LEAFLET LXII.
THE ALFALFA PLANT.[80]
By L. H. BAILEY and JOHN W. SPENCER.
All the things that the farmer sells are produced by plants and animals. The animals live on the plants. It is important that we know what some of these plants are.
Some plants are grown for human food. Such are potato, wheat, apple, lettuce. Some are grown only to feed to animals. Such are grasses and clover,—plants that are made into hay.
Hay is the most important crop in New York State. In fact, New York leads all the States in the value of the hay and forage. This value is more than 66 millions of dollars.
Fig. 316. Sprig of the alfalfa plant.
Hay is important in New York also because there are so many dairy cattle in the State. There are more than one and one-half millions of dairy cattle in New York. In the value of the milk and butter and cheese, New York also leads all other States. There are also great numbers of beef cattle, horses, mules, and sheep. All these millions of animals must be supplied with hay in our long cold winters.
Hay is made in New York State from grasses and clover. Suppose we could find some plant that would yield twice as much hay as clover yields, and yet be as nutritious,—you can readily see how valuable such a plant would be to the State. It would be better than a gift of millions of dollars. Such a plant is alfalfa.