; in fact, more than it really needs. As a soil
improver it possesses at least five valuable properties:
1. It gathers nitrogen from the air for its own maintenance and a
surplus that is constantly being added to the soil.
2. It is a deep feeder and its roots penetrate the earth to
extraordinary depths, drawing toward the surface and utilizing moisture
and valuable mineral elements that other crops would never reach,
leaving the desirable elements there for future crops, of whatever
kinds.
3. By capillarity, these roots and rootlets draw up moisture from below
the surface until it modifies the very top soil, changing wonderfully
the nature of the field. The analysis of a cubic foot of earth of a
flourishing alfalfa field shows a marvelous change in moisture content
since the sowing.
4. The mere mechanical effect of the extensive root system can scarcely
be over-estimated. As soon as germination begins the plant starts its
tiny roots downward on the search for moisture. Roots four feet long
have been found on alfalfa but four months old; roots nine feet long
have been found below alfalfa but nine months old. After the taproot
reaches a few inches below the surface, it sends out smaller roots that
have a lateral growth of but a few inches, when they too, take a
downward course for moisture and for mineral elements needed for the
growth above. These first smaller roots decay and others start out from
the taproot lower down. These decay and still others start. The decaying
roots add humus to the soil, and the openings left by them form a
wonderful system of channels for the penetration of air and water into
the soil. The erstwhile compact earth is honeycombed and air and water
penetrate the graves of the dead roots until, when the alfalfa field is
ready to be used for a different crop, the soil has been wonderfully
changed not only in its chemical elements but in its physical character.
5. The regular deposit of alfalfa leaves, from the cuttings, under the
best care, has been estimated at one-half ton or more per acre every
year. As these leaves contain a great percentage of protein, it can
readily be seen that they make a heavy contribution to the soil’s
fertility.
VALUE OF STUBBLE AND ROOTS
When in his system of rotation the farmer is ready to plow up his
alfalfa, he has another inestimable contribution to the land’s fertility
in the stubble and roots. It is not recommended to plow under any
considerable growth as a green manure, as the hay crop is too valuable.
Its market value would buy more fertilizers than the same growth is
worth for humus. After a field has stood for five or six years, the
roots have added largely to the humus content. Prof. W. P. Headden of
Colorado, estimated that the fertilizing value of the stubble and 6¹⁄₂
inches of roots plowed under is about $20 per acre, while the value of
the stubble and entire root system is not less than $35 per acre.
The New Jersey station estimated that the amounts of plant food gathered
by an acre of alfalfa in two years were equivalent in nitrogen to that
contained in 3500 pounds of nitrate of soda; in phosphoric acid to that
contained in 600 pounds of boneblack superphosphate, and in potash to
the amount contained in 1200 pounds of muriate of potash, or equal to
what would have cost $124.
EFFECTS ON SUCCEEDING CROPS
The Wyoming station, at Laramie, under direction of Prof. B. C. Buffum
(Bul. No. 44) made some tests that proved the market fertilizing value
of alfalfa. A plot of ground that had been in alfalfa for five years
adjoined a plot of the same size that had been in varied crops, wheat,
oats, potatoes, etc. After the alfalfa sod was broken the two plots were
prepared together and planted crosswise to wheat, oats and potatoes,
with half of each on the broken sod and half on the other plot with the
following yields and gains:
After
After Other Money
Alfalfa Crops Gain
Wheat 30 bu. 18 bu. $8 to $12
Oats 78 bu. 37 bu. 16
Potatoes 81 bu. 52 bu. 16
Stating the results in another way, Prof. Buffum says: “The value of
alfalfa harvested from one-half acre of land for five years was about
$50 more than the cost of producing it.
“The value of potatoes and grain from an adjoining half-acre for five
years was about $44 more than the cost of producing, at local prices.
“When the alfalfa half-acre was plowed and planted to wheat it produced
$8 to $12 more value in wheat per acre than the land which had grown
potatoes and grain before.
“When the alfalfa half-acre was plowed and planted to oats it produced
$16 worth of grain more than land which had grown potatoes and grain
before.
“When the alfalfa half-acre was plowed and planted to potatoes it gave
$16 worth more of potatoes per acre than was obtained from land which
had grown potatoes and grain before.
“By growing alfalfa the increase of yields and values were produced with
absolutely no cost for fertilizing the land.”
This gain, it will be noted, cost nothing in the way of fertilization,
as the alfalfa had every year been more profitable than the other crops.
A Marion county, Kansas, manager of large estates reports that a field
of wheat after alfalfa averaged forty bushels per acre while an
adjoining field of equal original fertility averaged but fifteen
bushels. These results have been duplicated in innumerable instances
where alfalfa fields have been plowed and planted to other crops. A
Colorado man who farms 1000 acres, with 200 acres of it in alfalfa, says
he cannot afford not to plow his alfalfa after he has had from it four
years’ crops; that it is necessary to maintain the general farm
fertility and obtain big crops of corn, oats and potatoes. In the potato
districts of Colorado alfalfa is used systematically as a rotation to
maintain the yields and quality of their potatoes, both of which are so
famous.
In the corn belt, which may be said to extend from the central meridian
of Kansas to Pennsylvania, alfalfa used in rotation will do much to
prevent the disgrace of raising an average of but twenty or twenty-five
bushels of corn to the acre. And so in what were once famous wheat
belts, alfalfa will restore the crop records, if properly used in a
rotation.
ROTATION A NECESSITY
Some experiment station men insist that where alfalfa is allowed to
stand for many years it will cease to have a fertilizing value; that
alfalfa draws heavily on the potash and phosphoric acid in the soil, and
will after, say, eight or ten years begin to deplete it of these
important elements. Therefore they insist that alfalfa should not be
allowed to stand for over six or eight years unless it is given an
annual top-dressing of manure. They favor plowing up the alfalfa after
about five years and cropping to corn or cotton.
