132 FARMER'S BOOK OF GRASSES 



cent-age will germinate, and to sow accordingly. And as sec 

 ing a large farm is * T ery expensive, with bought seeds, it is a go 

 plan to have separate lots, each with picked seed of a sing 

 grass, for the purpose of propagating such sound seeds as 

 may wish for mixtures or other purposes. Thus a large ai 

 may in a few years be satisfactorily set in grasses at moden 

 cost. Grass seeds should be carefully examined and tested t 

 fore planting for another reason ; viz : they are often mix 

 with seeds of undesirable and pernicious plants. Sometin 

 they are manufactured of wood and other materials and colort 

 or old worthless seeds are colored to resemble the fresh or n< 

 seeds. 



MEADOWS. 



The remarks made on Bermuda grass, Johnson grass, TJ 

 oat grass, Orchard grass and Red clover, I trust will suffice i 

 this head. The paspalums are also good meadow grasses th 

 re-seed the land annually. I have seen a valuable meadow 

 these grasses alone mown for a series of years. The grass bo 

 green and dry; is much relished by stock, and very nutritioi 

 (See pages 86-88). 



CHAPTER -XII. 

 The Silo ind JEnsila-ge. 



It is but a few years since the advent of these two words i] 

 to American agricultural literature, yet to-day a work on Fo 

 age Plants would be deemed incomplete without some men tic 

 of them. Silo is properly a pit though now sometimes eoi 

 structed partly, sometimes wholly above ground. Ensilage 

 the process of preparing and preserving green forage en ^il 

 that is by ensilaging or empitting. The word is used to desi< 

 nate also" the forage itself so prepared. 



THE PROCESS. 



Maize, being most frequently used for making ensilage, ma 

 be conveniently taken to illustrate the process. At a propc 

 stage of growth the whole plants are cut near the ground, hau 

 ed to the silo, cut into short pieces, throwned into the pit an 

 tramped down by men as thrown in. This process is contir 

 ued till the pit is filled and the cut forage piled and trampe 

 far above the top of the silo. Then it is covered and heav 

 weights placed on top 100 to 200 pounds per square foot. ] 

 soon shrinks about one-third to one-half and if rightly manage 



