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Show DRY FARM ALFALFA Secret of Art Is Accumulation of Sufficient Moisture. Tilth of Soli at Time of Plowing Matters Mat-ters Nothing, But at Time of Planting It Matters Everything Every-thing Tlma to Plant (Ily B, 1L rAKHO.NS, I'arker, Col.) The art of raising alfalfa without Irrigation Ir-rigation Is to accumulate sulllclent moisture in tho subsoil and then get the roots down into it. Two to three foot of moisture will carry the al-fulfa al-fulfa a whole year and insure a stand whether It rolua or not. Hy plowing In the fall tea Inches deep we can usually conserve this amount of moisture by springtime. Hut for those who plow only six or seven Inches deep it Is better to fallow the land a whole year. I)ry year plowing in the fall, as I explained In a previous paiier, Is not detrimental, provided the ground Is not planted until spring. The tilth of the soil at time of plowing matters nothing, but at time of planting It matters everything. Tho best time to plant is usually about the 20th of April. Late planting plant-ing is dangerous for all small seeds which have to be planted near the surface, sur-face, for In hot weather the top Inch or two dies out very quickly, and If the seeds sprout and the next rain Is too long In coming the whole stand may, die out before the rootlets can reach the wet dirt down bolow. It can bo seded broadcast by hand or drilled, but the solid wheel drill Is not as good for the purpose as the spilt wheel, which 1 am glud to see they are commencing to manufacture for all purposes. The split wheel leaves an unpacked streak in the seed row for the young sprouts to come through and obviates the tiec,i8lty of forcing their way through a crust, which Is a great advantage when the rains are few and far between. Ten pounds to the acre Is a good amount to plant. In 1908 we had two feet four inches of moist soil to start with. We planted April 15; a soft snow May 4 brought it up, a light rain May 15 helped It along, then It turned dry and did not rain again until July 20, n total of ten weeks' drought. The alfalfa al-falfa grew about six Indies high, and we had a fine stand. We cut. weeds and all, in Auoist, leaving It on the ground, m Alfalfa can b-1 planted in rows and cultivated as oAhi as necessary, but when planted b-1 he ordinary way It rsn bo cult 1 vat four times In the teason, which lift's often as the general gen-eral run of farni'V-t will cultivate anything. any-thing. The flrsitvar It can bo lightly harrowed In thi fall or If not very large It can bJ left alone, for If it lives until Auflt It will hold Its own anyway. Thef ext spring It can be harrowed. bef sprouting and after nch cutting. 1 After the second year the disk may 0e used, cutting deep or shallow, acfjrdlng to the size of the plants. Farmers sometimes complain that after a year or two their alfalfa dies Out. There are two reasons for this. One Is shallow soil with a poor subsoil; sub-soil; tie other Is not conserving snough moisture at the start lo allow the roots to penetrate deeply enough InU) the subsoil to become thoroughly established. The Idea Is this, after a orop Is started It uses up about all the moisture as It comes and there la very little left over. If there Is no reserve re-serve of moisture accumulated before planting the subsoil never becomes saturated and the roots can never get Into it. The alfalfa is living from hand to mouth and the first dry winter win-ter knocks It out. It Is the same with any crop. The normal length of the roots of small grain, for Instance, Is somewhere about four feet, but if a man who never conserves molBture plows only lit Inches, his subsoil Is bound to be dry, the roots do not go Into It and he Is trying to grow a fourfoot root In a six Inch space. |