350 State Boaud of Agriculture, &c. 



The agriculturist had been convinced previous to this of 

 the worth of the turnip and other roots ; he had raised 

 them in small quantities, but to raise them by acres, and 

 to see the result in the greatly increased number of cattle 

 he was able to keep, the much larger quantities of better 

 manure, and the effect it had on his farm and the returns, 

 he was astonished. He has estimated lands that were suit- 

 able for the raising of these crops to be worth double in 

 price on that account. 



Before I attempt to say anything in regard to the rota- 

 tion of crops, I will say that their grass lands are always in 

 grass when once seeded down ; the climate or soil or both 

 are so favorable to the growth of grass that the sod 

 improves from year to year, forever, for aught I know to 

 the contrary, consequently the grass crop is not taken into 

 account in farming on a rotation. 



It is a well known fact that all plants do not consume the 

 same properties from the land for their support. One 

 plant will consume for its development that which another 

 will refuse ; a soil that has produced one crop for a num- 

 ber of years will become exhausted in the elements required 

 for the production of that crop — consequently rotation gives 

 a greater variety of crops. 



The first crop in the rotation is roots, mostly turnips, either 

 the rutabaga or common flat Englisli. Potatoes are only raised 

 for the table, and, as two hundi-ed bushels are considered a 

 a large crop per acre, they cannot be raised for feeding 

 purposes 



Raising Roots. — The manner of preparing the ground 

 for roots is to plow five or six times over between the last 