Former Governor Hoard in speaking of the value of alfalfa as compared
with that of clover in a crop rotation says that, “alfalfa having a much
larger root development goes deeper down, thoroughly subsoils the
ground, brings up phosphorus and potash from the lower strata, and
leaves much more vegetable matter to decay and furnish humus. Nothing
else we have ever tried equals alfalfa for putting the soil in good
tilth.”
SPREADS THE BACTERIA OVER THE FARM
Men who are raising alfalfa for use in a regular rotation never leave it
over six years; many prefer five, while others make it a rule to plow
up their fields every four years; thus the bacteria becomes fixed in the
soil of the whole farm. Such farmers use alfalfa as they formerly used
clover, to restore fertility needed for profitable crops of grain, hay
and forage.
The sod is hard to plow. It is well to do the breaking immediately after
the season’s cutting, if possible; disk and harrow it several times and
sow to rye for winter pasture, and plant to corn or cotton or potatoes
in the spring. The winter’s freezing will help to put it in fine tilth.
If it is desired to follow with wheat (not always advisable, however, on
account of causing a too rank growth), the sod may be plowed after the
year’s second mowing, disked and sowed to rye to prevent the soil from
leaching.
Breaking up a well set alfalfa field is no trifling matter. It may be
done with three heavy horses, but it is hard work for them, and they
will not be able to break more than one acre a day. An authority says
the best plan is to use five heavy horses--three in the lead and two on
the end of the beam. They can go right along and plow two acres a day.
Alfalfa roots are very tough and strong when the plants have attained
full growth, and they give a jerky motion to the plow, which is severe
on horses’ shoulders. A cast steel plow is the best to use and if it is
tempered right a file can just cut it. It can be hammered out thin at
the blacksmith’s shop when it becomes too thick to file easily. “The
reason for filing, rather than using the hard, thin edge as in other
plowing is that the edge needs to be rough as well as thin, or the roots
will slip along the sloping edge of the share and not be cut.” It is
important that the furrow turned shall not be wider than the plowshare
will all the time cut clean, as any main roots that are left uncut will
send up a more vigorous growth of stems than before, which, in another
cultivated crop will be the same as weeds.
[Illustration: Alfalfa Plant and Roots Showing Bacteria Nodules]
[Illustration: =Tubercles on Clover Roots=
In untreated soil
In inoculated soil]
_CHAPTER XXI._
Nitro-Culture
AN OLD-NEW THEORY
The inoculation of soil, like many other lately exploited theories, has
no doubt been known for hundreds of years. There are evidences that it
was practiced in England at least a century ago, and it is thought to be
an old custom among the Chinese. Some space was given to “soil
inoculation” in a preceding chapter, attention there being devoted to
the simple methods of infecting soil with bacteria.
IMPORTANT DISCOVERIES
Some twenty years ago a German scientist, Nobbe, discovered that the
small nodules found on the roots of the leguminous plants contained
bacteria that took nitrogen from the air and transferred it to the
plant. It had been known that cultivated soils were rapidly losing their
original supply of nitrogen and there seemed no practicable way of
restoring it in sufficient quantity. Commercial nitrogen costs fifteen
cents per pound and the expense of applying it to the land to equalize
the loss from an ordinary farm crop is almost equal to the value of a
crop. Hence, the discovery that the legumes were nitrogen-gathering, by
means of these bacteria, was hailed as one of the greatest of the age.
With millions of pounds of nitrogen over his land there seemed now a
method whereby the farmer could utilize some needed portions of it. The
bacteria live in tubercles upon the roots of various leguminous plants,
such as Red clover, Sweet clover, Bur clover, alfalfa, cowpeas, garden
peas, vetches and beans. These tubercles are the home of the bacteria,
minute forms of vegetable life, too small to be seen with the naked eye.
The legumes have no power in themselves to draw nitrogen from the air,
yet these bacteria seem to have the power to absorb the free nitrogen
and cause it to combine with other elements, forming nitrates or other
assimilable compounds suitable for plant food. It has also been
demonstrated that, as a rule, there are different species of these
bacteria for different species of legumes.
After German scientists had made their discoveries, one of the existence
of these bacteria on the roots of the legumes and another that in the
laboratory, these organisms could be bred and multiplied, they seemed
unable to develop them of sufficient vigor to survive any general
distribution. At this point Dr. George T. Moore of the United States
Department of Agriculture, hit upon a plan of cultivating them in a way
by which they could be preserved for many months, and he also gave them
a much greater power. This nitrogen-fixing power was so developed that
seeds soaked in the solution, it is claimed, sprouted and produced
plants in sand that possessed no nitrates. He then found that these
bacteria when grown upon nitrogen-free media will retain a high activity
for a long time, if carefully dried out and then revived in a liquid
medium. He also devised a plan by which they could be mailed to any part
of the world and arrive in perfect condition.
Most experiment station men have given to Dr. Moore great credit for his
discoveries and have tried, with rather marked success, his method of
nitro-culture; on the other hand a few have been opposed to the method
from the beginning and are still opposed. It would seem that the tests
made prove that nitro-culture does introduce bacteria when directions
are followed.
Of course if a farmer’s soil has the alfalfa bacteria, it is not
necessary to use any system of inoculation. If Sweet clover or Bur
clover is growing in the vicinity, or if alfalfa is thriftily growing
near without the aid of inoculation, it is hardly necessary to make
there further efforts for the introduction of bacteria.
