t it has imbibed from the clover.

=Securing Seed.=--It has been already intimated more seed will be
obtained when the clover has been pastured or cut back with the mower.
(See page 233.) When the mower is used, it should not be set to cut
quite low, or the subsequent growth will not be so vigorous as it would
otherwise be. The state of growth at which the clover ought to be cut
will be influenced by the luxuriance of the growth, but ordinarily
clover seed should not be more than 6 to 8 inches high when the mower is
used. What is thus cut by the mower is left on the ground as a mulch.
Mowing the crop thus will also be helpful in destroying weeds, but some
weeds will sprout again and mature seed as quickly as the clover.

When mammoth clover is neither pastured nor mown early in the season,
when grown for seed some kinds of weeds may be prevented from going to
seed in it by cutting them off with the scythe. When not too plentiful
they may be removed with the spud. Among the more troublesome weeds that
infest mammoth clover are the Canada thistle (_Cirsium arvense_), the
plantain (_Plantago lanceolata_), and in some instances the horse nettle
(_Solanum Carolinense_) and spring nightshade (_Solanum_).

The yields of the clover seed will be much influenced by the character
of the weather. Excessive rankness in the crop and excessive rainfall
during the blossoming season are adverse to abundant seed production.
But the seed crop is more injured by drought than by too much rain. When
injured by drought the growth will not be sufficiently strong, or, if it
is, the blossoms will be of a pale red tint. Warm winds while the seed
is forming are also adverse to seed production, since they cause the
crop to mature too quickly. Some experience will enable the capable
observer to forecast with no little certainty the probable yield of the
seed. If the indications point to a yield of seed less than 2 bushels
per acre, it is deemed more profitable, as a rule, to cut the crop for
hay. Large heads of a rich dark purple shade accompanied by vigor in the
entire plant are indicative of abundant seed production.

The crop is ready for being harvested when a majority of the heads have
ripened so far that the bloom on them is all gone and the shade of color
in the head has not yet become brown. If left until a majority of the
heads are brown many of them will break off while being harvested. The
crop is usually cut with a self-rake reaper, bu