ting; even in the
States east of the Mississippi, and also in Ontario and Quebec, seed is
usually taken from the second cutting. But in Montana, Washington and
Idaho, on the higher altitudes, seed is not unfrequently taken from the
first cutting for the season, since, in the short season for growth of
those uplands, seed from cuttings later than the first does not always
mature so well. In a large majority of instances seed does not form so
profusely from plants of the first cutting as from those of later
growths. This is thought to arise, in part, at least, from the fact that
bees, and it may be other insects, are then less active in searching for
food, and because of this do not aid in the fertilization of the plants
as they do later. Nor does seed of the first cutting ripen so evenly. An
important justification is also found for taking seed from the later
cuttings, in the fact that when a crop has produced seed, it grows less
vigorously during the subsequent period of growth that same season. So
pronounced is this habit of growth in alfalfa, that in many localities,
if the first growth is allowed to produce seed, but little subsequent
growth will be made again the same season. The second cutting, all
things considered, is the most favorable to seed production, as, unless
on irrigated lands, the third cutting is not usually possessed of that
vigor necessary to induce abundant seeding in the plants.

The yields of seed are also much influenced by moisture. An excess of
moisture is more unfavorable to the production of seed than a shortage
in the same. Hence, in areas where the rainfall for the season is very
abundant, but little seed will be produced. Where irrigation is
practiced, the excessive application of water would have a similar
effect, though less pronounced in degree; hence, the apportionment of
the water to the prospective needs of the seed crop calls for careful
adjustment. Where the first crop is grown for seed, where irrigation is
practiced, in many instances no water is applied until after the seed
crop has been harvested.

The seed is ready for being harvested when a majority of the seed-pods
assume a dark brown tint. The pods of later formation will still possess
a yellow tint, and some of them may still possess the green color. These
do not produce seed nearly equal in quality to the pods which ripen
earlier. To wait for all the later maturing pods to ripen before
harvesting the crop would mean the l