GRASSES IN NEBRASKA 391 



to run over the land with a harrow and thoroughly break up and 

 distribute this manure so that it shall not lie in clods upon the land, 

 if it has not been evenly spread at the time of its application. The 

 application of manure to meadows is as beneficial as to pastures, 

 but where coarse manure is applied in the winter it should be 

 thoroughly harrowed in the spring and the coarser parts raked off 

 and removed, so that it will not damage the first cutting of hay. 



Carl Rohde, Columbus, Neb. : My soil is all upland. The grass 

 mixture which I sowed consisted of brome grass, 12 pounds ; orchard 

 grass, 6 pounds ; meadow fescue, 6 pounds ; alsike clover, 2 or 3 

 pounds ; white clover, 1 pound. This pasture was seeded in 1904, 

 and has proved quite satisfactory ever since. We have always 

 been careful not to overstock it. I like the clover mixture in the 

 pasture, although we lost one heifer in June, 1907, on account of it. 

 As a general rule cattle will leave clover alone until it is matured 

 and the other grasses get shorter on account of a hot and dry spell, 

 which generally strikes us in the latter part of July and August. 

 For fertilization we have practised top-dressing with a manure 

 spreader, putting on about six loads to the acre. The effect of this 

 was quite marked, and I recommend it where the soil conditions are 

 similar. I do not carry more than one grown animal on every two 

 acres of pasture, but at that rate we have kept cattle as well as 

 pasture in excellent condition. The growth of the brome grass is 

 quite pronounced and easily determined on account of the broad 

 leaves and vigorous appearance, but I think that the other grasses 

 fit in well with the mixture. Regarding clover, I consider alfalfa 

 our stand-by, as it furnishes the best yield per acre, and seems to 

 be just what we need for our stock, with the present high price of 

 corn. Could we be sure however of getting a stand of red clover, 

 by sowing in wheatfields in the spring of the year, I think it would 

 fit in a 'little better with our crop rotation, especially when we con- 

 sider the bad results obtained by a good many farmers during the 

 past summer in plowing up alfalfa fields, and putting them into 

 corn. If reports are true, these fields were the first to show the 

 effects of the drouth. We do not like bluegrass for our upland; 

 it does not attain sufficient length. It does all right in valleys. 



William Ernst: Of all pasture grasses in southwestern Nebraska 

 Kentucky bluegrass gives the most service if properly handled. If 

 you have enough of it horses and cattle will live on it and thrive 

 the year round if not covered with sleet or snow. The original 



