--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Alter, J. Cecil collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 22 number: 1 published: 1918-11 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: 'Alter, J. Cecil, "Alfalfa Seed Supremacy in Utah," *Improvement Era* 22, no. 1 (November 1918): 56–63.' source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera2201unse transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers. identifier: improvementera2201unse start_page: 56 end_page: 63 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1918-11) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera2201unse publication_year: 1918 note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1918, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # Alfalfa Seed Supremacy in Utah Alfalfa Seed Supremacy in Utah (Prepared Especially for the Improvement Era) By J. Cecil Alter, Meteorologist, U. S. Department of Agriculture, Weather Bureau When alfalfa, as a scrawny slow-starting youth in quest of a domicile, stole its way from Spanish origin into Utah in the middle fifties, a discernment almost divine was necessary to see in it a savior. The "Mormon" pioneers were, however, accus- tomed to rescuing the stones of opportunity which other builders had rejected, and alfalfa was builded into the head of the corner of Utah agriculture. Foster-mothered and partially reared in Utah, this orphan of much enterprise and adaptability went forth through the lands of the United States like "the smile of the Great Spirit," until today there are more than 6,000,000 acres, yielding nearly 25,000,000 tons, annually, or one-fourth the entire tame hay crop of the realm. Meanwhile Utah, the foster-mother of what is one of agri- culture's greatest offspring, appropriately takes her place as producer of the world's finest alfalfa seed; and with her 50,000 to 60,000 bushels annually, or one-fifth of the entire seed crop of the United States, and one-seventh of the needs of the coun- try, she not only stands at the head of the list of seed producing states, but receives back into her lap from this generous and prosperous offspring nearly $500,000 a year for seed alone, as a sort of dowry. Alfalfa seed as an incidental crop for domestic needs was grown here and there in Utah for fifteen or twenty years after the plant was introduced into the state, during which time the pioneers learned much of the peculiar soil and climatic needs of this supposedly fickle crop, and they gradually learned to produce the seed in certain localities as an important if not a major crop. It was not, however, until the early seventies that the seed began to appear with some boldness on the market like any other crop, demanding little more than $3 a bushel, though many years previously, in times of dearth, it had sold for many times this price, the offer being governed by the need. Bv the middle eighties Colorado had become fairly well seeded to alfalfa, and in another decade it had become general in Kansas, Nebraska, and other plains territory, every stockman welcoming the wonderful new feed, not daring to question the ALFALFA SEED SUPREMACY IN UTAH 57 At left, ripe seed in shrunken brown burrs; middle, yellow burrs, turn- ing ripe, in which seed would ripen from stems if cut prior to a frost; left, green burs with fragments of blossom still clinging. Seed well set; would grow if harvested. 58 IMPROVEMENT ERA claim by one authority that it is the "grass" which Nebuchad- nezzar ate and grew fat upon. Even in 1890 the price was \ ^ only about $4 or $5 a bushel. With the onward march of the crop across the prairies into the Mississippi valley, f^"--\ ? i: i and then the far east and ** - nH south, other states began to lia I raise alfalfa seed, particularly te^WE * 1 Kansas, Nebraska, California, |y% V fSgt- "J i**1 Hi "" 1 Arizona, Oklahoma, and Col- orado,following Utah in quan- tity of production about in \ »£&-- li* 'J&L '" 1 the order named. Utah grow- - *&- •' j - . „ i : - ers, to maintain their ascend- Dry /arm alfalfa seed, central Mil- ency began then to take bet- lard county, being gathered with com- ter care of their crops, their mon mowing machine with hand- market, and their seed pres- bunching attachment. This land yields tige. $20 to $30 in seed, but would be of little use for other crops. The growth of the use of al- falfa was so rapid that in spite of large importations of an inferior seed at a low price usually, from Turkestan, Persia, Russia, Hungary and Chili, the price of seed crept comfortably upward until at the outbreak of the world war the average price received by the growers of the United States was about $6.90 a bushel. In one or two