Now that you know something about alfalfa in a general way, I want you to know how the plant looks and how it grows. It is not yet very well known even among farmers, but its cultivation is increasing every year. You will probably know where there are fields of it. Sometimes it grows along roadsides as a weed. Last spring Uncle John offered to send a small packet of alfalfa seeds to any Junior Naturalist who wrote for it. He sent about 5,000 packets. But if you do not know the plant or cannot find it, write at once to Uncle John and he will send you some by mail from the University farm.
Let us see how many school children in New York State will know what alfalfa is between now and Thanksgiving time. When writing to Uncle John about alfalfa, try to answer as many of the following questions as possible from your own observation:
1. Does the plant remind you of any other plant that you ever saw? Of what?
2. How does it grow,—straight up or spreading out on the ground?
3. How many stalks come from one root?
4. What are the leaves like? Mark out the shape with a pencil.
5. What are the flowers like? Do you know any other flowers of similar shape? What is the color?
6. If possible, dig around a plant and describe how the root looks. Does it branch into many fibres, as grass roots or corn roots do?
Uncle John's Letter About the Alfalfa Gardens.
My Dear Boys and Girls: