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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA.

BULLETIN No. 240.

Subterranean Clover
(Trifolium subterraneum.)

[By W. J. Spafford, Deputy Director of Agriculture.]

ADELAIDE:
HARRISON WEIR, Government Printer. North Terrace,

1933.

Subterranean clover has been known for a very long time in Central and Southern Europe. In those countries it is looked upon as a roadside weed, but it has been proved in South Australia to be an extremely valuable fodder plant for certain districts possessed of special natural conditions. In some types of sod it will produce more highclass fodder than will any other of the well-known fodder plants. The credit for discovering, proving, and giving publicity to this really important fodder is practically wholly due to the late Mr. A. W. Howard, of Mount Barker, South Australia, whose efforts for a period of more than 30 years in this direction are now being appreciated in all of the States of the Commonwealth, and in many other countries in the world. Mr. Howard's endeavors to popularise this fodder plant were unceasing, and throughout lie acted in a most public-spirited manner, writing articles on the clover, supplying seed gratis to many parts of the world, and giving full advice on methods of handling, etc., to all who desired his help; and before his death, on March 2nd, 1930, he fortunately had the gratification of seeing the fruits of his labors, for thousands of acres in this State alone were carrying Subterranean clover, all the States of the Commonwealth were growing some of it, and requests for seed and information were being received in great numbers from almost all countries in the world having a temperate climate.

Because of its special characteristics, this clover has revolutionised the farming practise of some districts in South Australia, and has converted many farms, where difficulty has been experienced to make profits by other methods, into valuable livestock farms, with much increased land values, and capable of earning direct profit. Moreover, a really considerable area of land densely covered with scrub, which previously could not the economically cleared and cropped, has been liberated for agricultural purposes because of the case with which Subterranean clover can be established. However looked at, the discovery of Subterranean clover as a fodder plant has been a most valuable one for Australia, and on present appearances will be recognised as such in many other countries in the near future, and the labors of Mr. A. W. Howard warrant the thanks of the country.

Description of the Plant

Subterranean clover is a prostrate, soft, woolly annual, all parts of which are covered with fairly long, soft hairs. The three leaflets forming each leaf are carried on a long stalk, and each leaflet is heart-shaped and faintly toothed at the summit. The two small appendages growing at the base of the leaf stalks, although bluntly pointed, are almost oval in shape. Clusters of three or four small flowers of a creamy to pinkish color are produced on comparatively short stalks, which spring from the axils of the leaf stalks, and immediately after flowering the stalk carrying the cluster of flowers turns downwards and grows until the seed head is pushed below the surface of the soil. On penetrating the soil the parts of the flower head surrounding the fertile flowers grow sufficiently to "anchor" the seed head in the soil. Each fertile flower produces a one seeded pod. Although all annual plant, the provision for burying most of its seed makes this clover equivalent to a perennial, and when once established it is practically permanent.

An individual plant in good conditions, and given room for development, will often completely cover the ground enclosed by a circle 6ft. in diameter, the central-part of the circle, about 3ft. across, attaining tip to 18in. or so in height, with the outer ring, consisting of a mass of runners, lying on the surface of the soil. Where a good stand of plants exists in fields which have been well supplied with phosphatic fertilisers, it is not unusual to have the whole land covered with a mass of luxuriant growth, 15in. to 20in. in height, the bottom 6in. or so consisting of a thick body of intermingled stalks, whilst above that is mainly leaf growth.

Climatic Requirements

In South Australia Subterranean clover seed get germinates with the first autumn rains which are heavy enough for the purpose, and which usually occur in April or early May. The young plant make some growth during the winter period, and by the end of August will have produced a thick mass, about 4in. in height. When the warm weather of spring arrives they grow very rapidly, and remain green and continue growing until really hot weather is experienced, when they dry up. The possession of this characteristic of making slow growth in winter, rapid growth in spring, and maturing when the hot weather arrives means that full returns from this clover can only be secured in those districts having a cool spring and long growing period, and great success will not be obtained with the crop ill those districts where it is compelled to mature quickly. In South Australia most of that part of the country which receives more than 20in. of average annual rainfall has a sufficiently good climate to grow Subterranean clover well. In a general way this plant requires a temperate climate with fairly heavy rainfall and long growing period to give full returns of fodder, and as it will withstand a fair amount of excessive wet and the ordinary cold of winter really well, maximum results are secured in those districts receiving from 22in. to 40in. of average annual rainfall, and a growing period of about eight months between the autumn rains and the really hot, dry weather of summer, providing always that the seed germinates before the cold weather of winter arrives.

Soil Requirements

Subterranean clover appears to be able to accommodate itself to almost all types of soil, and, given suitable climate conditions and sufficient phosphoric acid, will grow well in calcareous and in sour soils, in most clay soils, in all sand and in peaty soils but gives best returns in fertile, well-balanced loams possessed of good, natural drainage. In this State one of the few types of soil in which the clover does not thrive well is the black, clayey soil, forming part of some of the "crab-hole" land of the South East, but the extent of the country containing this soil type is so limited that it is not worth much consideration.

Much of the value of this clover depends on the fact that, provided phosphoric acid is supplied to the soils, it will grow extremely well on really "sour" soils, whether they be poor, whitish sands, clayey soils containing much ironstone, or really fertile loams. The poorer types of "sour" lands are usually fairly plentiful where heavy annual rainfall and temperate climate are the rule, and it is not an easy matter to produce profits from the ordinary well-known crops on such soils, but Subterranean clover flourishes in them to the exclusion of practically all other plants.

Time of Seeding

Where this clover has become established the sired germinates with the autumn rains, makes good root growth during the cold winter period, but does not make strong stem and leaf growth unless the winter is very mild and warm, and on the approach of the warm weather of the Spring season commences to make strong growth, and continues growing rapidly until maturity is reached. If the young plants have not started before the cold weather arrives, the crop does not make the luxuriant stand which follows an early germination, except when an exceptionally long-drawn-out growing season is experienced, and so, for average seasons, it is essential to seed Subterranean clover in the autumn, and, if possible, to have the land prepared beforehand. The seed should be sown on the first autumn rain which is sufficiently heavy to lead to the germination of the seed and, if for any reason this cannot be accomplished, it should be seeded as soon as possible, and in every case while the soil is still warm.

Method of Seeding

The method of seeding Subterranean clover to ensure a good stand varies with the condition of the land, and particularly as to whether it-(a) Was recently under crop; (b) is undisturbed grass land; or (c) is covered with scrub.

Cropped Land - It is much easier to establish this clover on land which is being cropped than in other locations. If it is desired to secure a full stand of clover in the first year, good soil preparation is necessary, and call be secured by ploughing some time between the Spring and Autumn, and thoroughly cultivating so that the soil is worked down to a fine tilth in time for the first seeding rain in the, Autumn, say, by the middle of April. As soon as the land is sufficiently moist to bring about a full germination, the seed should be mixed with a "carrier," and the mixture be drilled in from the manure box of the ordinary seed drill, being careful not to allow the hoes to penetrate the soil to too great a depth. It is better for the seed to be allowed to fall from the drill tubes on to the roughened surface of the land and be covered by a brush harrow titan for it to be drilled in too deeply. In "heavy" soils shallow seeding is absolutely essential, whilst in sandy soils less risk of a bad germination is taken, but even then 1/2in. should be taken as the maximum depth.

Superphosphate can be used as a "carrier" with which the seed is mixed, and although there is some danger of the germination of the seed being affected injuriously by contact with superphosphate if this latter substance is "new," it appears from the results of some experiments conducted at Roseworthy Agricultural College in 1925 that Subterranean clover seed suffers less than most small agricultural seeds from lying in contact with superphosphate. It is, however, safe to use superphosphate for this purpose only when (a) the superphosphate has been stored for some time and has lost its "freshness," (b) the mixture of seed and superphosphate is made immediately before drilling, (c) the land is sufficiently moist to be in good germinating condition, or (d) the land is quite dry.

Some very good stands of clover have been secured by drilling the phosphatic fertiliser to be used with the crop into the land before seeding, and then broadcasting the seed when the soil is moist enough. Broadcasting the seed after having drilled in the fertiliser generally ensures a good, regular germination, but much more seed is required, and the quantity of seed used per acre being so small makes the even distribution of it rather difficult. If broadcasted on the surface, either by hand, with a broadcasting machine, or from the tubes of a seed drill, it should be covered by pressing it into the soil with a land roller, or, failing this, by going over the land with "brush" harrows, because most of the other farm implements tend to bury this small seed too deeply.

Where full returns are not expected the first year, it call be seeded with some other crop, and on low-priced land of light texture it is sometimes economical to treat the crop in this way. When an oat crop or a wheat crop is being seeded, a small quantity of seed can be mixed with the fertiliser being applied to the cereal. Many of these seeds will germinate and the plants will grow in the cereal crop, producing a lot of seed for the next year, and when a good germination has resulted and the stubble has not been too heavily grazed a very fair stand of clover is usually the result. A fuller germination is often secured on heavy-textured soils if the cereal is drilled in the ordinary way, then the seed broadcasted and covered by a stroke of a "brush', harrow, or by a light rolling. A stand of clover established in a crop must only be very lightly grazed the year after the crop is harvested.

In light-textured soils and in exposed situations the young Subterranean clover plants call get the protection which is so necessary, to their well-being if the mixture of seed and fertiliser is drilled into a cereal stubble through a disc drill.

Extremely good first-year pastures are being secured by establishing the clover in conjunction with Wimmera Rye Grass (Lolium subulatum) by drilling into well cultivated land a mixture of Superphosphate and the two kinds of seeds.

Grass Land - In some circumstances fairly good stands of Subterranean clover have been secured by seeding into land without any preparatory cultivation, but this has largely been so in soils of such light texture that the hoes or discs of the seed drill will make shallow furrows when run over the ground. Even then, the drill is followed by a light harrow of some kind to make certain that the seed is covered. In this case, to give the clover plants a proper chance to compete with the plants already occupying the land, the seed should be put in before the first autumn rain, while the soil is still dry, and plenty of seed and superphosphate must be used. A really good stand cannot be expected until the second or third year after seeding when established in this way. Although some success has resulted from seeding direct into grass land, much effort and seed has been wasted by attempting this method of establishing the crop, and the experience of the last few seasons has all been in favor of loosening the surface soil in some way so that the seed can be covered at seeding time. In heavy-textured soils a couple of trips with a disc cultivator after rains in the Summer or early Autumn will loosen the immediate surface sufficiently to enable a disc drill, followed by a "brush" harrow, to deposit the seed in the soil and cover it over. In sandy land harrows will usually do all that is necessary before the seed is drilled in.

Scrub Land - Subterranean clover can be established on scrub land in those locations suitable to the crop at a lesser cost than can any other luxuriant-growing fodder plant we have experience with in this country, but of course the original preparation for the crop differs according to the type of scrub to be handled. Where cereal crops are to be grown during the period of establishing the clover, the land must be fairly well cleared and be properly ploughed and cultivated before drilling in the cereal. Under this system of establishment, it is common experience to find difficulty in securing a good stand of clover on these scrub soils unless at least two cereal crops are grown before introducing the clover seed. The clover seed can then be seeded with the third cereal crops or the stubble of the second, as cropped land. If the scrub land is to be converted into Subterranean clover pasture without the help of other crops, success is dependent on leaving as much organic matter as possible on the surface of the land, and in scratching the surface in some way so that the seed can be covered. Most of the "gum" country has very little under-scrub, and clover can here be easily established by cutting off the small trees, ring-barking the larger ones, scratching the surface of the soil with a spiked log, or such like implement, drilling in seed and fertiliser, and "brush" harrowing. In "stringy bark" scrub, the trees should be ringbarked, yaccas and large bushes grubbed, scrub burnt, surface of soil scratched about with a spiked log , or such like implement, which also breaks off and uproots much of the small scrub, seed and fertiliser drilled with a disc drill, or broadcasted, and the whole then "brush" harrowed. Where there is thick but stunted scrub, such as is to be found on a fair amount of our Ironstone country, it should he rolled down and burnt, and either be seeded then or be allowed to stand for it year. In the former case the surface must be scratched and the seed covered after sowing, whilst if left for a year the use of a spiked log of some kind before seeding is almost essential, as it breaks off the shoots as well as scratching the surface of the land. The one-year-old shoots and scrub knocked down it should on no account be burnt, but should be left to dry on the surface of the land, where they will act as a shelter for the young clover plants, which grow after seed has been drilled through a disc drill or broadcasted. Probably the best way to establish clover in heathy scrub is to plough the land-scrub and all - with a heavy disc plough; grow a couple of Oat crops in succession, either to be harvested or grazed by livestock, then to seed the land with clover after the second Oat crop. Once Subterranean clover has been established on scrub land it is necessary to keep down the scrub growth, and for the purpose a heavy spiked log or triangle-shaped implement specially made with railway lines to which strong spikes are fixed does the job fairly well, and, at the same times does good by scoring the surface soil.

