IMPROVEMENT OF GRASS LAND 141 



tended to become exaggerated, especially in the case of 

 Rumex Acetosa. In one case, 89 per cent of the 

 herbage consisted of weeds, but Dr. Fream remarked, 

 " This turf showed early signs of an abundant growth 

 of Achillea Millefolium, and at length it became smothered 

 with this plant to an extent which would never be 

 possible in continuously grazed land." In several cases 

 upwards of 70 per cent of the miscellaneous herbage 

 was Rumex Acetosa. Yet we find it stated that 5 acres 

 of a pasture in North Staffordshire, from which the turf 

 examined consisted of 67 per cent " miscellaneous " 

 herbage, the balance being 32 per cent grasses and i 

 per cent leguminous, would " fatten four shorthorn 

 barreners between the middle of May and the beginning 

 or middle of August in a fairly good season ; they will 

 afterwards fatten, say, a dozen or fifteen wether sheep." 

 In well grazed pastures, it appears, the bulky lt miscel- 

 laneous " herbage is kept down, and " under the normal 

 treading and grazing of stock, such species as Achillea 

 Millefoliuni) Leontodon sp., Rumex Acetosa, would never 

 make the display which characterised several of the 

 turfs." 



In a report of some observations and experiments on 

 some English pastures 1 Mr. William Carruthers (Con- 

 sulting Botanist to the Royal Agricultural Society) 

 refers to the examination of some of the pastures from 

 which Dr. Fream's turves were cut, and although he 

 did not come to the same general conclusions as Dr. 

 Fream, he found that weeds constituted in some cases 

 a large proportion of the herbage. For example, a 

 Dorset pasture carried 22 per cent of Ribgrass (Plan- 

 tago lanceolata), 9 per cent of Bugle (Ajuga reptans\ 8 

 per cent of Buttercup (Ranunculus acris), 4 per cent of 



1 Jour. R.A.S.E , 1890, p. 95. 



