74 Vermont Agricultural Report. 



a small proportion of timothy makes a valuable medium early 

 hay. The chief difficulty with this grass is the high price of the 

 seed. On the whole, there are probably no better kinds of grasses 

 than timothy, large red-top, and small red (sometimes sold as 

 Rhode Island beut grass). But for dairy feeding these grasses 

 should always be grown with the clovers, and for Vermont con- 

 ditions probably the alsike clover is the best as it makes a finer, 

 richer feed than the red clovers and is much liked by cattle. 

 It has proven more hardy in cold climates and better adapted to 

 heavy clayey soils than the common red. 



For the past three years I have used the following mixture 

 in growing hay for dairy stock and have had very good results. 

 Timothy i6 quarts, red-top 8 quarts, red clover 4 quarts, alsike 

 clover 4 quarts. These quantities are thoroughly mixed and the 

 mixture is sown at the rate of 22 to 24 qts. per acre, by means of 

 a wheel barrow seeder. When seeding to get a good grade of 

 horse hay free from clover, I use 16 quarts of timothy and 8 

 quarts of red-top per acre. 



SEEDING PASTURE LANDS. 



In growing grasses and clovers for pasturing the conditions 

 are quite different from what they are when growing for hay. 

 Instead of growing a few kinds together we need a mixture that 

 will provide good feed throughout the season. Some grasses 

 start early and provide good feed the first of the season while 

 others make a late start and provide better feed in mid-summer. 

 Then too, on pasture lands, we need a firm turf so as to prevent 

 the surface from being cut up by the hoofs of the cattle. For 

 this reason timothy should be entirely omitted from grass mix- 

 tures, to be used on pastures. Most of the clovers also fail to 

 produce a firm turf and do not thrive under conditions of con- 

 stant grazing. The small white clover is however most valuable 

 for pasture seeding as it makes a thick mat-like growth and 

 seems to thrive under conditions of constant grazing. The fol- 

 lowing mixture will be found valuable for pastures when used in 

 these amounts per acre. Kentucky blue-grass 16 quarts, large 

 red-top 12 quarts, Rhode Island beut grass 6 quarts, white clover 

 4 quarts. Kentucky blue-grass will furnish good feed early in the 

 season and again in the fall but does not grow much in mid- 

 summer, while the red-tops will thrive best through the middle 

 part of the summer. 



ADVANTAGES OE EAREY CUTTING. 



As has been pointed out, earlier in this article, the percentage 

 of digestibility is an important factor in regulating the feeding 



