-Progress. Rrpornt Series No. 
17 
Rerint, Tune 1946
AGRICULTURAL 
EXPERIMENT 
STATION
of The Alabama 
Polytechnic 
InstituteAuburnAla.
M. J. Funchess, Director
ALEY P~th PRO DUCTION AND USES 
IN-A
Ki Go BAKER, Stpeintendeh
Black Belt'6 Substation
The Caley pea (Lathyrus hirsutus) is an annual winter 
legume that
germinatas in the fall, makes most of its 
growth in the spring, and pro-
duces seed .in May and lune,. The-Viny 
plant somdwhat resembles vetch, and
has reddish flowers. The hairy leaves and seed pods give the plant a
silvery appearance.
The Caley pea produces seed abundantly andif 
not grazed too close-
ly, ill produce seed for a volunteer 
crop each succeeding year. A high per-
centage of the seed are hard 
and for this reason a poor 
stand may beobtained
the first year, unless the seed are sczarified 
or unless sown at a hearate.,
The name, Caley pea, is a local one given to this 
plant, because of
the special interest of A6 F. Caley whbse farm adjoins the 
Black Belt Sub"
station. The crop is known in some sections as 
wild winter pea and rough
peavine, and in Louisiana as the Singletary pea. 
The scientific name-is
Lathyrus hirsutus.
Uses of.Caley Peas
The Caley pea is used principally 
for supplementary- grazing in late
winter and early spring. It may also be 
used for hay and silage,,
In a cropping system to support liVestock 
product ion,* the Caley pea
is very desirable for several reasons: 
(1) it provides grazing at a criti-
cal period of the year late winter and ear-ly 
spring when feed suzppl ies
are usually short; (2) it stimulates 
growth of feed and foragecr6-ps 
grown
in -rotation or combination with it, stfch 
as Johnson g'rdbs, Dallis g'rass,
Station that it will not grow on 
extremely acid land. The crop grows 
well
on bottom lands that are 
not swampy but too Wet for 
clovers and small grains.
The results from winter- and spring-grazed 
Caley peas in the Black
Belt have been st o ncmoutging that 
some farmers in other sections of 
the
State are giving the crop a trial. The Alabdma Agricultural Ecperiment
Station is testing Caley pea production on varicus other soils of the State.
Planting Caley Peas
Soil preparation. Caley peas prefer a very firm seedbed. There-
fore, it is not necessary to break the soil, unless it is desired to level
the land or to get rid of undesirable plants. I- such a case, the break-
ing is done well in advance of planting time, i-rrorder to allow the soil
to settle and form a firm seedbed.
Planting. The pea seed may be broadcast and disked in lightly or,
if a disc drill is available, they may be drilled. In either method of
planting, the seed should not be covered with more than an inch of soil.
Date of seeding. Seeding is done in September or October but pre-
ferably in September.
Rate of seeding. The lowest recommended rate of seeding 
is 40
pounds per acre.
FertiliZer. The fertilizer treatment consists 
of 200 to 400 pounds
of superphosphate and 50 pounds of muriate of potash, 
or 400 to 800 pounds
Of basic slag and 50 pounds of muriate of potash per acre. 
If superphos-
phate is used, seed and fertilizers are broadcast separately and disked in-
to the soil,
Lime. On extremely acid lands of the Black Belt, I to 3 tons of
lime per acre are appli6d previous to planting Caley peas, the amount de-
pending upon the degree of acidity of the soil
Inoculation. Vetch inoculant should be used.
Management of the Crop
Caution about stands. It has been the experience of the Black Belt
Substation that the stand usually is poor the first year, increasing to a
satisfactory number of plants by the second year. For this reason, it is
not advisable 
to grow Caley 
peas unless the 
crop is to be 
planted on areas
Where it can grow 2 or more years. If a good stand is needed the 
first year,
a heavy rate of seeding (at least 80 pounds per 
acre of unscarified seed) may
be used, but under favorable conditions satisfactory stands have been ob-
tained from the minimum rate of 40 pounds 
of unscarified seed.
Grazing. .Caley peas afford nutritious grazing in the winter and
spring. Profitable returns from grazing have been 
made at the Black Belt
Substation and on farms throughout the Black 
Belt.
On lime lands this crop is well suited to a rotation 
with Johnson
grass, and it is suggested that it be planted in 
Johnson grass hay fields.
Caley peas are not to be considered a substitute 
for permanent pastures,
but rather a supplementary grazing crop.
On farms made up entirely of acid lands, early grazing may be ob-
tained from one or more fenced fields planted to Caley peas and rotated
with Dallis grass. However, such areas must be fenced, in order that the
grazing may be controlled.
Caley peas should not be grazed too heavily 
the first year after
planting, After the first year the peas may be grazed 
from fall until
blooming begins in the spring. Caley peas are toxic 
to animals when the
plants b-gin, to bloom nd make seed. Removing cattle about April 1 or
wv'hen blooming begins, will eliminate the danger of poisoning, 
and permit
the production of a seed crop, which is necessary to ensure a stand the
following year. The seed should not be fed to animals as they are very
toxic.
CAUTION. Caley peas under certain conditions 
may be.poisonous to
livestock. The toxic effect of the Caley pea has been associated very
definitely with the stage of maturity of the plant, As the Caley pea
reaches maturity and begins to bloom and form seed, a toxic effect on
animals grazing the crop has been observed. At the Black Belt Substation,
cattle have been grazed on Caley peas during this stage for three successive
years. In 1 out of 3 years, the animals became stiff but none died. All
recovered within 30 days and appeared to be normalo
In the animal nutrition laboratories at the Main Station, Auburn,
chickens and hogs have been found to be particularly sensitive 
to the toic
action. It is considered hazardous to feed a mixture of threshed oats and.
Caley pea seed to any kind of livestock.
Seed production. The farmer should set aside an area from which to
harvest seed. Caley peas produce good yields of seed, often 660 pounds or
more per acre. The seed may be harvested by (1) combining the mature plants
or (2) mowing, curing in windrows, and threshing from the windrows. Since
the seed shatter very easily, the crop is windrowed and is threshed as
quickly as possible after cutting.
Additional Suggestions for Areas Outside the Black Belt
It is suggested that farmers who are interested in trying this crop,
especially farmers in the carpet-grass areas, apply lime, phosphate, and
potash, and then control the grazing of the crop.