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XXIX. — On the Grmoth of Lucerne on Thin Liglit Soils and 

 Chalky Loams. — Letter to the Editor. 



My dear Sir, — As you were pleased with the crops of lucerne 

 which you saw growing' on my thin chalky land, and ask for 

 some account of their management, I have much pleasure in 

 complying with your request. 



My practice is to -sow this crop after the land has been 

 thoroughly well fallowed, highly manured, and sown witli 

 turnips, which are consumed on the land by sheep eating corn 

 or cake ; the land is then ploughed two or three times in the 

 spring, thoroughly pulverised, and the growth of small weeds 

 (if there are any) encouraged. The lucerne is then sown about 

 the second week in May without any corn; 25 lbs. per acre will 

 generally insure a good plant, which is very important : 20 lbs. 

 of this is drilled at about 7 inches apart, and the remainder, 

 that which is emptied from the drill, is sown broadcast on the 

 marks made by the drill-coulters, before the land is harrowed ; 

 by this means the ground is well covered, and the small annual 

 weeds are kept under by the crop. If the season is favourable, 

 the field will give a nice cut for the scythe at the end of August 

 or beginning of September, or else it may be fed with sheep 

 or cattle ; but it should not be depastured too closely. During 

 the ensuing winter the lucerne should receive a good dressing 

 of rich farmyard- manure, and in the spring some artificial 

 manure would be very serviceable. In the second season a good 

 fair produce may be expected, but the plant will not be in per- 

 fection till the following year. It requires a good dressing every 

 year, and nothing pays better for it, as it will last six or eight 

 years, and every year give three good cuttings. The first, even 

 in our backward eastern climate, is ready for the scythe by the 

 middle of May, and will yield 8 or 10 tons of excellent green 

 food, equivalent to 2 tons of hay. From its roots searching very 

 deep for their sustenance, it is not so much affected by drought 

 as the generality of plants, and shoots up almost immediately 

 after the scythe, yielding, in about eight or ten weeks, another 

 cutting of nearly two-thirds the weight of the first ; and again, 

 after a like interval of time, another cutting. This, of course, 

 will not be so productive as either of the two former ; but it 

 may be confidently expected that the produce of the second 

 and third cuttings will together equal the first crop. The crop 

 is chiefly consumed by horses, the first cutting being much 

 relished by them ; and, with the exception of sainfoin, it is the 

 most hearty and nutritious green food that can be given. Horses 

 are not so fond of the second or third cuttings as of the first, but 

 still it is very valuable food, considering the difficulty of finding 



