Chufa (Cyperus esculentus, sometimes known as earth almond). A perennial sedge (family Cyper acem) that is frequently a noxious weed in low damp places on southern farms. It produces an abundance of small, cylindrical, underground tubers. The tubers or nuts are much relished by hogs. The hogs are generally turned on the field and allowed to harvest the crop. When cultivated, the nut has a fine flavor if properly dried.
' The crop does best on sandy soil that has been well fertilized. Heavy soils should be avoided. The tubers are planted early in spring, and about two inches deep. The rows are two to four feet apart, and the tubers are set twelve to fifteen inches apart in the row. No cultivation is neces sary, except that weeds must not be allowed to grow. In October or November the tubers will be ripe, and the hogs may be turned on. The crop is recommended for fattening hogs.
Colza. An annual variety of Brassica campestris (the rutabaga species), also called summer rape. It is cultivated especially for oil in Europe. It is unfortunate that in England and many parts of the continent the name coleseed or colza has been applied to rape as a synonymous term. They are perfectly distinct ; the seed produce of colza is much greater, though inferior to rape. The Swedish turnip is a cultivated form of this plant, bearing somewhat the relation to the normal form that kohlrabi does to the cabbage.
Elliott's Sida (Sida Elliotti0, Dfalvacece. A deep rooting, malvaceous shrubby plant of some value as a dry-land forage. It is rather drought-resistant, but does best on moist land or under irrigation. It will not stand frost. It is a scant grower, reaching only about one foot in height and bearing little foliage, which is against it. Stock like it, and rab bits are destructive to it. It matures seed, and has been found to volunteer. It has been tested at the California Station.
Fenugreek (Trigonella Legu minosce. An annual forage and medicinal plant in troduced from the Mediterranean region. Stems erect, more or less branched, eight to twelve inches or more high ; leaves three-foliolate ; leaflets smooth, wedge-oblong, obtuse, coarsely toothed above, about one inch long ; flowers one or two in the axils of the leaves, sessile or nearly so, yel lowish ; pod linear, one and one-half to three inches long, more or less curved, veiny, long-beaked. The
seeds have aromatic and stimulant qualities, and are used in veterinary medicine and in patent cat tle feeds. The pods ripen successively from the bottom of the plant to the top ; this results in the shattering of the older pods, making it necessary to harvest the plant while many of the pods are still green. The yield of seed is small.
Fenugreek is a low grower and cannot be cut to advantage with the mower. It is not a promis ing crop for soils deficient in lime. It is scarcely worth cultivating for forage, as the yield is small and it is little relished. It endures low temper atures, but requires an abundance of moisture to make winter growth. In its native home, it is seeded in the spring at the rate of thirteen to six teen pounds per acre, preferably after rains.
Furze (Ulex Europceus). Leguminosa'. Also called Gorse and Whin. A shrub, native of Great Britain and adjacent parts of Europe, where it is much used as a winter forage, the green sprigs of one year's growth being eaten. Branches dark green, spiny, usually almost leafless ; flowers yellow, pa pilionaceous, axillary and often crowded at ends of branches.
The plant is propagated by seed at the rate of twenty-five pounds per acre, or by greenwood cut tings under glass when used as an ornamental. It grows in waste places and rocky hillsides unfavor able for cultivated crops. It prefers a sandy or gravelly soil and a sunny exposure. The seed comes up sparingly and the plants are usually killed by hot, dry summers. It may furnish some grazing, but is of little value. [Fig. 2605, Cyclo. Hort.] Flat pea (Lath yeas sylrestrisl. Leguminosm. Fig. 415. A tall vine plant, native of Europe, intro duced about twenty years ago under the name of Lathyrus sylrestris, var.Tragneri. Wagner improved the wild plant by cultivation and recommended it as a very promising new forage plant. The Ex periment Station at Michigan tried the flat pea extensively for ten years, and reached the conclu sion that it is of little value as a fodder plant or green-manure. In Kansas it was slow to start, but yielded an ex cellent forage fora long period.