SUGGESTIONS FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
In a preceding chapter the opinion was expressed that in most states,
and in most localities in those states, inoculation was unnecessary
because bacteria were already present; yet it is true that these
bacteria are present, if at all, in varying quantity. If comparatively
few are present, any method of inoculation that will introduce more into
the soil, to hasten the growth of the tubercles and promote the
gathering of nitrogen, will be helpful. The fact is, we know as yet
comparatively little of all there is to be learned about this wonderful
principle. It is altogether probable that the use of nitro-culture is as
practicable and as free from objections as the use of inoculated soil,
especially from distant and unknown fields. In one of its bulletins the
United States Department of Agriculture has summarized its advice as to
inoculation as follows:
_When Inoculation is Necessary._--Inoculation is necessary--
1. On a soil low in organic matter that has not previously borne
leguminous crops.
2. If the legumes previously grown on the same land were devoid of
nodules, of “nitrogen knots,” thus showing the need of the
nodule-forming bacteria.
3. When the legume to be sown belongs to a species not closely related
to one previously grown on the same soil. For instance, soil in which
Red clover forms nodules will often fail to produce nodules on alfalfa
when sown with the latter crop for the first time.
_When Inoculation May Prove Advantageous._--Inoculation may prove
advantageous--
1. When the soil produces a sickly growth of legumes, even though their
roots show some nodules.
If the cultures introduced are of the highest virility, their use will
often result in a more vigorous growth.
2. When a leguminous crop already sown has made a stand, but shows signs
of failing, owing to the absence of root nodules.
The use of the culture liquid as a spray or by mixture with soil and
top-dressing may save the stand if other conditions are favorable.
_When Inoculation is Unnecessary._--On the other hand, inoculation is
unnecessary and offers little prospect of gain--
1. When the leguminous crops that are usually grown are producing up to
the average, and the roots show nodules in normal abundance.
Cultures of nitrogen-fixing bacteria are not to be regarded in the light
of fertilizers, or as capable of increasing the yield under average
conditions. They do not contain nitrogen itself, but bacteria, which
make it possible for the legumes to secure nitrogen from the air
(through the formation of root nodules). Where the soil is already
adequately supplied with these bacteria, it will not usually pay to
practice artificial inoculation.
2. When the soil is already rich in nitrogen.
It is neither necessary nor profitable to inoculate a soil rich in
nitrogen when sowing legumes. Not only does the available nitrogen in
the soil render the formation of nodules less necessary, but the
nitrogenous materials in the soil largely prevent the bacteria from
forming nodules.
Any increased virility in nitrogen-fixing power possessed by any of the
types of bacteria yet distributed, may be rapidly lost in a soil
containing an abundance of nitrogen, because the bacteria are in a
medium in which there is no demand for activity in securing atmospheric
nitrogen.
_When Failure is to be Expected._--Inoculation will fail where other
conditions (aside from the need of bacteria) are not taken into account,
among which are the following--
1. In soil that is acid and in need of lime.
Liming to correct acidity is as important for the proper acidity of the
bacteria as for the growth of the plants.
2. In soil that is deficient in fertilizers, such as potash, phosphoric
acid or lime.
The activity of the bacteria in securing nitrogen from the air and
rendering it available to the legumes does not do away with the need for
such fertilizing elements as potash and phosphorus.
3. It must also be remembered that inoculation does not “act like
magic”; it will not overcome results due to bad seed, improper
preparation and cultivation of the ground, and decidedly adverse
conditions of weather and climate.
In the use of the cultures, also, failure is almost certain where the
directions are not carefully studied and intelligently followed.
SWEET CLOVER SOIL USED TO INOCULATE ALFALFA FIELDS
The discovery in Illinois that inoculation of the soil for alfalfa was
necessary in certain places and not in others suggested the theory that
bacteria living on some other, probably native, plant were identical
with the alfalfa bacteria. Investigations led to satisfactory evidence
that this was the case and that the native plant was the ordinary Sweet
clover (_Melilotus alba_). The illustration facing page 230 shows the
results of a series of pot culture experiments made at the University of
Illinois and reported in Bulletin No. 94 by Prof. Cyril G. Hopkins. The
four photographs were made five, six, seven and eight weeks,
respectively, from the time of planting. Alfalfa seed were planted in
each of the five pots, in carefully prepared soil practically free of
combined nitrogen, and at the same time four of the five pots were
inoculated as follows:
Pot No. 1.--Not inoculated.
Pot No. 2.--Inoculated with bacteria obtained from infected alfalfa
soil.
Pot No. 3.--Inoculated with bacteria obtained from alfalfa root
tubercles.
Pot No. 4.--Inoculated with bacteria obtained from infected Sweet clover
soil.
Pot No. 5.--Inoculated with bacteria obtained from Sweet clover root
tubercles.
The results indicate that the same effect is produced upon the growth of
the alfalfa by the nitrogen-gathering bacteria obtained from Sweet
clover as by those from the older alfalfa, and seem to prove that
infected Sweet clover soil can be used for the inoculation of alfalfa
fields. Investigations have shown that 100 pounds of thoroughly infected
soil to the acre is sufficient to produce a satisfactory inoculation
within one year from the time it is applied.
_CHAPTER XXII._
Alfalfa as a Commercial Factor
EFFECT ON LAND VALUES
Only a few years ago alfalfa hay was not named in the market reports.
Now it is conspicuous in the lists of hays. Then there were thousands of
sandy acres in Kansas and Nebraska being held at from $2 to $5 per acre
that now, seeded to alfalfa, are selling at from $30 to $75 per acre.
