96 FARMING ON FACTORY LINES 



are few farmers who are not aware of the value of 

 the crop for soiling, and in sheep districts for folding, 

 but few farmers or agricultural experts seem to have 

 realised the possibility of the crop as hay or ensilage, 

 and the improvements in the methods of growing the 

 crop, which are possible. 



Not an agriculturist in a thousand is even aware 

 that the crop can be cut twice and even three times 

 in the year, by improved methods of cultivating, 

 manuring, etc. Many, who for years have grown the 

 crop, are of opinion that it is a difficult crop to 

 convert into hay. In fact in tare-growing districts 

 there is an axiom that a man can only hope to make 

 one good tare hay crop in his lifetime. 



CAUE2 OF FAILURE 



The reason for the prevalence of this latter opinion 

 is very simple when one comes to investigate the 

 matter. Invariably far too great a proportion of 

 vetches to cereals or pulse is sown. As a result, the 

 tare crop, when ready for cutting, is a frightful 

 tangled mass of vegetation, presenting great difficulty 

 in cutting and still greater difficulty in curing. 



A crop resulting from the usual tare mixture that is 

 sown cannot be cut, with any degree of satisfaction, 

 with a mowing machine, especially in a damp season. 

 Even with the assistance of several people provided 

 with forks to pick up the stuff in front of the mower, 

 and afterwards part the swathes from each other, the 

 task is a difficult one. Often the crop has to be cut 

 with slow and expensive scythe labour, and, when 

 the cutting of such a crop has been finally 

 accomplished, either by machine or scythe, no ordi- 

 nary hay harvesting implement, swathe-turner, side- 



