FITTING AND PUTTING DOWN LAND TO PERMA- 

 NENT PASTURES AND PASTURE GRASS MIXTURES 



John H. Barron, Ithaca, N. Y. 



Assistant Professor of Farm Crops in charge of demonstration work, New 

 York State College of Agriculture 



GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS 



In IS^ew York State there are approxi- 

 mately thirty millions of acres. The 

 United States Census shows that about 

 one-half of this area is improved and the 

 other half is unimproved. Referring to 

 the unimproved area, it appears that there 

 are ten millions of acres occupied by 

 forests, three millions by pasture, and two 

 millions of acres are waste land. Study- 

 ing- the improved area in the same way, 

 it is found that there are seven million 

 acres of pasture, five million acres of hay and forage, and three 

 million acres of other crops. 



Without stopping to analyze the agricultural significance of 

 these figures in detail, it is evident that, so far as area is con- 

 cerned, pasture is more important in New York than any other 

 crop or group of crops except forests. On tlie other hand, these 

 pastures are almost universally poor. They are nonproductive. 

 They are weedy. They have a poor stand of grass or none at all. 

 They are often overgrazed and otherwise abused. For the most 

 part, they have received little or no intelligent care. Perhaps 

 the very fact that the area involved is so large accounts in part 

 for the present condition. 



Before any study of means of improvement is made, it must be 

 borne in mind that many so-called pastures cannot be improved. 

 The cost in some cases would be prohibitive. In many other cases 

 the location could not be made to grow grass, presenting a 

 problem for the forester rather than the crop farmer. 



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