- CIRCULAR No. 79 (REVISED MARCH, 1954 GRASS AND LEGUME SEED CROPS h ALBERTA PREPARED BY THE ALBERTA FORAGE CROPS ADVISORY COMMITTEE GOVERNMENT OF THE PROVINCE 0Fl ALB|RTA': DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE PUBLISHED BY DIRECTION £ o- £0 CO o l-H Eh CO I— ( 03 W H O o 2 _j <" 13 a> ' O) r-J 03 a> 3 Sh O 4> 03 O 03 . a> s o CJ cD o .s .3*3 « * c o A to o ~ eq 3 2 > . 02 o> 03 * kJ TS tO 3 43 S jm o £ .2 bi U co co r-i CN CO o ft g oo SO n -3 I T3 <0 ,Q 03 4) 03 +-> 03 o . o 3 TS 3 4> .3 o " O 4j .„ co ^tf £ 02 0) _ 83 •3 » 3 .5 03 p, Sh a) 2 ° 2 4) T 02 CD -h C 4) H >! o t P i "3 3 *• >> £ -3 1-1 CD 03 4) 4) 03 O O 03 IS CO o 03 03 mo * bO o o 4> .5 5 -3 - 2 1 = s S 02 ? g 0 m 3 -3 be - g cs o a> 2 g W j £ 5} co w 0} * I IP -r3 B, s a Cfl 4> . -3 02 O CO ^> 4) s O Sh S3 02 < 2 J 02 ,-' 02 ft ri 'H 41 O 03 h « S t£> £ -o 3 O J) £ m !h 02 *j b3 +j 0) bo ^2 3 "3 0 < -)_> 3 02 o ^ bo § a 02 c3 -, 4) ft - 3 03 to .2 - T3 3 (C 4) ,3 Sh bO 42 r-( ft O T3 4> a) > > 3 a -1 O 3 >;| si o h-1 .s § O O bo CO CO < 03 Q O M H Eh < co W H S3 03 ^ -o 02 g 4> 3 s I ■-■ 02 4> ? .3 O 0 T. bo bo 02 fe 3 C * 2 ° ■« 2 P 3 H 3 w 4> S M = ^ <2 -12 3 — J) 3 0 8 gj « .13 O 43 CD O ^ 3 w ^ 3 03 h3 3 o O bo -3 43 02 4; ft 43 03 CJ X2 CS — ft .ii 4> £ U U 43 ^3 S3 4) ^ O -2 O fL, 03 c3 . 03 5 < £ 0 £ 03 03 o 4) ft >} >> 43 bo > 43 bxj . o g C 3 s ^ T3 cS CN IT1 . ^0 — r ^ "3 "to £ ~ 2 * 3 ^ co £ £ 3i 4) 02 "3 d «-i o . _ <-h 02 43 02 43 3 OS O1 fH 3 T3 43 03 to u 6 4) 02 3 « " 02 fc. 03 2 g o ^ CL 3 03 -3 - 3 ■3 cj CO CO U 03 .2 ft S O 4) 03 3 id ^ >h^ in "3 T3 3 . 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There are times when the operator must choose between considerable loss of seed and a poorly cleaned sample. A good rule is to save as much seed as possible, and reclean later. At normal price levels, a few pounds of seed saved will pay for a lot of cleaning. CLEANING THE MACHINE Thorough cleaning of machines and racks is extremely important. It takes only two sweet clover seeds in one ounce of another registered legume seed crop to spoil it for registration. When cleaning the threshing machine, pay special attention to the augers. They can hold large quantities of seed that may mix with the next lot threshed. COMBINE SETTINGS It is suggested that growers fol- low the settings recommended by the manufacturer for any specific combine. Machine specialists point out that cylinder speed is not as important as the perifery speed of the cylinder. As the peri- fery speed depends on the cylinder diameter, and as the cylinder diameter of different makes of combines is not the same, it is readily seen that cylinder speeds vary greatly. SEED STORAGE With the greater amount of direct combining that is now being done, serious losses from seed heating in storage are more fre- quent. Seed should be stored where it can be examined daily. Page Ten There should be free air circula- tion around the seed. A good method is to sack the seed and stand the sacks separately in a machine shed or other large build- ing. Safer still, seed may be spread out on the granary floor and turned once or twice a day. Spoilage can be cut down by put- ting the seed over the fanning mill to remove green material. Seed should be stored only in clean, tight granaries and sacks. Contamination of clean seed when it is almost ready for market is costly, Mice often cause damage to stored seeds. There are a number of practices that will curb this loss. The rat poison, "Warfarin", is effective against mice, and filled bait containers set about the stor- age area will usually solve the problem. Lime, sulphur and salt mixture, sprinkled under and around sacks of seed, will act as a repellant. SEED CLEANING It is almost impossible with average farm equipment to clean grass and legume seeds to a recog- nized seed grade. The best way is to attempt only rough cleaning on the farm. For final cleaning and grading, the seed can be shipped to one of the commercial concerns operating an efficient, well equip- ped plant. A few pounds of seed saved in this way, with the pos- sibility of a higher grade, will easily pay shipping and cleaning costs. POLLINATING INSECTS Commercial seed production of alfalfa, alsike