Wilkinson. — On Winter Pasture. 629 



reminding one of an over-pruned tree or of a hedge too often 

 clipped. 



A comparison of the growth made by the undipped tufts 

 with that of the cHpped ones shows that the unchpped pro- 

 duced very much more than the chpped. 



Taking first the rye-grass, I found that during June the 

 unchpped grew three and a half times as much as the chpped, 

 during July two and two-thirds times, and duriiig August four 

 times as iBuch, the rapid spring growth of the latter half of 

 August having had much greater rate of effect on the un- 

 dipped than upon the clipped. I may say that during the 

 recent winter the total growth of the clipped shoot was 4|-in. 

 in the three months — June, July, and August — and the total 

 growth of the undipped in the same time was 12iiin. — say, 

 13in. — or nearly three times as much as the other. 



With regard to the cocksfoot the results are different, for 

 the reason that the clipped tuft was a very healthy plant, 

 while the undipped one was not very vigorous until the latter 

 half of August. During June the tables were turned, and the 

 dipped grew ^fin., while the undipped grew only jVin. Dur- 

 ing July the clipped grew 2^5in., and the undipped ascended 

 to 2j-yn. ; and during August the superiority of the undipped 

 over the close-grazed was well shown by Tf^in- to Qj^^in.— 

 not quite three times as much. 



The general result is, therefore, that pasture unstoeked 

 during the winter produces nearly three times as much feed as 

 equally healthy pasture grazed dose. Very noticeable, too, 

 is the narrow width — much narrower than the normal — of the 

 blades of the dipped tufts ; and also, in all probability, the 

 damage done to the tuft by the sheep's teeth would still 

 further diminish the yield. 



Now, turning to the practical side, we find a factor coming 

 in to interfere very greatly. At the middle of July the old 

 blades began to frost off at the ends, the younger blades not 

 being touched by the frost ; and this withering of the old 

 blades went steadily on until the end of August, so that it 

 might almost be said that as fast as the young blade grew the 

 old one died off, and, indeed, at the middle of August there 

 was less feed on the undipped rye than on the first of the 

 month, on account of rapid withering. The clipped tufts 

 showed no sign of being frost-bitten : and now, comparing the 

 available sheep-feed instead of the total growth, we find that 

 the clipped rye produced 4|in., while the undipped produced 

 5iin., or 22 per cent, more ; and that the clipped cocksfoot pro- 

 duced 6YVin., while the undipped grew 8j-%in., or 40 per cent, 

 more. It does not seem, therefore, that a vast gain will be 

 derived from keeping the pastures unstoeked all winter, but 

 rather that, judging from last winter, the fields should be un- 



