n for
hay in mixtures, that it is scarcely necessary to dwell upon the nature
of these, or the respective amounts of seed to sow in making them.

When alfalfa is sown with the grain, there will be a saving of seed to
the extent of at least 20 per cent., as compared with broadcast sowing.
This arises from the more general sprouting of all the seeds, since they
are planted at a more uniform depth, and from the subsequent loss of a
smaller percentage of the plants through drought, and it may be other
causes. But when sowing broadcast, it will in many instances prove more
satisfactory to add 20 per cent. to the amounts mentioned above, as
suitable for being sown without admixture with other grasses and
clovers, rather than to deduct 20 per cent. from these amounts when
sowing the seed with the drill.

=Cultivating.=--Under some conditions, it is, in a sense, necessary to
sow alfalfa in rows, and to give it cultivation during the first season
and sometimes for a longer period. In some parts of Florida, for
instance, the most satisfactory results have been obtained from sowing
in rows with 12 to 24 inches between the rows, and then to cultivate
between these as may be necessary to keep down the growth of weeds.
Under some conditions also in the Atlantic States, the most satisfactory
results have been obtained from sowing alfalfa in rows 14 to 16 inches
apart and cultivating between them. Even hand hoeing the first season
may be justifiable along the line of the rows for small areas, but with
the price of labor as at present, would be too costly for large areas.
When grown in rows as indicated in the Atlantic States and westward from
these, the yields of seed have been more satisfactory than when sown
broadcast, but the crop is less satisfactory for hay, owing to the
coarse and uneven character of the stems. The amounts of seed wanted for
such sowing will, of course, vary chiefly with the distance between the
rows. As small an amount as 6 pounds or even less will in some instances
suffice per acre.

=Pasturing.=--The practice of pasturing alfalfa the first season,
especially where it cannot be irrigated, is usually condemned, lest it
should weaken the plants unduly for entering the winter. It would seem
probable, however, that under some conditions such grazing would be
helpful rather than hurtful. The cropping of the plants by stock, in the
influence which it exerts upon the plants, is akin to that which arises
from cuttin