pre- vious seasons it had reached about $8.25, owing to local crop failures. In the past four years im- portations have gone down- ward, largely by the subma- rine route, and partly because of an energetic propaganda in America for better seed, to about 50 per cent of the pre- war amounts. Meanwhile the View on seed /arm °f Mr S. W. - Western of Deseret, Utah. Mr. West- price g erew Dbetter eaching etter ' r eaC nin S ern cooperates > ?in Qn according to ttheu U. T . with the U. S. weather $10.30, S. bureau in studying weather conditions Bureau of Crop Estimates, in the seed fields. on July 15, 1916. Then a propaganda for wheat ground, and a good seed year, in combination caused a slight sag in the average United States price curve, but it is still (Juy 15, 1918, govern- ment data) around $9.70 a bushel, and the demand for good seed, especially Utah seed, was never better. ALFALFA SEED SUPREMACY IN UTAH 59 Several government authorities have spoken and written of the superiority of the Utah seed, and of the desirability of plant- ing alfalfa seed grown under such conditions as obtained in Utah. The Utah soil and climate conditions have not only ap- parently combined most of the favorable elements of those of the countries where the plant originated, but through thrifty methods of crop selection, careful culture, intelligent manage- ment, and an eternal vigilance for purity and superiority, the Utah growers have produced a seed with more vigor and vitality, freer from impurities such as dodder, yellow trefoil, burr clover, noxious weeds, and other adulterants, that are so troublesome elsewhere. Thus there is very good reason for the statement of Mr. Joseph E. Wing, perhaps the world's greatest authority on alfalfa (Alfalfa Farming in America) that "From Utah seed nearly the whole west has been planted." The average yield of seed, where grown commercially, is around seven bushels per acre, though much larger yields are on record, the record probably being 19 bushels per acre re- ported from Millard county. Some phenomenal returns have been reported in good seed years. Mr. Jacob C. Hawley, of Oasis, received $9,000 for the seed from 90 acres one year; Mr. Samuel W. Western, of Deseret, re- ceived $2,600 from 19 acres one year; Mr. Henry Huff, of Oasis, received $2,500 from 19 acres one year; Mr. Chris Overson, of Leamington, re- ceived $7,500 from 55 acres; Mr. S. W. Western, of Deseret, Utah, and yields of $100 per acre in one of his prize fields. are common in the Mills, Juab county, district; and such records have been duplicated in favorable years in other districts. The climate is probably the limiting factor in seed produc- tion in all countries, the general requirement being a moder- ately warm wet spring, and a hot dry summer with a freedom from early autumn frosts. Utah doubtless owes her superiority more to climate than any other favoring influence, unless it be the soil. Certain weather conditions seem to favor the attacks of the weevil and of grasshoppers; in a number of Utah seed regions, of greater altitude, the first crpp of the season cannot safely be saved for seed because of the danger of a late spring frost, while 60 IMPROVEMENT ERA at the same time if the first crop is left to make a fair amount of hay the following seed crop will be forced dangerously near the average autumn frosts, to which the seed while unripe is especially sensitive. A rainy summer is very detrimental in forcing much plant growth and little seed setting, and the blooms and the seed ap- pear unevenly and irregularly, an influence that is also felt in • - '"'- ••!»-" • 'it'' •••" V^y" '- ,"1 *' '— : ,——JC i The seed crop is cut with a self-rake reaper sometimes, and left in bunches in the field to dry. Views at Mills, Utah. cool cloudy summers; this is apt to be hay weather not seed weather. And though the entire summer may be highly favor- able to seed, a brief rainy period right at the blossom time will wash away the pollen and render the necessary work of bees and other insects less effective in the fertilizing process. A very light frost will mark some seed in the unripe burrs or pods, and a temperature of 26 or 28 degrees will blacken and shrivel large quantities of seed in the yellow and green burrs. Seed in the brown burrs is usually out of the way of frost. The frost marking is detrimental to the market value though not seriously harmful to its germination. The only relief from frost is to cut the seed bearing the most brown and yellow burrs be- fore the frost, as these will be protected largely in the swath when the frost comes. "There is a great temptation to take a chance with the frost sometimes," says Mr. George McCune, of Mills, Juab