When establishing the crop it must be remembered that full returns will only be secured if the seed is covered, and when there is plenty of organic matter on the surface of the land, the first year's results are better than if the land is bare, because the young plants get protection which enables them to grow strongly from germination onwards.

Rate of Seeding

Recent experience has firmly established the fact that if a good stand of clover is to be secured in a short while, plenty of seed must be used, and where small quantities are sown it usually takes about three years to have a full stand. To establish this clover properly in the year of seeding, even on land that has been thoroughly prepared after having carried other kinds of crops in previous years, from 6lbs. to 8lbs. of seed should be used. When the seeding is done in a cereal crop, on low-priced land, 2lbs to 3lbs. of seed are necessary. Grass land requires 6lbs. to 8lbs. of seed drilled in the early autumn. On scrub land being directly converted into pasture, about 10lbs. of cleaned seed should be used, or else a mixture of 4lbs. or 5lbs. of cleaned seed and 151lbs. to 20lbs. of rubbishy seed as screened off at the threshing machines. This rubbishy seed consists of a little clean seed, many unthreshed clover burrs, grass seeds, and seeds of most other forage plants growing in the clover fields, and the introduction of these other plants to scrub lands where practically no edible plants exist, helps to build up the pasture more quickly than if only cleaned clover seed is sown.

Manuring The Crop

As with all plants which make rapid, luxuriant growth, Subterranean clover gives best returns when liberally supplied with all the necessary plant foods, but perhaps better than most other cultivated plants it appears to have the power of extracting from almost any type of soil its requirements of other plant foods when it needs as regards phosphoric acid are adequately met. In all soils found in those parts of South Australia which have suitable climatic conditions for the growth of this crop, with the exception of more or less white sands, the equivalent of at least 1cwt. Superphosphate (45 per cent.) should be applied per acre per year, and in all places where the soils are fertile, and the rainfall exceeds 25in. on the average, this annual dressing could be economically increased to one bag or even 2cwts. Superphosphate (45 per cent.) per acre.

The following figures, secured at Kybybolite, Experimental Farm, where the average rainfall is 21.86in., are the actual grazing results from the manured Subterranean clover fields, and are the averages of the four seasons from 1925 to 1928:-

Subterranean Clover Pastures, Kybybolite, 1925-1928.

At present prices, the cheapest way to supply the necessary phosphatic fertiliser would be to dress the land at the rate of 1cwt. Superphosphate (45 per cent,) and 10cwts. finely ground raw Rock-phosphate (82 per cent.) per acre once every 12 years, and it would probably prove more satisfactory than applying a bag of Superphosphate (45 per cent.) per acre every year. The disadvantage of adopting this method of manuring in that the initial cost of the dressing is high, and a lot of money is locked up in the land, whereas with Superphosphate dressings it becomes an annual outlay.

It must be remembered that it is almost impossible to grow Subterranean clover successfully unless plenty of phosphatic fertiliser is applied to the crop, and even in the best of soils a very marked improvement to the clover crop follows every application of phosphate. All fertilisers applied to this crop should be put into the land in the autumn before the first rains have fallen, say, in March or early April.

Uses of the Crop

Subterranean clover is mainly grown to be grazed in the green state, but it can be converted into a very attractive and palatable hay, and is a really good "dry" feed if left to mature in the field before being grazed by livestock.

As green feed it tends to "blow" the ruminants (cattle and sheep) if they are turned on to it when wet, particularly if the animals have left a different type of fodder, but this is a recognised disadvantage of practically all leguminous fodder, when green, and the danger is eliminated, or at all events lessened, by allowing the livestock to become accustomed to it gradually. In this stage it is a remarkably good milk producer with rows, a great fattener of cattle, sheep, and horses, and pigs do really well on it.

