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^NAPOLIS, MAY 23, 1914
NO. 21
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Methods of Starting an Alfalfa Field
Many people make the fatal mistake
of expecting alfalfa to do well on soils
that are not lit properly to produce any
kind of a crop. There is juat aa much
need of care in selecting and preparing
soils for alfalfa as for any oilier crop
and probably mon, because of its de. p
rooting habits and large plant food requirements.
Deep, loamy soils with open subsoils
are undoubtedly b-jst for alfalfa, but
there is plenty of evidence to show that
it may be successfully produced on almost any type of soil, from light sandy
or gravelly loams and peats or mucks
to heavy clays provided that it is.well
drained, sweet, and properly suppli.-d
with organic matter and available plant
food
Many soils that at present are not fit
for alfalfa culture may be made so l.y
providing drainage facilities, correcting
acidity, adding organic matter, or supplying needed plant food, according to
the requirements. Oood drain:.
essential in order that tho roots may
go deep into the soil. Hardpan must
be broken up or avoided altogether.
Soils that are sour may be made sweet
by thorough drainage, and the application of lime. A good supply of decomposable organic matter in the soil helps
the bacterial action in making plant
food available, facilitates the inoculating
process, and together with good drainage prevents heaving In the spring. For
soils that are out of condition in this
respect, a good way to supply organic
matter if sufficient manure is not available is to raise and plow under a crop
of cowpeas or some other green manuring crop before attempting to grow alfalfa.
Peat and muck soils may be used for
alfalfa if they are well drained and
properly supplied with mineral plant
food. Potash is nearly always lacking
in these soils and often phosphoric acid
and lime must also be supplied. Soils
that are subject to flooding are not
good for alfalfa.
It is strongly recommended that the
beginner in alfalfa culture put the crop
on a piece of his best land. He can
experiment with it later when he knows
more about it 	
Facts That  Everyone Interested in Alfalfa Should
Know.—By Prof. W. T. Wiancko in Purdue Leaflet.
mineral food must come from the soil
and M ths crop is naturally a large
producer, large quantities are required.
Kvery alfalfa Held should be started
with a liberal edresalng of stable manure, if possible. Experiments have
proven time and again that manure is
unusually  valuable  in   starting  alfalfa.
however, it will be well to use a fertiliser rich in both phosphoric add and
potash. A mixture containing perhaps a little nitrogen, and eight to ten
pet cent of phosphoric acid and the
same of potash, applied at tlie rate of
three or four hundred pounds per acre
will be sufficient unless the soil is quite
. ■
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An Alfalfa Demonstration.    A number   of these practical demonstrations were
given last summer by Purdue Extension  Department,   under the  direction
of J. C.  Beavers. They were well attended   and   proved  very   beneficial.
It not only supplies plant food, but also Improves the physical condition of
tlie soil and facilitates the inoculating
process.
When sufficient manure is not available and the soil is not already rich
and well supplied with organic matter,
a crop of cowpeas or some other green
manuring crop should be grown and
plowed under and a high grade commercial fertilizer applied. Just what
kind of fertilizer will be required will
depend upon the character and condition of    the soil.      In most    instances.
poor, in which case heavier applications
may I.e profitable. The fertilizer should
be disked into the ground some time in
advance  of seeding.
Liming .Soils for Alfalfa.
To what extent Indiana soils are in
need of liming in order to produce alfalfa successfully is not definitely
known. It is known, however, that alfalfa will not thrive in soils that are
sour and that there are many such in
the State.
Soils that produce good crops of clo-
.Soll Fertilization.
Alfalfa requires large
quantities of plant food
and cannot be expected
to do well on poor soils.
Its deep rooting habits
may enable it to extract
more food from the soil
than most other crops,
but to secure large yields
there must be an abundance of food within easy
reach and if the soil is not
naturally well supplied,
manure or commercial
fertilizer must be added.
After It is thoroughly established and properly
inoculated with its nitrogen gathering bacteria, alfalfa will supply itself
with nitrogen from the
air, but al! potash, phosphoric    acid,    and    other
.
A Busy Day in a Marion County Alfalfa Field.
ver will probably not be seriously in
need of liming for alfalfa. On the
other hand, where there is trouble in
getting a stand of clover, or it does not
i!o well, it will usually pay to lime the
soil, and liming may be actually necessary before alfalfa will do well, because
the alfalfa bacteria will not thrive in
acid soils.
The most satisfactory method of determining whether or not a soil is in
need txt Lining is to make a small trial
application of lime on a patch sown
with alfalfa some time before seeding
the whole field. This is better than
an artificial test. However, when desired the Soils and Crops Department
of the Experiment Station will make
laboratory tests for lime free of charge,
so far as time will permit. For this
test two samples should be sent ln by
mall or pre].aid express. One sample
should fairly represent the surface six
or seven inches and the other the subsoil at a depth of about twelve inches.
Where liming is necessary, an application of ground limesto:n- will usually
be most economical, although other
forms of lime when properly used will
give equally good results. The amount
that shoul I be applied will depend upon the needs of the soil, but probably
not less than two tons of ground limestone per acre should be used, and
double this amount may be necessary
to secure the best results. It may be
applied at any time, but the longer before sowing the alfalfa the better.
Inosculation.
To  get  the  most  out  of  the  alfalfa
crop and,   in  fact,  berore  it can   make
its   best   development,     the   roots   must
be   inoculated  with   the  proper  nodule-
forming,   nitrogen-gathering     bacteria.
In the majority of cases where alfalfa
is sown for the first time, it will need
to  be   inoculated     by    some    artificial
means.      The surest and most practical
way to do this is to broadcast and harrow  in,   before  sowing  the  seed,  some
earth from    a good alfalfa field where
the bacteria  are  known  to  exist.       At
least    two or three    hundred    pounds
of    soil    per     acre    should     be    used.
______________       Care    must be    exercised
against exposing the soil
to sunlight for too long a
time before sowing and
harrowing In, as such exposure is detrimental to
the  bacteria.
When soil from an old
alfalfa field is not available, soil from a place
where sweet clover grows
may be used for inoculating. In this case the surface should first be scraped off to avoid transferring sweet clover seed.
The Time to   Sow Alfalfa.
If the weather conditions are favorable and
Hie HOtT TsTrfgood condition and free from weed
seeds, it does not seem to
make any important
difference   when  the  seed
Continued on page 4.
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