Cultivation of Arable Land Preparation of Land for Grafs Seeds. 3 1 5 



ftifficiently obvious, that by a careful attention to the procuring of the bcft and 

 moft fuitable forts of grafs-feeds, and applying them according to the principles 

 which have been given above, much fuperiority may be attained in the forming of 

 pafture or other forts of grafs-lands. 



Preparation of Land for Grafs Seeds This is a part of management that is of 

 v-aft importance to the fuccefs of forming good grafs lands, but which has been 

 much neglected in the practice of laying them down. From the fmallnefs of the 

 feeds, and the fibrous nature of the roots of the grafs-plants in mod cafes, it is 

 evident tbat lands which are intended for being laid down to the ftate of fward, 

 whatever their quality may be in refpect to foil, mould conftantly be brought 

 into as fine a ftate of pulverization and mellownefs as poflible before the feeds are 

 put in. As where the contrary is the cafe, from the lumpinefs of the furface 

 mould, the feeds can neither be fown with fo much regularity, vegetate in Ib 

 equal a manner, or extend their roots, and eftablifh themfelves at firft fo per- 

 fevtly in the land, they are of courfe more liable to be deftroyed by hot feafons 

 coming on afterwards. It is probable that in this way much new laid down grafs- 

 land is greatly injured the firft fummer, efpecially when it turns out to be hot and 

 ilry. The neceflary finenefs of mould may be obtained in different modes, accord 

 ing fo the nature of the lands. In the more ftiffand heavy ones, by ploughing 

 before winter, and leaving them to be expofed to the action of frofts and other 

 caufes during that feafon; having recourfe to fevere harrowing and occafional 



byStilrjngflee-t, and particularly defcribed in the firft ^volume of the Memoirs of the Bath. 

 ral JSocietj, the produce was 



In Turf I, 

 trivially Ranunculus acris, Triticum repens, Agroftis rmluftris, 



Jn Turf 2. 

 Poa trivialis. Alopecurus pratenfis. Triticum repens, 



Jn Turf 3. 

 Poa trivialis, Agroftis paluftris, 



In Turf 4, 

 Poa trivialis, Triticum repens, Peucedanura Silaui, 



Jn Turf 5. 

 Poa trivialis, Alopecurus pratentls, Agroftis paluftris, Avena elatior. Triticura rcpns, 



From this trial it i proved, the writer fuppofes, that the great produclivenefs of this meadow did not 

 depend on any new grafs peculiar to it, but on the concurrence of different and unufual circumilances; 

 favouring, in an uncommon degree, the growth of certain well-known grafles, as the Poa trivialis and 

 dgrostis jwlustris, 



$82 



