18 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



Afternoon Session. 

 The Chairman announced that the subject for discussion was 



THE PREPARATION AND SEEDING DOWN OF LAND. 



Mr. Johnson, of Framingham. It will be remembered by 

 you all, that at the annual meeting in Boston last year, I pre- 

 sented a report upon the time of cutting and the mode of 

 curing hay ; and as it seems to me important that that subject 

 should come first in this discussion, I may be permitted to say 

 a word or two upon it. 



By the statistics, I find that the neat stock of this country 

 is increasing at a greater ratio than the grass ; not that the 

 grass crop is falling off particularly, with the exception of the 

 last two years, but the neat stock is increasing rapidly. Now, 

 it is essential that we should have the grass, or something, to 

 take the place of that grass or hay, to keep up our stock. In 

 1865, the value of the hay in the Commonwealth was nearly 

 $ 14,000,000 ; and if to that be added the value of the grass in 

 our pastures, it exceeded all the other agricultural products of 

 the Commonwealth, showing that the grass crop is the most 

 important crop that the farmer can raise. Hence the necessity 

 of thorough preparation of our land for the reception of the 

 seed of all the varieties of grasses both for mowing and 

 pasture land. 



Now, gentlemen, at the time the report to which I have 

 referred was made, it was thought by some that the Board were 

 responsible for it. For what I say to-day in regard to the hay 

 crop, I am individually responsible ; and I will repeat what 

 appeared in the original report, that if the grass were cut at the 

 proper time, and cured in the proper manner, there would be 

 millions of dollars saved to the farmers of the Commonwealth 

 in hay ; because, if there are 114,000,000 of hay cut annually 

 iirthe State, and if, as I believe, from the experiments I have 

 made, hay that is cut at the proper time, and dried just enough 

 to keep, — which will be done in three or four hours, — is worth 

 one-sixth more than hay which is dried as it was when I was 

 a boy, you will see at once that there is a great inducement to 

 cut and cure our hay properly, as I consider it. 



