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• Englifi^ proverb. May come Jloe early ccme fie late^ makes 

 the cGzv quake. The large Ibrt here mentioned, grows 

 naturally in the fouth of France and Italy, and is only 

 preferved in fome Englilh gardens for the fake of 

 variety. 



If the feeds of this fort are fown in the autumn, or 

 permitted to fcatter when ripe, the plants will come 

 up ftronger, and fiower much earlier, than when they 







are fown in the fpring, fo good feeds may always b 

 expected from them, which can feldom be attained 

 from the fpring plants in England j and as two or 

 three plants of this fort will be full enough in a garden 

 for variety, fo thefe fhould be allowed to fpread ; for 

 where they grow at a diftance from each other, the 

 roots will fend out a great number of ftalks, which will 

 be ftronger, and produce much larger panicles than 

 thofe which are too near together. 

 The Cock's foot Grafs, Capon's-tail Grafs, and Mil- 

 ' let GrafTes are too coarfe todeferve attention in Eng- 



■ land, chough fome of their fpecies are very ufeful in the 

 warm parts of America, where there is a great fear- 

 city of finer Grafs j and fome of thefe are much bet- 

 ter adapted to thofe warm countries, than any of our 

 European Graffes, for many of them lie flat on the 

 ground, and emit roots from their joints, fo are well 

 prepared for heat *, their ftalks are large and juicy, fo 

 will live in heat where few of the European Graflcs 

 can be made to thrive. 



The land on which Grafs-feed is intended to be fown, 

 " ftiould be well ploughed, and cleared from the roots 

 of noxious weeds, fuch as Couch-grafs, Fern, Rufties, 

 Heath, Gorfe, Broom, Reft-harrow, &c. which, if 

 left in the ground, will foon get the better of the 

 Grafs, and over-run the land. Therefore in fuch places 

 where either of thefe weeds abound, it will be a good 

 method to plough up the furface in April, and let it 

 lie fome time to dry ; then harrow the roots into fmall 

 heaps, and burn them. The alnes fo produced, when 

 fpread on the land, will be'a good manure for tt. The 

 method of burning the roots is particularly direded 

 under the article Land, which fee : but where Couch- 



V grafs, Fern, or Reft-harrow Is iri plenty, whofe roots 

 -run far un9er ground, the lahamuft be ploughed 









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feeds of the purer fort of Grafs than the' generality 

 of people care to beftow, fo I would recommend the 

 fetcing fome of thofe upland pallures, which arc 

 cleaneft from weeds, and have the fweetcft herbatv-e 

 afide, to ftand for feeds -, and although by fo doin 

 the hay will be lefs valuable, yet from t!ie fale of 

 the feeds, it may anfwer better to the poffcfibr, than 

 to mow it merely for the hay -, for any gentleman who 

 has regard to the beauty of his land, had better pive 

 fix times the price for fuch feeds, as is ufuallv paid 

 for the ordinary feeds, fince the firft expence of feeds 

 is not to be put in competion with the beauty and ad- 

 vantage of having fuch as are good ; for when the land 

 is brought to a good fward (which may be done iu 

 one year, where it is properly prepared and fown with 

 good feeds) it may be kept in good order, and by 

 good management improved annually, and will con- 

 tinue fo, as long as proper care is taken of it. I 

 know fome land which v/as fown in the method here- 

 after direfted above forty years ago, which are now 

 as good paftures as any I have ieen, and may be al- 

 ways continued fo. 



Thefe grounds abounded with many bad weeds, fo 

 they had a winter and fummer's fallow, in which time 

 they were five times ploughed and ten times harrowed 

 in order to deftroy the weeds, and make the furface 

 of the ground fine ; in Auguft they were fown with 

 the beft Grafs-feeds as could be procured, three bulh- 

 els of this, and nine pounds of the white Dutch Clo- 

 ver-feeds were allowed to each acre \ as there happened 

 rains foon after the feeds were fown, fo the Grafs came 

 up well ; but among it were a great number of weeds, 

 which were drawn up and can*iedofFthe ground, and 

 in the beginning of Oftober the fields were rolled with 

 "a Barley roller j in the fpring the fields were again 

 weeded, and afterward rolled, and that fummer there 

 was^ . nipre than two tons of hay per acre mowed off 

 the land j and by conftant weeding twice a year, 

 fweeping ft with a'bufli-harfov/, rolling and dreffing 

 of the land, the Grafs has been greatly improved fince, 

 and is now as good pafture as any in England : and 

 fince I have laid down great quantities of land in the 

 fame manner, and with equal fuccefs ; therefore from 



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two^^qr^ three times pretty deep in dry weather, and I many years experience can recommend it, as the furelt 

 - the roots carefully harrowed off after each ploughing. 



