394 



THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



Individuals falling under the denomination of 

 Inferior Species. — See before (Table I.) 



1, Grasses. 

 Sweet-scented vernal- grass. 

 Crested dogstail. 



Oat-grass (Arrhenatherum avenaceum). 

 Yorkahire-fog. 

 Bent-grass. 



2. Legumens. 

 Yellow vetchling, 



3. Miscellaneous Species (wfedsj. 

 Carroway. 

 Sheep's-sorrel. 

 Catchfly. 

 Crowsfoot 

 Speedwell. 

 Bedstiaw. 



From this enumeration it is seen thai of the 18 species 

 of grasses set down in our previous table (No. I.) as 

 choice, only three existed anterior to the experi- 

 ments in Rothamsted Park; whilst of the 16 species 

 ranked as inferior no less than eight had representa- 

 tives there. Of 5 good forms of legumens (see Table 

 II.) two only were present in the unmanured plot. 

 Of miscellaneous herbage eight species were indigenous 

 to the ground, and all of them belonged to the class 

 of weeds save two. Hence, then, the initial herbage of 

 these experimental plots was manifestly of a very inferior 

 quality ; and thus it will be all the more interesting 

 to learn whether any, and what influence, ameliorative 

 or otherwise, was traceable to the several kinds of ma- 

 nure used. Accordingly, this question we will now 

 endeavour to solve by a series of tables deduced from 

 those furnished by the experimentalists, beginning with 

 a tabular comparison between the results of the plot 

 manured with farmyard dung alone and those of the 

 plots continuously unmanured. At first the gramine- 

 ous products only will be considered. The headings 

 " Choice species " and " Inferior species " are explained 

 by the prior table No. I, 



Table VI. — Showing the Gramineous Produce of the Plot 

 manured with Farmyard Dung alone, compared with the 

 Produce of the Unmanured Plots. 



Total increase 



17 



Thus, then, it is here shown that the effect of farm- 

 yard manure on the Rothamsted soil was not merely to 

 increase the yield of grass, but very greatly to improve 

 its quality by increasing the proportion of good grasses 

 and diminishing the ratio of bad kinds. The species 

 80 encouraged were rye-graia aad smooth nieadow-gragg. 



1 hose repressed comprised the innutrilious and unpalat- 

 able Holcus lanatus, or Yorkshire fog. 



The experiment with mixed mineral manures alone 

 will next be examined. 



Table VII. — Showing the results of the experiment with 

 Mixed Mineral Manures, in contrast with those of the 

 Unmanured Plots. 



Total increase 



5| 



Here also the influence of the manure was both quan- 

 titative and qualitative — the qualitative amelioration 

 being, in fact, remarkably great, seeing that while rye- 

 grass was largely increased proportionally, Yorkshire 

 fog suffered in almost equal diminution. Moreover, 

 when we come to examine the consequences on the 

 leguminous vegetation of this plot, it will be found that 

 the effect of the mineral substances experimented with 

 in this trial was to excite the red clover — all but abso- 

 lutely dormant before in the unmanured soil — into great 

 vegetative activity. 



The next table sets forth the particulars of the expe- 

 riment with ammoniacal salts : 



Table VIII. — Showing the Results of the Experiment with 

 Ammoniacal Salts alone, contrasted with those of the Plot 

 manured with Mixed Minerals. 



Gramineous Produce. 



Mean annual produce of Plot 

 No. 4, manured with ammo- 

 niacal salts only 



Mean annual produce of Plot 

 No. 8, manured with mixed 

 minerals 



Choice Inferior \ 

 Species. Species. Totals. 



Cwt. 



14 



i 



13 



Increase of good species. . , 

 Increase of inferior species 

 Total increase 



Cwt. 



17 



103 



n 



In the two immediately preceding manured instances 

 (Tables VI. and VII.), it has been seen that, whereas, 

 in the normal herbage of the unmanured soil, the in- 

 ferior species exceeded the choice kinds, in these two 

 former instances the relative prevalency was reversed— 

 that is to say, the effect of the farmyard dung (Table 

 VI.) and of the mineral manures (Table VII.) was, to 

 elevate the good herbage into the majority, and to de- 

 press the bad into the minority. But now, with an 

 ammoniacal dressing, the normal excess of inferior kinds 

 was perpetuated, the effect on the leguminous herbs 

 being actually to eradicate the best two of the three kinds 

 indigenous to the soil—namely, the clover and birdsfoot 