Then, cultivated farms in those districts could be rented for $1 per
acre; now, seeded one-half to alfalfa, they rent for $3 to $5 and more
per acre. In the South cotton lands rent for $5, and alfalfa lands at
$15 per acre. Land in the Yellowstone valley was worth, wild, $1.50 per
acre; now, under irrigation and seeded half to alfalfa and half to wheat
it commands $100 per acre. A few years ago labor commanded in those
districts that now raise alfalfa about $1 a day; since then, during
alfalfa harvest, hundreds of men have been imported there and paid $2 or
$2.50 per day. Then farmers were poor and trade was dull; now, a farmer
who owns eighty acres well set in alfalfa, harvests about 300 tons of
hay worth from $5 to $12 per ton and has the proceeds available for
added comforts, improvements and luxuries.
A few years ago it was thought that America was approaching a crisis in
the matter of beef and pork and mutton production because of the rapid
diminishing of the free public ranges by the forest reserves, irrigation
projects, and the like. It was insisted that the farmers could not
nearly sustain the meat supply. Possibly they cannot, but alfalfa is
doing wonders in helping to solve the problem of cheap meat production.
Millions of sheep and thousands of cattle are being fattened annually on
the alfalfa of California, Montana, Colorado, Kansas and Nebraska, and
in some portions where a few years ago the sandy prairies gave but a
scant subsistence to scrawny range cattle.
ENHANCES DAIRY INTERESTS
In parts of the East since the introduction of alfalfa, the number of
dairy cows in many townships has trebled and the dairy product more than
quadrupled. When two acres of alfalfa will carry ten dairy cows through
a summer, the day and opportunity of the small dairyman are certainly at
hand. When, as is the case, alfalfa increases the rental and selling
value and consequently the taxable value of land; when it increases the
demand for and price of labor; when it increases the fertility of the
land for other crops that may follow; when it brings enlarged profits to
the entire stock-raising and stock-fattening interests, and puts more
money in circulation, it is inevitably to be considered a commercial
factor.
_CHAPTER XXIII._
The Enemies of Alfalfa
The most notable enemies of alfalfa are weeds, insects, parasites, and
animals. More failures to raise alfalfa are caused by weeds than by all
other enemies combined. The cause of weeds in a field is usually poor
farming. Clipping alfalfa early in May will kill many weeds. If the
weeds grow up, clip again and do the same every time they threaten to
become rampant. If they are kept from seeding, and do not in a large
measure crowd out the alfalfa, good crops may be had from it the second
season. If sowed in the fall, disking early in April may kill most of
the weeds. It is folly to sow alfalfa on a foul field, as it is far less
expensive to kill out the weeds beforehand. Disking and clipping will do
much to destroy them, but if they secure a strong foothold the best
thing to do is to plow up the field, plant it in corn, give it clean
cultivation, and sow alfalfa again when the weeds have been
exterminated.
DODDER
Dodder is an annoying enemy. It is a parasite, belonging to the
morning-glory family, growing from its own small seed but attaching
itself very soon to the alfalfa stalk. It then separates itself from its
own root and thereafter lives on the juices of the alfalfa until it
ripens its seeds or has killed the alfalfa. The wisest and safest thing
to do is to sow only seed so thoroughly cleaned that there will be no
dodder with it. If, later, it is found that any dodder seed escaped the
cleaning operations and is growing, the grower should go through the
field with a knife or sickle and a large basket or sack and cut out and
burn every dodder vine and every plant to which dodder is attached. If
so unfortunate as to have sown seed with a considerable mixture of
dodder, clip the alfalfa early in May, let the clippings dry for two or
three days or longer, and then burn on the field, watching carefully to
have the fire touch every part. It will facilitate a complete burning to
sprinkle parts not burning readily, with kerosene. If there is a poor
stand of alfalfa, largely infested with dodder, safety lies in plowing
it up and cultivating the field in corn or potatoes for two or three
years.
[Illustration: =Peculiar Nodules in Groups on Small Rootlets=
and distant from the large alfalfa roots. From Michigan Experiment
Station Bulletin No. 225]
[Illustration: =Alfalfa Roots Showing Normal Nodules=
small and near the large roots. From Michigan Experiment Station
Bulletin No. 225]
From an excellent article on the dodder that infests alfalfa (_Cuscuta
epithymum_) by Mr. F. E. Dawley, a New York authority on alfalfa, and
printed with illustrations in the _Country Gentleman_, the excerpts here
following are taken:
“The only sure method of keeping alfalfa fields free from dodder is
through exercising greater caution in the purchase of seed. There is no
reason why thoroughly recleaned alfalfa seed should have any dodder seed
in it, as reference to the illustrations will show. The relative sizes
and forms of the seeds of alfalfa and dodder are shown herewith. It will
be seen that there is a marked difference in both the sizes and the
shapes of the seeds. The alfalfa seed is shaped like a little kidney
bean, and varies in color from light yellowish-green to a rich
golden-yellow, and in some instances, because of weathering, or sweating
in the cock, or perhaps standing too long, it shows a reddish-brown
color. The dodder seed is darker in color than the alfalfa, all of that
which I have succeeded in gathering from the plants being a rich
golden-brown. The accompanying illustrations show the form of the dodder
and alfalfa seed respectively.
“The seeds, being sown, germinate in the soil, throwing up a slender,
thread-like stem somewhat resembling a corn silk, which retains its
connection with the ground until it comes in contact with the stem of
the alfalfa plant. It twines around this tightly, sending its feeding
suckers through the outside bark, and as soon as it is firmly attached
to the host plant, the ground connection is severed and it is sustained
by the plant juices which are taken in by the suckers. It continues to
grow and spread, twining around other stalks and increasing very rapidly
until a colony is established. Continuing to grow, it climbs toward the
upper portion of the plants, feeding on their juices and sapping their
vitality, but never goes to the extreme top, seeming to prefer the
dampness and darkness of the matted alfalfa rather than sunlight. The
plants first attacked begin to die, and the dodder, spreading out in all
directions, forms a circle or ring.
