oH J XOTKS ON TIIK liOTAW OF KXI'F.KIM ENTAL GRA3S-ri.0TS. 



plot, wliich yields an uvcrap^e sprinj^ crop of more than three tons of 

 hay, than a mere list of the species. The fip;ures indicate the; per-cent- 

 tipe by \vei<;ht of each species in tlie total weight of the spring crop. 

 Alopecurufi prntensis, 1235 ; Agrostis vulgaris, 13"56 ; flnlcus lanatus, 

 10-33 ; Arena clatior {Arrkenathfrum avenacenni), 10'41 ; Poa pratciisis, 

 10"40 ; and Dactijlis glomerata, 39'2B. Altogether, these six grasses 

 formed 96-33 per cent, of the cnjp of 1872. In their tables ilessrs. 

 Lawes and Gilbert give the ])er-centages of the graminaceous, the 

 leguminous, and the hcrl)age of other orders. Those of tlie ph)t named 

 for 1872 are respectively 98-81,0 01, and Tlo. It would occupy 

 too much space here to enter into the many interesting details of these 

 changes ; but there is the (juestion how far the various manures 

 exercise an influence on the botanical characters of the plants that calls 

 for a word , and this will be referred to again further on. The grasses 

 that constitute so large a proportion of the herbage on plot llo are 

 also all found on the unmanured plot, but the relative proportions are 

 quite different, and several species which do not occur on the former are 

 generally distributed over the unmanured. Taking a few species ia 

 illustration of this fact, we have : — 



Anthoxanthum odoratum 

 Briza media 

 Festuca ovina 

 Avena pubescens 

 A. flavesccns 

 ('ynosurus cristatus 

 Avena clatior 

 Dactylis glomerata 

 Alopecurus pratensis 

 Poa pratensis 



The general composition of the unmanured herbage is: — Gramina- 

 ceous, 68-66 ; leguminous, 8-98 ; other orders, 2236 per cent. — a kind 

 of herbage very much relished by cattle, but the average crop for 

 eighteen years is only a little over a ton per acre. Between these two 

 extremes, according to the manure applied, the development of 

 different species is very diverse, and some of the facts are not easily 

 exphiined. A few of the more remarkable cases may be quoted. The 

 quantities of manure are always at the same rate per acre. With 

 550 lbs. nitrate of soda, 300 lbs. sulpliate of potass, 100 lbs. each of the 

 sulphates of soda and magnesia, and 3^ cvts. of superphosphate of 

 lime, Bromus mollis and Poa ir/i'/a/Zs are developed to an extraordinary 

 degree. Sometimes the one preponderates and sometimes the other, 

 the cause of which I have not worked out ; but I imagine it is 

 connected witli the rainfall and other climatal conditions.' In 1872 

 the Bromus formed 42-10 and the Poa 2476 per cent, of the herbage, 

 associated with 386 per cent, of Anfhriscus sylvestris in a total 

 of 5-77 per cent, of •* other orders." "With 400 lbs. of ammonia -salts 

 and Z\ cwts. of superpbo.sphate of lime, there was 49-29 per cent, 

 of Feskica ovina, and 20o9 of Agrostis vulgaris, with scarcely any 