A good deal of care is necessary in converting the crop into hay, because it carries a very high proportion of leaf, and is at its maximum of growth before the hottest part of the summer has arrived, with the consequent danger of rain wetting the partly-cured material, so sometimes necessitating much handling. When well cured, however, the bay is much relished by all farm livestock, and they will all fatten very readily when fed with it. That this hay is of good quality is easily seen by a glance at the following table showing the analyses of three Subterranean clover hays in comparison with hays made from Lucerne and Clustered clover.

The figures representing the Starch Equivalent of each hay shows that all of the Subterranean clover hays are better than the other hays with which they are being compared :

Analyses and Starch Equivalence of Leguminous Hays

The starch equivalent for each hay has been calculated by Kellner's formula, and is a practical way of comparing foodstuffs of the same kind when to be used for fattening or maintenance purposes.

Where any considerable quantity of hay is to be made, the most economical way to do it appears to be to press it into bales in the field where grown. The crop should be cut with a mower when it begins to show signs of maturing, which is usually early in November, and should be "cocked" with a horse-rake on the same day. It should be taken to the hay-press by push-rakes as soon as cured and put straight into bales, which can be stacked away at once. For smaller quantities the hay should be stored in stacks. The crop should be cocked immediately it is ready, cocked within a few hours, and carted to stack as soon as it can he put away without danger of firing the stack. If water can be squeezed from the hay when a handful from the centre of the cock is tightly twisted by hand, it is not sufficiently dry to stack with safety.

If allowed to stand in the field until dry, it is still greedily eaten by livestock, and despite changes in the weather and much wetting and drying it remains a most useful and estimable feed, and in this respect is much more valuable than most other of our fodder plants if left to become dry. After livestock have eaten the leaves and dry stems, they continue to do well on this crop by searching for and devouring much of the rather enormous amount of seed left at and near the surface of the ground.

Besides producing luxuriant feed for the farm livestock, Subterranean clover is a really good soil renovator, helping in the collection of much nitrogen by the bacteria living on its roots, and increasing the organic matter by leaves and stems dropped and trampled into the land whilst being grazed.

It is also a rather wonderful cleaner of the soil, for when growing well there are hardly any of the ordinary weeds found on our farmed lands which it will not choke right out. This is particularly noticeable in the case of that almost useless weed which occupied so much of the land where this clover will grow well, namely, Sorrel, which is choked out by the Subterranean clover.

Handling the Crop

Being possessed of prostrate stems and the power of burying its seed, Subterranean clover is enabled to withstand much heavier grazing than will almost any other annual fodder crop, and for that matter more than many of the perennial fodders. Nevertheless, the more care shown with the crop the greater will be the grazing results. During the winter period the crop should not be fed too close, because the more growth left on the plants at this time the greater will be the root development, and so the more rapid and more bulky the growth made when the warm weather arrives. Once the rapid growth has started livestock can be turned on to the crop, remembering that best returns can only be secured if the crop is fed off rapidly and not too close, then the livestock removed and kept off until there is sufficient growth to be a good "bite" for the animals. Rapid feeding off and resting the pasture will give the greatest success and can only be attained in practice by having small fields, and given this, good Subterranean clover should be capable of carrying the equivalent of 6 to 8 sheep per acre per year. At the end of the season the crop should not be fed off too close, because livestock soon learn to "stamp" for the seed, and if the land is laid bare and is then scratched by livestock, much seed will be washed from the soil, should the first autumn rain be a heavy one. Moreover, the presence of plenty of undecomposed organic matter on the surface of the land, enables clover plants which germinate in the early autumn to make much stronger growth before the winter than do plants on barer ground, and they withstand dry periods much better than those not so protected. It is in fields where plenty of clover runners have been left that good winter feed is produced the next year by Subterranean clover, whereas in those places where it is grazed right out very little is produced until well into the following spring.

If the clover fields are to receive an annual application of phosphate, rather than a heavy dressing occasionally, this should be applied in the autumn before the rains have started, say, in March or early April, either by running the drill with the hoes in the ground, or by broadcasting it on the surface and then harrowing it in.