“The rapidity with which the pest spreads makes it a serious menace to
the alfalfa grower. Comparatively little work has been done by
scientific men in studying the dodders and methods of eradication, and
the fact that the little rootlets or suckers (haustoria) become so
firmly affixed to the host plant that it must be destroyed together
with the parasite, has made the work hard and the results obtained
unsatisfactory. There are a number of methods by which dodder may be
spread through a field. As soon as it becomes thoroughly established on
a host plant, the many little branches, waving about like the shoot
produced from the seed, attach themselves to other plants, and thus the
colony is increased in size. In legumes, the host plant first attacked
soon dies, but before this occurs, the parasite has become firmly
established on adjoining plants and is reaching out and completing the
colony. As soon as a host dies, the dodder also perishes, but before
this happens it is very likely to have blossomed and seeded.
“In the operations of mowing, tedding, raking and drawing the alfalfa
hay, these little colonies are spread about the fields by the machines
and the workmen, and on the horses’ feet. The sale of infested hay is a
prolific means of dissemination. Hunters and pleasure seekers, walking
through the fields, notice the peculiar corn-silk-like growths and
often, by picking up particles of it which are soon cast away, establish
new colonies. The flower is very peculiar and attracts the attention of
people passing, who are apt to pick them together with some of the
maturing seed, and scatter these over the fields. In a pastured field,
the animals spread the seed to some extent while moving from place to
place in feeding. The most serious menace, however, is from the purchase
of impure seed; farmers should always be absolutely certain that the
alfalfa seed which they are buying is thoroughly recleaned and that no
small weed seed is to be found in it. One should never sow clover or
alfalfa from a field or even from a locality in which dodder is known to
exist. It is probable that the seeds thoroughly ripened will retain
their germinating powers for some years. The purchase of hay from dodder
infested fields, or the purchase of manure from barns where infested hay
has been fed, are sure sources of contamination.
“Where a newly seeded alfalfa field shows evidence of quite general
dodder infection, it is useless to attempt to eradicate it, and the
field should be plowed up and planted with some hoed crop for a period
of years. Old fields that have been thoroughly infested will probably be
more economically treated in this manner than in any other. In newly
sown fields, one of the most effective methods is probably hoeing over
the spots where the dodder appears, going over them once in two weeks
and allowing nothing to grow on them until the dodder seed is
germinated. A modification of this method has been used successfully by
spading in fields where the colonies of dodder were seen, raking out all
the tops, roots and branches, adding a little straw or hay and burning
the mass, and then keeping the spot thoroughly hoed for a season. For
fields where the colonies are small and scattered, this method of hoeing
and shallow cultivation is probably the most practicable, as it helps to
secure the early germination of any seeds that were left in the ground,
and also kills them as soon as they are germinated. If the seed has
developed, one must be careful not to spade it in too deep, as it may
retain its vitality for some years if left covered in the moist soil.
“Burning has been recommended by some, raking the dodder vines and what
is left of the alfalfa to the center of the colonies, putting brush or
straw with it, together with some fine, light wood or chips and
sprinkling with kerosene, so that the alfalfa plants will be burned
close to the ground. This is necessary from the fact that the little
coils of dodder close to the crown of the plants will retain their
vitality and grow after a very severe burning, providing the alfalfa
which is above the ground is not killed also. The most difficult problem
to be confronted in killing out dodder where it has become established,
arises from the fact that if these little coils which wind themselves
closely around the plant are not killed or removed, the dodder will
spread from these and make a new growth. Many experiments have been made
with chemicals, but none of them have proved wholly successful, from the
fact that these little rings were not destroyed. All the rest of the
plant was killed and the production of flowers and seed prevented; but
as these little rings were not killed, the dodder began growing again
and continued to grow throughout the season.”
LEAF SPOT
Leaf spot is a very peculiar disease and, fortunately, not common in
this country. It has been known in France since 1832. In 1891 it was
destructive in Iowa alfalfa, the loss in the neighborhood of the
experiment station being estimated at 50 per cent. In reference to this
infliction the Iowa station, among other information, printed the
following:
“Any time after the plant has attained a growth of four to six inches
from the seed, but most commonly after the first year’s growth, there
appears upon the upper side of the leaves small, irregular brownish
spots, which enlarge to about one-sixteenth of an inch in diameter and
extend through the leaf to the under side, turning all parts brown. When
many spots occur on the same leaf the whole leaf soon turns yellow and
falls off. This falling of the leaves and the natural loss in vigor, due
to the diseased condition before the falling, constitute its great
damage. Frequent cutting of the crop materially prevents the disease.”
In eastern states farmers report that there are frequent patches in
their fields where the leaves turn red and the plant dies. The probable
explanation of this trouble is “wet feet,” which alfalfa will not abide.
Don’t expect to get a crop of alfalfa from a field in which water is
near the surface. Drain it or use another field.
ROOT ROT
A disease peculiar to portions of the southern states is called “root
rot,” and similar to the root rot found in cotton fields. The alfalfa
dies in spots, these spots widening in circular form. This is a fungus
that spreads only in summer. The only means of eradicating so far
(reported by the Texas station) is the application of common salt and
kerosene. It has not proven a serious annoyance.
GOPHERS AND PRAIRIE DOGS
Gophers and prairie dogs are great pests in some parts of the Middle
West, and about the only successful means of combating them is poison.
The state of Kansas has, probably more than any other, made a systematic
effort to destroy its gophers and prairie dogs, by liberal
appropriations and a field agent to supervise the work to be carried
out under provisions of law by local officials.