county, "because our fields are adding hundreds of pounds of weight in seed a day; besides, the seed that is cut a little green is smaller, lighter and less desirable in color. Hence we always keep a close watch on the weather forecasts." ALFALFA SEED SUPREMACY IN UTAH 61 "I have learned this about selling seed, too," added Mr. McCune. "The weather in my fields may have favored the pro- duction of a big crop, and I may have it in the sack, but before I am ready to sell I want to know what kind of weather they have had for their crops in Kansas and Nebraska." Perhaps next in importance to climate is a peculiar soil re- quirement, which appears to be amply satisfied in Utah as it is in few other states. Alfalfa for hay requires a deep, rich soil, show- ing considerable lime, while al- falfa for seed re- quires a sad sort of adobe or clay soil, rich in moist minerals, but deficient in humus, possibly carrying a little alkali and hav- ing no great depth to the ground water ta- ble. For this reason we find the alfalfa seed fields skirting the older agri- The sweet clover along the ditches yields good seed cu ] tura ] regions crops. i ° as a rule. For many reasons one region will produce abundantly while in the same year a neighboring district will fail to yield. Thus a number of writers have issued a caution against the seed busi- ness, in spite of the extreme attractiveness of the profits in fav- orable years. The prospects are always precarious until the seed is in the bag. In 1917 a great many fields originally intended for seed were watered and cut for hay because of the high price of hay; this year the grasshoppers have eaten much seed in the burr. An average annual yield in Utah, based on the United States census, shipping records, and data from leading buyers, is be- tween 85 and 100 carloads, minimum weight 30,000 pounds, or 500 bushels each. The seed originates about as follows for the average of several years; Millard county 30 to 40 cars, Juab 8 62 IMPROVEMENT ERA cars, Sanpete 9 cars, Emery 9 cars, Box Elder and Cache 7 cars, Beaver 5 cars, and one or two each from Duchesne, Uintah, San Juan, Sevier and Utah counties. Last year 105 thresh- ers reported seed jobs in the state, reporting to the United States Bureau of Crop Esti- mates, being practically all the machines in the state, in- dicating that other counties doubtless yield some seed. In all there are about 1,000 or 1,250 farmers raising seed, the acreage averaging between 13,000 and 15,000 acres, ac- near Hinckley, Utah, cording to the best data avail- Alfalfa seed field able. Some of the present seed fields have become such by reason of a rise in the alkali, being formerly good fields for general crops. However, on many of these, the seed brings better re- turns than the hay and grain did formerly; but unless protected by drainage from much further alkali encroachments, these lands must finally cease to produce even seed. This condition is perhaps most apparent in the Oasis dis- trict, Millard county, though here the same enterprise that re- claimed the original lands, is laying some of the state's most ex- tensive drainage plans, and there is every prospect that Millard county will continue to be the hub of the world's alfalfa seed lands. The production of seed of a high quality does not depend entirely upon recleaning and grading methods in the opinion of Mr. S. W. Western, of Deseret, Millard county. "Careful screening and fanning will remove many withered alfalfa seed, and weed seeds," says Mr. Western, "but the process is expensive ; it is far easier to remove the weeds and other plants from the fields before their seed get ripe; and if the alfalfa seed crop is let stand until from two-thirds to three-fourths of the seed pods have turned brown, there will be a minimum of un- derweight and off-color seed." That encouraging and saving provision of nature which guards against the destruction of any of her creations is strongly manifested in the setting of alfalfa seed in great abundance when the plants are undergoing a certain amount of stress of soil or weather conditions. Moreover the puny alfalfa plant will bring forth seed of the highest quality as a rule, the effect of its vicissi- ALFALFA SEED SUPREMACY IN UTAH 63 hides reacting, like hardships and self-denials in the experience of human beings which bring out superior traits of character. And as the strenuous life of the pioneers has brought forth a superior citizenship, and a character refined in the fire of ex- perience, so does this wandering youth, alfalfa, inured to hard- ships and acquainted with grief, burst forth in its maturity mani- festing almost the perfection of its Creator. Salt Lake City, Utah. The