Do legume leaves hasten the curing process by pumping moisture from the stems?
1926
Willard, C.J.
Experiments to determine whether the leaves of plants draw water from the stems in the process of curing into hay indicate that this occurs with some plants and not with others. Alfalfa stems dried at the same rate whether the leaves were attached or not. Soybean stems from which the leaves had been cut contained 3 to 7% more moisture than those similarly dried with the leaves attached. A total of 45 pairs of alfalfa samples were dried under various conditions and showed an average moisture content of 57% in the stems dried normally and 56% in the stems having the same exposure but with the leaves removed. It is doubtful if this small difference is significant, but at least it is of no practical importance. It does emphasize that in alfalfa there is no tendency for the leaves to dry the stems. A total of 29 pairs of soybean samples showed an average of 58.4% moisture in the normally dried stems and 64.0% in similarly treated stems from which the leaves had been clipped. Every pair of soybean stems compared showed a difference in this direction. Soybean leaves were as efficient in drying the stems when exposed to full August sunlight as when drying took place in the shade. Drying was much more rapid in the sun, but whether dried in the sun or shade the appearance of the material was a fair guide to the moisture content. In practical haymaking the most rapid curing will usually be secured by curing in the swath. Other considerations, such as bleaching and loss of leaves by shattering and crumbling, make it desirable to finish the curing of legume hay in the windrow or cock, but this bears no relation to curing the stems by transpiration through the leaves.
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