65 



On Some Other Useful Agricultural Plants 



Other Than Grasses, But Often Sown In 



Connection With These. 



We mean to deal in this chapter on such agricultural plants 

 which have some affinity in purpose with the grasses and which 

 are being either separately grown and given as fodder to the cattle, 

 or cultivated in connection with grasses and served as a mixed fodder. 



We consider most of the varieties we are to review, together 

 with their respective agricultural and nutritive values sufficiently 

 known to the average seedsman and farmer. It is, therefore, more 

 our intention, to give some useful hints as to their use in con- 

 nection with grasses, as it cannot fail, that a deeper knowledge 

 of that connection, based in the first place on practice, may assist 

 them to make a good choice amongst them, where it concerns to 

 make a mixture of the one and the other. 



And then it is, of course, of great avail to know, which varieties 

 of agricultural plants and natural grasses go together well from this 

 treble point of view: 1) Similarity of growth, sowing-time and time of 

 maturity; 2) Affinity in regard to nutritive value and of the soil they 

 require; 3) Duration of each of them so as to coincide together. 



There is f. i. 



Achillea millefblium (Yarrow) which, when young, is a 

 splendid fodder, the merits of which are being recognised more 

 and more by those who have made experiments with it for a 

 successive number of years. It grows on nearly all sorts of soil, 

 except on too wet and marshy lands. It is, however, the lighter 

 sandy and dry clay-soils where it thrives best of all. Though it 

 requires moist weather when it starts to develop, it stands after 

 that a lasting drought fairly well and is not subject to suffer from 

 severe winter-weather. It develops rather early, flowers end of July 

 when it commences to become somewhat hard and is being left 

 alone by the cattle, except that they eat off as yet the fine not 

 too numerous foliage. Apart from the fact that it is of very good 

 nutritive value, there is something in it acting as a purifier and 

 working as a kind of medicine in the cattle's stomachs and as an 

 appetizer. In view of this as well as of the fact, that it is a good 

 fodder when young, it is a good thing to use it in a very small 

 proportion, say of not greater than 1 or 2% in mixtures for per- 



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