The injury done by the gophers consists chiefly in throwing up mounds of
soil taken from the burrows and these greatly interfere with operating
the mowing machine in harvesting. In the alfalfa fields there is also a
noticeable thinning out of the plants, by reason of the cutting off of
the roots. These root cuttings are stored in the burrows in considerable
piles, and are used in cold weather by the gophers for food. It is
claimed by some alfalfa growers that this process of thinning out the
plants is a benefit rather than an injury to the field, but, says Prof.
D. E. Lantz, the official formerly in charge of the Kansas work, “I have
known fields where this thinning has continued until the crop did not
half cover the ground at cutting time, and the fields were plowed up for
the planting of other crops. The loss from gopher depredations to the
alfalfa growers of Kansas during 1901 was probably fully one-tenth of
the entire product, and had a money value of at least $500,000.”
According to Professor Lantz, carbon bisulphide and other poisonous
gases have frequently been recommended for the destruction of the
pocket-gopher, but the great length of the burrows and their
irregularities in depth prevent the gases from flowing into every part,
and the animals often escape. Trapping, if properly done, is a sure
method of killing the gopher; but it is attended with considerable labor
and is very slow. An excellent trap for general use is the No. O
ordinary steel trap. Sink it in loose soil to the level of the runway,
nearly conceal it by sprinkling fine earth over it, and leave the hole
open.
Gophers are easily poisoned. They are fond of potatoes, sweet potatoes,
apples, raisins and prunes. The presence of strychnine, arsenic or other
poisons does not seem to deter them from eating the food; but if the
poison is sweetened they seem to eat it more readily. In summer it may
be desirable to sweeten the poison, but in the fall and early spring it
does not seem worth while. The poisoned food being introduced to the
burrows below the surface, there is no danger of poisoning stock. It
might be well, however, not to let swine run in the fields for a time
after the poison has been put out.
The following method of introducing poison is recommended: Cut the
potatoes or other food into pieces not more than three-fourths of an
inch in diameter. Cut a slit in each piece and with a point of the knife
blade insert a little sulphate of strychnine; as much as half the bulk
of a grain of wheat. Having prepared the bait in sufficient quantity, go
to the field armed with a round, sharp-pointed implement an inch or an
inch and a half in diameter and of sufficient length. The tool here
illustrated was made by a blacksmith.
[Illustration]
It is a spade handle shod with an iron point. A bar is attached about
fifteen inches from the point to enable the operator to use his foot in
pressing it into the soil. With this tool it is only necessary to find
the runway of the gopher. The handle is sufficiently thick to make a
hole large enough to permit one to drop the poisoned potato directly
into the burrow. The operator then passes on to another place, leaving
the hole open. No digging with a spade or other hard labor is necessary.
An experienced person can distribute poison to many acres of alfalfa in
a day; and if proper care is taken to rightly distribute the bait, it
will not be necessary to go over the ground a second time. Some
experience is required to find the burrows quickly. It is best to insert
the food as near as possible to the freshest mounds of earth. Two or
three pieces of potato at that place are worth many scattered in other
parts of the runway. The operator should avoid the larger mounds and
those that are not freshly made.
For destroying prairie dogs, Professor Lantz says that out of thousands
of suggestions nothing has been found more effective than strychnine
poison and carbon bisulphide. Following are directions for preparing and
using the strychnine:
“Dissolve one and a half ounces of strychnine sulphate in a quart of hot
water. Add a quart of syrup--molasses, sorghum, or thick sugar and
water--and a teaspoonful of oil of anise. Thoroughly heat and mix the
liquid. While hot pour it over a bushel of clean wheat and mix
completely. Then stir in two or more pounds of fine corn meal. The
quantity of corn meal needed will depend upon the amount of extra
moisture present. There should be enough to wet every grain of the wheat
and no more. Care should be taken that there is no leakage from the
vessel in which the wheat is mixed. Let the poisoned grain stand over
night, and distribute it in the early morning of a bright day. Use a
tablespoonful of the wheat to each hole occupied by prairie dogs,
putting it near the mouth of the burrow in two or three little bunches.
Do not put out the poison in cold or stormy weather. It will keep for a
considerable time, and is much more effective after a cold period, as
the animals are then hungry and eat the grain readily. A bushel of wheat
should poison 1000 to 1200 holes. An excellent substitute for the oil of
anise in this formula can be made by soaking two ounces of green coffee
berries in the whites of three eggs. Let this stand for about twelve
hours, and use the liquid instead of anise oil.”
A tablespoonful of carbon bisulphide, upon some such absorbent material
as cotton, dry horse manure, or a piece of corn-cob, and rolled into the
burrows, is effective. It is best immediately to cover the hole with a
sod and stamp down firmly.
GRASSHOPPERS
Grasshoppers are a source of no little loss to alfalfa growers in some
parts of the West. They usually do their greatest damage to the season’s
second crop, the young not being very destructive to the first. The best
remedy, or rather prevention, is deep disking in April and then
harrowing to destroy the eggs.
Where the pests attack or are about to attack a field of alfalfa, Prof.
L. Bruner, of the Nebraska station recommends the use of a “hopper
dozer,” which is “simply a long, shallow pan of stove-pipe iron or
galvanized iron mounted on runners and backed by a light frame covered
with cloth. The pan is about four inches deep, from eighteen inches to
two feet wide, and from ten to sixteen feet long. It is partly filled
with water and a little kerosene. A horse drags the machine across the
field over the stubble of the first crop and the half-grown hoppers
jump into the pan where the oil coats them over and kills every one that
it touches. The hopper dozer works best on level land. On sloping ground
the oil and water run to one end and slop over. To prevent this the pan
is usually divided into sections by a number of partitions. The runners
should stick out in front of the pan about a foot and one-half, and a
piece of chain or heavy rope should be stretched loosely between them to
drag ahead of the machine and make the hoppers jump. On level fields
there are no great difficulties in the use of the hopper dozer. Careless
driving may spill oil on some alfalfa and kill it. If these machines are
to be really effective, they must be used before the grasshoppers get
their wings. The first crop of alfalfa should be cut as early as
possible, and the hopper dozers should follow the rakes as closely as
may be. On the whole, they should be used only where plowing and
harrowing have not been done or have failed to keep the grasshoppers in
check.”
