276 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 



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cant, so far as the actual fertility contained in it, but it 

 was pregnant with results when it came to act. 



Cowpeas and Bluegrass. In Virginia the best farmers 

 desiring to sow worn limestone clays to bluegrass com- 

 monly put the land first in cowpeas, which are turned 

 under with all their growth. Afterward bluegrass takes 

 well and the effect of the peas is seen for some time; 

 whereas it might be nearly impossible to establish the 



Bluegrass (40 Ibs. green) from a square rod of Unmanured Land Equal to 6,400 

 Ibs. green per acre. 



bluegrass. The conclusion is irresistible: manure, veg- 

 etable matter decaying in the soil, is the mother of grass 

 and clover. 



Moisture the Limiting Factor in Grass Production. 

 What limits the production of meadow or pasture is the 

 moisture supply. In not one year in a century is it ample 

 at all seasons. Plants drink their food, and can make no 

 growth in dry soil. It is best, therefore, to devote the 

 better more moisture-holding soils to grasses, and put 



