OCR Text |
Show SWEET CLOVER HAY REQUIRES DIFFERENT CARE THAN ALFALFA By J. C. Hogenson U. S. A. C. Extension Agronomist Sweet clover has a different habit of growth than does alfalfa; therefore, there-fore, it should be handled differently. The alfalfa plant when cut for hay, dies to the crown and new shoots which are to form the next crop, start from the crown of the plant. This is not true with sweet clover for the new shoots, which are to form the next crop, come from buds in the stubble left in the field. If, therefore, the sweet clover is cut close to the ground, as is usually the case with alfalfa, there are not enough buds in the stubble to grow and produce a crop. When cut in this way the plants usually die. In cutting sweet clover for hay, raise the icutter-bar of the mower high enough to leave the stubble six or seven inches high. Sweet clover hay is a little more difficult to cure for hay than is alfalfa alfal-fa owing to its larger and more succulent suc-culent stems. It should be cut before be-fore it gets too coarse and woody; usually before it begins to bloom. It should be allowed to lie in the swath until the leaves have wilter but not until they are dry and break off when handled. Then pile in small, high and narrow, cooks and allow it to cure. In good weather it usually takes about three days to cure the hay in this way. |