Of the use of this implement or machine Prof. S. J. Hunter has this to
say:
“The height of the runners depends upon the height of crop to be
protected. It is important that there be no timbers in front of the pan,
so that its front line may come in contact with the grain passed over.
The insects then fall directly into the fluid. When ready for use place
two buckets of water and one-half gallon of coal-oil in a pan, and then
drive back and forth across the end of the field where the grasshoppers
are entering until you have filled the pans; remove the insects,
replenish with oil and water, and continue until the field is rid of the
pest.
“Many grasshoppers will be seen strike the sheet-iron back, drop into
the pans and immediately jump out again. Those farmers who observed the
experiments were at first of the opinion that the locusts that jumped
out had jumped away ‘to live another day.’ The writer asked those
interested to watch the insects and note the actions of grasshoppers
that had jumped out. In every case the report was that the insects
became sick and soon died. In fact, persons going over fields where a
day or so before the hopper dozer had been at work, were impressed with
the number of dead grasshoppers on the ground. An examination showed the
presence of coal-oil upon the body. This kerosene and water is an
external irritant, and my observations have been that the mixture is
more effective than the oil alone.
“The use of the machine may be best shown by examples. In Ford county,
Kansas, a large tract of alfalfa was cut, and the locusts at once began
moving into a large field of Kafir corn which had been sown broadcast.
The hopper dozer was drawn back and forth across the end of the corn
field nearest the alfalfa land until a portion of the field about twenty
rods deep had been gone over. Here it was apparent that there were very
few grasshoppers; or, in other words, the advance line of the locusts’
march only extended twenty rods into the field. Two days later the same
area of ground was covered, but not as many insects were taken.
Grasshoppers no longer entered this corn and the hopper dozer was no
longer used at this point.
“It has been my experience with this machine that after it has passed
over vegetation it does not injure the plants, but in some way renders
the vegetation distasteful to the grasshoppers, so that they turn their
course and seek food elsewhere. I have observed that these native
grasshoppers enter a field from one corner or side, and that they are
not as a rule scattered over the whole field, but occur in great numbers
in patches. This being the case, it is evident that with very little
labor with this machine the products of a field can be given full
opportunity to mature.”
ARMY WORMS
In Nebraska the fall army worm has caused considerable damage. It is
distinct from the true army worm, having small hairs growing out from
small black spots; it has a whitish “Y” shaped mark upon the head. The
parent of the worms is a moth of a yellowish, ash-gray color. The female
moth deposits her eggs in clusters upon the leaves and stems. With the
approach of cold weather the worms pass into the ground and enter the
chrysalis stage about one or two inches below the surface. When very
numerous the only effective treatment is to disk thoroughly in the
spring.
BIND WEED
Bindweed, belonging to the morning-glory family, is one of the meanest
weeds that annoy alfalfa raisers. It spreads from the root, and is more
than liable to smother out alfalfa or any other crop which tries to
occupy its ground. If infested fields could be grazed closely with hogs
or sheep, they might keep the bindweed down and finally eradicate it. If
this cannot be done, the only remedy is to plow and use the land for
some other crop.
_CHAPTER XXIV._
Difficulties and Discouragements
Notwithstanding the fact that alfalfa is now grown successfully in all
parts of the United States, in almost all kinds of soils and under many
dissimilar conditions of climate, there are grouped here as a summary
from preceding chapters the several difficulties and discouragements
that may confront the one who would grow it.
1. _Securing a Good Stand._ Theoretically, the farmer should secure a
good stand every year with every crop, but he does not. He obtains,
however, poor stands of wheat and corn and potatoes oftener than a poor
stand of alfalfa. Why does he fail with alfalfa? The following, at least
in part, suggests why:
_a_ He neglects to prepare sufficiently in advance. He should select his
alfalfa field one or two years before he intends sowing. If he raises
wheat, he should sow a little alfalfa seed with wheat, one or even two
years before ready for alfalfa. This will leave a few roots and the
proper bacteria will have been introduced into the soil. For two years
there should be a vigorous fight against weeds, the fewest possible
being permitted to ripen seed.
_b_ He neglects to prepare properly for the preceding crop, and
sometimes plants the wrong crop, although sorghum and Kafir corn are
about the only very objectionable planting to precede alfalfa. These
have usually taken too much of the land’s moisture, especially if the
season has been somewhat dry, to permit a prosperous beginning of the
plants from fall sown seed. Millet, oats or cowpeas are the best crops
to precede, i. e. for the first trial. The plowing for this preceding
crop should be deep. In clay land a subsoil plow (the kind which loosens
but does not throw the subsoil to the surface) should follow. It is
extremely important that a dressing of stable manure be plowed under for
this preceding crop. The seed bed should be carefully prepared, and
under favorable conditions. Working the ground when too wet would make
it impossible to secure a proper seed bed later when preparing for
alfalfa.
[Illustration: And There’s Still More to Follow]
[Illustration: =Dead Prairie Dogs=
gathered up in a 20-minute walk through a “town” that had been poisoned.
Nearly all the animals die inside their burrows. The cost of destroying
them, according to Professor Lantz, is not over two cents per acre, not
counting the labor, and a man can distribute the poison over about a
quarter-section in a day]
_c_ He neglects to prepare the alfalfa seed bed properly. He should
begin disking and harrowing as soon as the preparatory crop is off the
ground, and continue this at intervals of ten or fifteen days until time
for sowing, when the soil should be as fine as for an onion bed.