Clover fields should be cultivated or harrowed each year to distribute the droppings of animals and the residues of the plants, and should be done in the autumn before sufficient rain has fallen to germinate any of the seed.

Where a rather thin stand of the clover exists, it should be only lightly grazed, leaving at the end of the season noticeable clumps of clover, and during the autumn should be harrowed two or three times to make sure that seed is dragged on to the bare patches.

If another type of crop is required from land growing Subterranean clover it ran be grown without any danger of eradicating the clover, and after one such crop ample seed of the clover is left to give a full stand in the next season. Two successive crops grown on clover land will not destroy all of the seed, but when left out the clover stand is naturally rather thin, and if a full crop is required a little clover seed should be sown after the second crop has been removed.

All Clover fields should be provided with water in troughs, and livestock grazing on the clover should not have access to any other water. Wherever this practice is followed the animals make better use of the available feed and keep much healthier.

Harvesting the Seed

No difficulty is experienced in harvesting seed which is to be used on the farm where grown. This is not so, however, for the collection and preparation of seed for market. Crops to be kept for seed are not grazed, or, if so, only lightly in the early Spring, but are allowed to grow until quite mature. When ripe the crop is raked, with a horse rake if only a limited amount of seed is required, but with hand rakes if large quantities are desired. A horse rake will collect about one-half of the seed that would be gathered by hand rakes from a given area. If a power thresher is available, the raked up material in passed through it, which separates the seed burrs from the stems, but if no thresher is to be used the mass is passed through a chaffcutter and the burrs winnowed from the stalks. Although some of the seeds are removed from their coverings by these methods, they constitute only a comparatively small proportion of the burrs, and the mass would not he readily saleable. Still, for one's own sowing’s, these burrs, if well cleaned, are nearly as good as the hulled seed, and will be fairly evenly distributed from the manure box of the drill if mixed with super, remembering that about three to four times as much unhulled seed is required as is needed if properly cleaned seed is used.

In preparing the seed for market the seed pods and burrs must be treated in a hulling machine, made specially for the treatment of this species of clover, in which all outer coverings of the seed is removed.

Pests of the Crop

Although Subterranean clover has been grown as a fodder crop in South Australia for over 30 years now, the only pest doing noticeable damage to it is the Lucerne Flea (Smynthurus viridis), and, although the hordes of this small insect, which appear in the early Spring, play havoc with the crop, they are only present for a short while, disappearing as the weather warms up, and the crop very quickly recovers from their attack. A grazing crop of clover affected by this pest should be rapidly fed off by livestock, and if the insects were still present when sufficient growth had been made to enable livestock to graze it, the animals should again be put on the stand. It may sometimes pay to spray an affected crop which was required for seed, using a weak solution of an arsenical spray, or soap and tobacco spray, or an oil emulsion, and if the spray was applied at night, when the insects are most active, better results would possibly be secured.

It appears that in Western Australia, the Red legged Earth Mite (Penthaieus aestructor) does damage to the Subterranean clover crop in certain locations, but although this pest has been known to be present in this State for some time, no complaints have been received in connection with attacks on clover crops.

Subterranean Clover in Mixtures

The prostrate habit of Subterranean clover and its strong and rapid growth lead to the smothering out of most other plants growing on the same land; still, it will grow well in conjunction with any of the true grasses which start to make their Spring growth a little sooner than does the clover. The best of the grasses for this purpose are Perennial Rye Grass and Wimmera Rye Grass. Of necessity, a mixture of Perennial Rye Grass and the clover would only be attempted on really fertile soils, but on the poorer types of soil clover alone would be grown, or it could be mixed with Wimmera Rye Grass. Drained peat land or rich valley bottoms could be seeded with 4lbs. Subterranean clover and 20lbs. Perennial Rye Grass per acre if a good mixture was required, and would produce an enormous quantity of really good pasture. A mixture of 4lbs. Subterranean clover and 10lbs. of Wimmera Rye Grass seed makes a good stand of pasture, and after the first season produces much more Winter feed than can be secured from Clover alone, and the presence of the Wimmera Rye Grass does not retard the Spring growth of the Clover.