and red clover de- pends upon the activity of pollinat- ing insects. Bees are by far the most important pollinators of le- gume flowers. CLOVERS Honey bees are effective in pol- linating the clovers, and seed yields can be increased through the placement of honey bee Page Eleven colonies on the field during bloom- ing time. One hive or more per acre can be used; honey yields per hive will probably be lower with more hives per acre. However, profitable seed increase could probably be realized with up to three hives per acre. In years when wild bee popula- tions are high, honey bees will not be so effective in raising seed yields. Red clover blossoms are more difficult for the bees to work than are alsike and sweet clover flow- ers. Consequently, red clover fields should be as far away as possible from these competing crops. ALFALFA Alfalfa seed yields in Alberta have not been increased through the use of honey bees, as the al- falfa flowers are difficult for honey bees to "trip". There are many other flowers that honey bees have less difficulty in working. Wild bees are necessary for satisfactory seed yields of alfalfa. A number of species of leaf cutter and bumble bee are important trip- pers of alfalfa. The numbers of these bees fluctuate widely from year to year. In years when they are numerous, alfalfa usually sets seed readily. Mechanical tripping devices, chemical tripping sprays, log chains, stone boats and barbed wire, dragged over alfalfa fields, can do no good, and will only in- jure the growth. The slightest in- jury to the flower causes it to wilt and drop. For the present, the job must be left to the wild bees. CONDITIONS SUITABLE TO WILD BEES Leaf cutter bees nest in old logs, hard places in the ground, and in native sod. Some species of bum- ble bee nest above ground and others below ground. In both cases, breaking up of the soil and clear- ing the brush destroys many nest- ing sites available to the bees, and a reduction in population is bound to occur. A small field that is pro- ducing seed abundantly should be left small. Enlarging of the field will only destroy the nests of the bees, and a lower bee population will result. There will be fewer bees to work more alfalfa, and yields will, of course, drop. Mice are predators of bees, and any practice that will reduce mouse in- festation will aid in the establish- ment of wild bees. Insects Causing Losses in Forage Seed Production LYGUS BUG Adult lygus bug. Photo — Dr. G. A. Hobbs. Science Service, Lethbridge DESCRIPTION Adults 3/16" long, about one- half as wide. Color varies from pale green to reddish or dark brown. This insect goes through five stages before becoming an adult. The adult has a half dia- mond mark on the back, which makes it easily identified. The Page Twelve smaller green "nymphs", as the young are called, have five black spots located on the back. DAMAGE The bugs feed on the plant juice in the buds, flowers and developing seeds of alfalfa. No reports have been made of damage in alsike and Altaswede clover, but ladino clover is subject to damage, so it can be surmised that they may also cause seed loss in alsike and Altaswede crops. The insect-damaged buds and flowers soon die and drop to the ground. The injured seed dies, and at harvest time the resulting dry, shrivelled seed is often seen. With a high population of these insects, seed yields can be reduced considerably. Workers in Utah have reported that they increased seed yields in one field from twenty-two pounds per acre to one hundred and sixty pounds per acre by controlling lygus bugs. The life cycle of this pest is completed in six to seven weeks; consequently, it should not reach such high num- bers in Alberta as in the United States seed producing areas, where the growing season is much longer and two or three generations may be produced before alfalfa flower- ing takes place. CHECKING FOR LYGUS BUGS Fields should be checked for ly- gus bugs, one, two and three weeks before the major flowering period. In order to determine if lygus bugs are present in the field, it is necessary to take a sweep with a standard 15" insect net. A white sack, held open by a wire loop 15" across, will work satisfactorily. A sweep with the