108 FORAGE PLANTS AND THEIR CULTURE 



and provide against emergencies by having a reserve of 

 other feed. 



Among methods that have been recommended to im- 

 prove pastures are : 



1. Sowing a little seed each year. 



2. Light harrowing, especially with a chain drag. 



3. Mowing the weeds in time to prevent their seeding. 



4. Top-dressing with manure or other fertilizers. 



On account of the relatively small return from pastures, 

 the amount that can be spent profitably in improving them 

 is small, often not more than one dollar an acre a year. 

 With this limitation in mind, the first three methods of 

 improvement are with little doubt sound, but fertilizers 

 can usually be applied more profitably elsewhere than in 

 pastures. Seeding on pastures where the turf is dense 

 and the weeds few is not advisable. As may easily be 

 observed, the sod in early spring on most pastures does 

 not make a complete cover, but the vacant spaces often 

 occupy one-fourth to one-half the ground. Where this 

 is the case, it is probable that a light scattering of seed in 

 very early spring is desirable. 



96. Pasturing meadows. The aftermath or rowen of 

 grass meadows is very commonly used for pasturage in 

 the fall. If the grazing be light, the probabilities are 

 that the succeeding year's crop is not injuriously affected, 

 but no critical experiments on this subject have been 

 reported. 



Pasturing meadows in early spring is, however, generally 

 considered to be harmful to the succeeding hay crop. 



97. Carrying capacity. The carrying capacity of a 

 pasture is the number of animals of a particular kind that 

 a unit of area will support for a definite period. On per- 

 manent pastures and on range lands this is usually stated 