Although the Wimmera Rye Grass is only an annual, it persists when grown in conjunction with the clover, and at Kybybolite Experimental Farm some fields seeded to the mixture in 1924 still contain plenty of the grass.

Summary

1. Subterranean clover, although known as a roadside weed in Europe for a long time, has been proved in South Australia to be a really high-class fodder plant, and this result is almost wholly due to the efforts of the late Mr. A. W. Howard, of Mount Barker, South Australia.

2. The power of burying its seed below the soil surface renders Subterrranean clover equivalent to a perennial.

3. Individual plants of Subterranean clover will possibly cover the whole of a circle 6ft. in diameter, whilst a good stand of plants will cover the whole land with a dense mass of growth from 12in. to 20in. in height.

4. Subterranean clover requires a temperate climate with fairly heavy rainfall (22in. or more of average annual rainfall), and a long growing period (eight months between Autumn rains and hot, dry weather) to produce maximum returns.

5. Almost all types of soil will produce Subterranean clover well.

6. Much of the value of this clover depends on the fact that it will grow well on really "sour" soils, provided that plenty of phosphoric acid is supplied to the land.

7. The seed must be sown in time to germinate before the cold weather of winter gets in.

8. The seed can be drilled into the soil, or else be broadcasted on the surface and then worked into the land, but shallow seeding is essential. Good soil preparation is necessary if a proper stand is required in the first year, but the seed can under some circumstances be sown with another type of crop.

9. Before seeding grass land, the surface of the soil should be lightly cultivated, so that the seed can be covered with a "brush" harrow when drilled in or broadcasted on the surface.

10. Scrub land should be ploughed, cultivated, and made to carry a couple of crops of cereals before being seeded to Subterranean clover, or else the surface should be scratched with a spiked log or such like implement, and a mixture of seed and manure be drilled or broadcasted, then "brush" harrowed.

11. It is essential that the seed be covered when establishing the crop, and the more organic matter on the surface at the time of seeding the better will be the first year crop.

12. To secure a full stand on cropped land the year of seeding, from 6lbs. to 8lbs. of seed should be used. When sown with a cereal crop 2lbs. to 3lbs. of seed should be used. Grass land should be seeded with 6lbs. to 8lbs. of seed ill the early autumn, before the first rain. Scrub land should have 10lbs. of cleaned seed, or a mixture of 4lbs. or 5lbs. of cleaned seed and 15lbs. to 20lbs. of rubbishy seed, applied per acre.

13. It is almost impossible to grow Subterranean clover well in the soils of districts with temperate climate unless plenty of phosphatic fertiliser is used, and for high returns the equivalent of from 1 bag to 2cwts. of superphosphate (45 per cent.) per acre per year should he applied. At present the application of 1cwt. of superphosphate (4.5 per cent.) and 10cwts. of finely-ground raw rock phosphite (82 per cent.) per acre once every twelve years is possibly the cheapest way to apply the phosphoric acid. All manuring should be done in the early autumn.

14. Subterranean clover can be used with advantage by livestock when green, as hay or as "dry" feed.

15. Analyses of Subterranean clover hays show this foodstuff to be high-class fodder, at least as good as Lucerne hay

16. Probably the most economical way to make large quantities of hay is to cut with the mower, and, when cured, take to hay-press with a push-rake and put it straight into bales.

17. This clover is a good soil renovator, helping in collection the of much nitrogen, and increasing the organic matter content of the soil. It is also a good soil cleaner, choking out most of the ordinary farm weeds.

18. Subterranean clover should be grown in small fields, so that it can be fed off rapidly, then rested until again ready for livestock. Clover fields should he cultivated or harrowed each year in the early autumn. Thin stands should be harrowed two or three times in the early autumn to ensure that seed is spread on to the bare patches. Clover fields will allow of a crop of another kind being grown for one year without affecting the clover stand.

19. When collecting seed the crop is raked up, threshed, and then hulled in a machine for the purpose.

20. Lucerne flea is the only pest doing much damage to the Subterranean clover crops, but then only to "seed" crops, because the pastures are fed down heavily each time that they are attacked.

21. Subterranean clover will grow well in admixture with the Rye grasses on those soils suitable for these grasses.