_d_ He uses poor seed; seed that is infertile, or adulterated with weed
seeds--undesirable and unreliable in every way.
2. _Dying out the second year_, which in most instances is due to one of
two causes, viz.: neglect to plow under stable manure for the preceding
crop, or pasturing alfalfa in its first year. Not an animal should be
turned on an alfalfa field for pasture until the second or, preferably,
the third year. Another cause is disturbance of the soil and plants by
severe freezing. This may often be prevented in a degree by a light
top-dressing of manure in December.
3. _Failure through harvesting and stacking_.
4. _Injury from insects or disease_.
These are practically all the things that need occasion serious
vexation. Of course alfalfa calls for more work in harvesting than corn,
or clover, or timothy; but one acre of prosperous alfalfa is worth two
or three of corn, or clover or timothy, even for market, while for
feeding purposes the difference is even greater. The “poor” farmer, the
lazy farmer, the “corner grocery” farmer should not sow alfalfa.
_CHAPTER XXV._
Miscellaneous
ALFALFA IN THE ORCHARD
Probably nine-tenths of those who have written on this subject have
condemned the practice of sowing alfalfa in the orchard. They have said
that the alfalfa demanded so much moisture that the trees would be
dwarfed if not destroyed. In going through an immense amount of material
in the preparation of this book only two instances have been found of
men who claim that the alfalfa is a benefit to orchards. One of these
was from Texas and the newspaper quoting him did not give his name. He
was reported to have used his orchard for hog pasture, keeping on five
acres from ten to fifteen sows with their pigs from early April to
September. He claimed that the alfalfa instead of robbing the orchard of
moisture actually contributed to the surface moisture and benefited the
trees.
Prof. F. L. Watrous, of the Colorado station, is an earnest advocate of
the use of alfalfa in the orchard and from an article of his this is
quoted:
“Whatever may have been believed or imagined as to the uncongeniality of
trees and alfalfa the theory is destined to an early downfall. The
evidence is at hand now to show that not only is alfalfa not a
detriment when grown among fruit trees, but in many ways it is a
positive benefit, lending itself and its properties to the advantage of
the trees.
“On land where moisture can be found at from six to ten feet from the
surface, the congeniality of the alfalfa plant and the apple tree
becomes apparent. Both need plenty of water the first year, a little
less the second, and very little or none thereafter.
“After trees become old enough to bear and need all the land between
them, and that fertilized and renovated, alfalfa may be used as a food
gatherer and distributer. It pushes down into the lower strata, bringing
up mineral elements, captures nitrogen from the air through its root
processes, and brings all together near the surface, thus giving to the
trees the food they need to fill up and mature fruit. Nor is this all.
The alfalfa falling on the ground makes a soft cover upon which
windfalls may drop with little bruising; it so occupies the soil as to
allow no foul growth to creep in; it does away with the work of weeding
or cultivating, and keeps the surface cool and porous, furnishing
excellent pasture for hogs if the trees are protected. It would be
possible, of course, in this system of co-operation between fruit trees
and alfalfa to secure a crop of hay or seed during the off years for
fruit, but whether this would prove profitable may be questioned.
Orchards growing under the conditions described have produced
magnificent crops of fruit which, for size, quality and coloring, is
seldom equaled.”
SOME ALFALFA “MUSTS” AND “DON’TS”
A Knox county, Ohio, man, in expressing himself as to some of the
requisites for success with alfalfa, as observed from his viewpoint has
this to say:
“I have known about alfalfa from boyhood; been familiar with it for
thirty years, and have grown it successfully on many soils, from a stiff
clay, upwards. The failures which I have seen have been accounted for by
the non-performance of some of the essentials. There are certain
‘musts’, not ‘shoulds,’ to be observed to secure success. Here they are
from my experience:
“First of all the seed must be pure, of high germinating power, and of
the highest possible vitality. If I doubted my own proficiency in these
determinations, I would consult the nearest experiment station. I have
had occasion to consult experiment stations, from New Jersey to
Wisconsin, on various subjects, and in every instance have met with
prompt and valuable--and sympathetic--assistance.
“The soil must have lime; either as one of its natural constituents, or
lime must be added. If the soil is deficient, then the lime must be
incorporated with the soil some months before seeding.
“The land must have efficient drainage, either natural, or, as in the
case of clay and heavy clay loams, artificial.
“The land must be fertile to a depth of at least nine inches. Beyond
that depth the taproot in its search for water will take care of
itself.”
Another writer, impressed by practices he regards as reprehensible,
enumerates them as follows:
“Don’t sow any nurse crop.
“Don’t sow on freshly plowed land, no matter how carefully prepared.
“Don’t let weeds or grass grow over six inches high without clipping.
“Don’t clip or mow when wet with rain or dew.
“Don’t let alfalfa stand; if turning yellow, cut it.
“Don’t sow old seed.
“Don’t sow less than twenty pounds per acre, one-half each way.
“Don’t sow twenty-five acres at first; sow five.
“Don’t pasture it.
“Don’t put any of the rotten manure anywhere but on your alfalfa plot.
“Don’t depend upon ‘culture cakes’ or soil from some distant field.
“Don’t let any water stand on it.
“Don’t let it go if a thin stand, but disk in more seed; don’t be afraid
you will kill it.
“Don’t replow the land, disk it.
“Don’t wait for it to stool; it never does.
“Don’t try to cut for hay until the alfalfa takes the field.
“Don’t sow on any land not well underdrained.
“Don’t leave your land rough; use a roller or a plank float to level and
smooth it.
“Don’t give up.”
ALFILERILLA OR “ALFILARIA”
(_Erodium citcutarium_.)