: Growing Crimson Clover by Kephart Leonard Wheeler - Crimson clover

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however, it is necessary to allow for some of the seed being too deep, or too shallow, or failing to germinate, and for a certain percentage of winterkilling. It is also well to have a fairly thick stand of the young plants, so that the ground may be well covered during the early fall and thus prevent soil washing and the growth of winter weeds.

The most common method of seeding crimson clover in intertilled crops is to scatter the seed broadcast with a rotary seeder or by hand. In order to place the seed on a fresh, moist seed bed it is commonly broadcasted immediately behind the cultivator at the last cultivation and is covered 'at once by a second cultivator. In tall corn the seed may be sown from horseback, the ears of the horse being covered with small bags to prevent the entrance of the flying seed. Slightly more seed is required when seeding in tall corn, as some seed catches in the corn plants. When seeding in cotton care must be taken to avoid injury to the opening bolls, which are easily knocked off or torn. This is best done by seeding by hand, covering the seed with a piece of brush dragged down the rows.

In low-growing truck crops and on fallow ground crimson clover can be seeded with a wheelbarrow seeder. This implement distributes the seed more evenly than can be done by hand or with the rotary seeder, especially when planting a mixture of crops. The wheelbarrow seeder being somewhat awkward to handle is better adapted to smooth, level fields than to hillsides.

Probably the very best method of seeding crimson clover is with the special clover or alfalfa drill. Where enough clover is grown to warrant its use this implement is to be highly recommended. The seed is sown in 4-inch rows at just the proper depth and with the right pressure, and the fertilizer is placed exactly under each row, where it will be immediately available to the seedlings. Drilled clover requires less seed than broadcasted clover and produces a more even and certain stand.

For use in intertilled crops there are several types of 1-row drills, the best for this purpose being the 5-hoe drill equipped with press wheels.

Crimson-clover seed must be covered, but not too deeply. In most soils it is not enough to depend on rain to effect a covering. An inch in sandy soils and half an inch in clay soils appear to be about the right depth. Shallow planting gives the best results in wet seasons and deep planting in time of drought. Broadcasted seed should be covered with a spike-tooth harrow or a weeder rather than a heavy harrow or a shovel cultivator. A harrow made of fairly stiff brush is often useful in loose soil.

As a rule, fresh crimson-clover seed is of good viability, and failure to secure a stand is not often caused by failure of the seed to grow. Unlike most clovers, crimson-clover seed absorbs water readily and sprouts quickly. There are practically none of the hard seeds which are so frequent in red clover and sweet clover, and a germination of 90 per cent in 48 hour's is not uncommon. The seed deteriorates rapidly, however, and when more than 2 years old rarely shows a germination in excess of 50 per cent. Sometimes, when stocks of commercial seed are low, old seed finds its way to the market, and this, when planted, gives poor results. Old seed can usually be detected by the dull-brown appearance of the seed coat as contrasted with the bright, shiny, pinkish or greenish yellow color of fresh seed. Brown seed, however, is sometimes caused by weathering during harvest, and such seed is not objectionable unless the weathering has been excessive.

A common impurity in crimson-clover seed is green, shrunken, and immature seed, caused by harvesting the crop before it is ripe. Crimson-clover seed does not germinate readily until it takes on a yellowish tinge; therefore, green seed should be rejected.

Crimson-clover seed is larger and plumper than red-clover seed and if properly cleaned should not contain seeds of dodder or the smaller seeded weeds. Frequently, however, it does contain the seeds of field peppergrass, yellow trefoil, evening primrose, sheep sorrel, wild geranium, buttercups, mustards, and other weeds which blossom in early summer.

There is a growing belief among farmers that they are less likely to lose a stand of crimson clover through drought if they sow the seed in the hull rather than use the hulled seed as it ordinarily appears on the market. It is claimed that the hulls hold the moisture to some extent and carry the seedlings over the critical day or two following germination, while some farmers assert that the unhulled seeds require more moisture for germination, and the seeds therefore do not sprout until there is enough moisture in the soil to keep the plants growing. Unhulled seed is bulky and is not often handled by commercial seedsmen, although one large grower sells the unhulled seed in compressed, bales similar to small cotton bales. It usually can be secured from neighboring farmers, however, or is easily saved at home. The seed can be harvested with a stripper from the standing crop in the field or the mature crop can be cut and thrashed like an ordinary grain crop. For local planting on a small scale unhulled seed is the cheapest and most accessible form of crimson-clover seed.

Unhulled seed is somewhat difficult to sow, because the hairy hulls stick together in masses and can not be scattered uniformly. To avoid this trouble the seed may be mixed with moistened earth or with lime, or may be sown with a blower similar to those used on small forges. A better plan is to sow on a windy day, throwing the seed vertically into the air and allowing the wind to scatter it.

Of unhulled seed of the best quality, 100 pounds contains about 1 bushel of clean seed. The common grades, however, are usually more chaffy and require 120 to 180 pounds to make a bushel. From 2 to 3 pounds of unhulled seed are therefore regarded as equivalent to 1 pound of hulled seed. A bushel of unhulled seed, even when well packed down, weighs only 6 to 10 pounds and contains about 4 pounds of seed. The appearance of both hulled and unhulled crimson-clover seed is shown in figure 7.

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