net is accomplished by swinging the net at arms' length, through the top growth of the vegetation, through a 180 de- gree arc. Stand facing south with the net in the right hand pointing west. Now, with the net well down in the growth, hold the arm stiff. Turn and face north. Count the number of lygus and nymphs caught in the sweep. Turn the net inside out so lygus captured will not be counted again. Move ten or twenty feet away and repeat. Carry out ten or twenty such sweeps, keeping track of the total number of lygus captured; divide the total number of lygus caught by the number of sweeps. This is the average number of lygus per sweep. If at any time an average of four lygus or more per sweep is obtained, it will usually pay to employ control measures. CONTROL Spraying or dusting with D.D.T. will control lygus bugs during the pre-bloom period, but D.D.T. should not be used during the bloom period because the pollinat- ing insects will also be killed. Tox- aphene dust or spray, applied be- tween seven in the evening and seven o'clock in the morning, is recommended for the bloom period. Applying between these hours will kill fewer bees. D.D.T. should be applied at the following rates : As a spray, % to pounds of actual D.D.T. per acre in a water emulsion spray. As a dust, 15 to 20 pounds of 10% D.D.T. per acre should be applied. Toxaphene is the only chemical that should be applied in the flowering stage. The following rates are recommended : iy2 pounds actual Toxaphene per acre in a water emulsion, or 20 pounds of 10% Toxaphene dust per acre. If the lygus population has been exceedingly high, burn the alfalfa stubble the following spring before plants start to grow. Page Thirteen GRASSHOPPERS These pests can be controlled with Toxaphene at the same rates as used for lygus control. Aldrin and Chlordane are also effective in grasshopper control. These in- secticides should be used as fol- lows : 2 to 3 ounces of technical Aldrin per acre, or 8 ounces of technical Chlordane per acre; both in spray form. With dusts, use one and a half to twice as much per acre. In cases of very heavy infesta- tion, the above rates can be doubled or tripled. SWEET CLOVER WEEVIL Adult sweet clover weevil. Photo — Dr. G. A. Hobbs, Science Service, Lethbridge DESCRIPTION The adult weevil is small, dark grey, about 3/16 inch long. It has a long snout, which aids in identifi- cation. When approached, these weevils drop from the foliage and remain still, consequently, they can easily escape notice. DAMAGE The adult weevil is responsible for the major part of the damage to the sweet clover plant. This damage is very characteristic, crescent-shaped pieces being eaten out of the leaves. In severe infes- tations, the plants may be stripped of all leaf surface, and the outer bark of the stem chewed. These weevils prefer sweet clover, but will eat alfalfa if sweet clover is not available. Sweet clover field margins usually show the severest damage, because the beetles mi- grate from second-year stands to new plantings. CULTURAL CONTROL Crop rotation, using crops un- attractive to the weevil, such as the cereals and grasses. New plantings should be located a good distance from second-year stands of sweet clover. In the fall, plough down marginal strip of de- foliated sweet clover to a depth of six inches. This will bury many bugs which would over-winter. The following spring, this can be sown to a cereal crop. The most effective means of con- trol is through shallow cultivation of sweet clover hay fields immedi- ately after cutting in July. This, of course, is impossible in fields left for seed, but if damage is severe, the pest will have to be controlled with chemicals. After the seed has been harvested, if weevils have done damage, the field should be ploughed to bury the insects. CHEMICAL CONTROL The most effective time for spraying or dusting is in the spring just after the plants have started to grow the second year. This will kill most of the weevils and pre- vent them from laying eggs. D.D.T., Chlordane and Toxa- phene have been found to be effec- tive. Aldrin should also be effec- tive. It is much more toxic than the other three chemicals, and should be handled with greater care. Pa