-^ which is the moft fure method to deftroy them. Where 



the land is veiy low, and of a ftiff clayey nature, 



' which holds v/ater in winter, it will be of Angular fer- 



• vice to make feme under-ground drains to carry off the 



wet ; which, if detained too long on the ground, will 



render the Grafs four. 



The method of making thefe 



<4 



drains is prefcribed under the article Land, which 

 fee. 



* 



Before the feed is fown, the furface of the ground 

 ihould be made level and fine, otherwife the feed will 

 be buried unequal. When the feed is fown, it muft 

 be gently harrowed in, and the ground rolled with a 

 wooden roller, which will make the furface even, and 

 prevent the feeds being blown in patches. When the 

 Grafs comes up, if there fliould be any. bare fpots, I 

 where the feed has not grown, they may be fown j 

 again, an(J the ground rolled, which will fix the 

 feeds ; and the firft kindly ftiowers will bring up the 

 Grafs, and make it very thick. • . - . . • 

 Where the land is defigned to continue in pafture, it 

 Ihould be fown with the beft forts of Grafs-feeds, and 

 Vhite Dutch Clover, or what is commonly called Ho- 

 <neyfuckle Grafs in many parts of England, but* there 

 ;is a great difficulty of procuring hay-feeds which ^re 

 good j for in all the good paftures near London, which 

 jibound with the beft forts of Grafs, the hay is com- 

 monly cut before the feeds of the Grafs are ripe \ fo 

 .tRat thofe feeds which are procured from the ftables 

 where the horfes are fed with the beft fort of hay, are 

 little rnpre than chaff, or at beft are qnly fuch as are of 

 the early kinds of Grafs, with a great quantity of Plan- 

 tain ana other weeds :' which has difcouraged many 

 gentlemen from fowing them, nor has any one at- 

 tempted to fave thefe feeds properly; and as It requires 

 longer time, and more attention, to fave a quantity of 



K 



method of having good paftures. . . -;; 



But I know the generality of farmers will ot^eft to 

 the firft lofs of their crop, and alfo to the after ex- 

 pence of weeding, rolling, &c. as too great for com- 

 mon practice : however, I am well fatisfied from ex- 

 perience, that whoever will be at the expence, will 

 find their account in it ; for the crops of hay will be 

 fo much better, and the after pafture alfo, that it will 

 more than pay the expence, as from many exaft ac- 

 counts, which have been kept of the whole, is fulEci- 

 ently demonftrated, and the verdure of thefe paftures 

 is charming to all thofe who have any tafte of natural 

 beauties. - Hi^y i '; 



The proper management of pafture land is the leaft 

 underftood of any part of agriculture ; the farmers 

 never have attended to this, being more inclined to 

 the plough, though the profits attending that have 

 not of late years been fo great as to encourage them 

 in that part of huft^andry ; but thefe people never 

 think of laying down land for pafture, to continue 

 longer than three years, at the end of which time 

 they plough it up again, to fow it with grain^fii « * : 

 There is a fort of ftriped Grafs which is preferved in 

 many gardens for the beauty of its variegated, leaves, 

 which continue frefti the greateft part of the furnmer. 

 This fort is eafily propagated by parting the roots, 

 either in fpring or autumn, for every offset will in- 

 creafe to be a Targe root in one year's tim.e.-. It will 

 grow on any foil or in any fituation, therefore may be 

 planted in any abjeft part of the garden, where it will 

 thrive, and afford an agreeable variety. , This fort is 

 by many perfons called Ribband-grafs, from the 



of -white and green, which run the whole 



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ftripes 

 length 

 bands. 



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