PASTURE EXPERIMENT. 321 



bushes, blackberry vines, sweet fern and other foul growths, 

 and generally known as " Ckeckcrberry hill" checkerberries 

 being its chief product. 



In June, 1850, 1 ploughed it, employing four oxen and three 

 men, completing the work in about twelve days. In September 

 following, with the same team and the labor of two men, it was 

 thoroughly harrowed by the use of the large harrow required 

 for seeding land from which a recent growth of wood has been 

 taken. In this condition it remained until the next spring, 

 when I ploughed it again with one yoke of oxen to a plough, 

 harrowing with a common harrow, and planted with potatoes, 

 using nothing but good plaster in the hills, the rows being 

 nearly four feet apart. The potatoes received one thorough 

 hoeing with the breaking-up hoe, no plough being used. For 

 the crop harvested I received more than two hundred dollars, 

 retaining a quantity for home use. 



The land was then ploughed and thus remained until spring, 

 when again it was first harrowed and then ploughed once for 

 the season, but no crop was taken from it. The spring after, it 

 was ploughed and harrowed, the stones gathered to some extent 

 into large heaps on the ground, and seeded to oats with the 

 usual varieties of grass-seed, and a sprinkling of white clover. 

 The oat crop was a complete failure ; so much so, that I did 

 nut spend time to harvest all of it from the field. In the autumn 

 I finished gathering the stones, which in all were estimated at 

 five hundred ox-cart loads. 



In the autumn the field presented a large and flourishing 

 growth of grass, which was not fed, but suffered to remain on 

 the root. 



In the following spring it showed a thick and promising 

 growth of red and white clover ; and in June I turned my milch 

 cows upon it to graze, but avoided close feeding, which practice 

 was continued. 



This pasture remained very productive in grass until four 

 years ago, when, finding myself with a largely increased stock of 

 milch cows, I departed from the rule, and suffered close feeding 

 for two years in succession. Observing that my pasture was 

 faltering, I immediately adopted, in a measure, the system of 

 rest, by which I hoped, in some degree, to restore it to former 

 productiveness. 



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