174 AGRICULTURAL TEXT-BOOK. 



in favor of the latter. In laying down a permanent meadow, 

 the field should bo well manured, plowed deeper than usual, and 

 put in good condition in every way. In clay soils, finish put 

 ting in the grain crop, and harrow fine and evenly. Then sow 

 the grass seed, and roll in, till the surface is smooth, and the clods 

 entirely broken up. In such lands Timothy seed does not re 

 quire to be deeply buried, and the same applies to clover when 

 sown with it. In sand, give the grain one harrowing, sow the 

 grass seed, harrow cross ways, and finish by rolling. In Great 

 Britain, harrows made much lighter than the usual ones, with 

 long, narrow teeth, placed rather near together, are used ex 

 pressly for putting in grasses. In some cases a &quot; brush har 

 row&quot; is used for the same purpose. In very heavy soils, it is 

 recommended to roll as soon as the grain-sowing is finished, sow 

 the grass on the smooth surface, and finish with light harrowing, 

 To sow evenly requires some experience. The seed is caught 

 between two fingers and the thumb, instead of the whole hand, 

 and the casts are more frequent than in grain-sowing. There 

 are machines, fastened by a strap to the sower s neck, for the 

 purpose of sowing grass and clover seeds, which do the work 

 well, and cost only a small sum. Weeds are often conveyed in 

 grass seeds, and none but the perfectly clean should be pur 

 chased. Such will cost more at first but will be cheapest in the 

 end. The Journal of Agriculture gives a table from actual 

 experiment of the proper depth at which to sow these seeds. 

 Fourteen species of grasses and clover were tried, and in all 

 cases those on the surface, and not more than a quarter of an 

 inch in depth sprouted the best ; at 3 inches none at all ap 

 peared. In certain sandy and gravelly soils, however, grasses 

 and clovers are apt to dry up in summer, if the roots are super 

 ficial. (See Patent Office Reports, 1846, p. 694.) 



396. Under some circumstances, it is beneficial to steep such 

 seeds previous to sowing, to strengthen and insure the germin 

 ating powers. The best mode of doing this, is to spread the 



