20 EXPERIMENT STATION. [Jan. 



spite of these facts, however, the chanuc in the character of the 

 herbage, shown by examination early in the month of May, 

 1911. is nothing less than astonishing. In ])hice of the dull, 

 lifeless, moss-infested turf, thickly starred with bluets, we find 

 in these plots a rich, green turf, in which white (dover is nuicli 

 tli(^ most ])rominent s])ecies. Indeed, so thick is the clover in 

 these jdots that in most ])laces it constitutes a i)erfect mat. This 

 change, it should be pointed out, is the result simply of such 

 modification of the soil conditions as firs it for clovers, for no 

 seed of any kind has been sown. It can safely be inferred that 

 the plots wdiich have been top-dressed are now^ producing fully 

 three times the amount of feed produced by those which have 

 not been so treated. 



From the descri]iti(^n of the conditions under which this 

 experiment has been tried it will be recognized that no figures 

 can be ]>resented which will indicate the extent of the improve- 

 ment produced. An ex])eriment is now being laid out in which 

 two ])lots of c(]ual area, one to be top-dressed and the other not, 

 wdll be separately enclosed, and a record of the number of days 

 of pasturage each affords will be kept. It will be understood 

 that until we have this record it is not possible to state whether 

 the improvement referred to has been produced at such cost as 

 to make the system of top-dressing followed financially profit- 

 able. It is the belief of the writer, however, that it must 

 have been so. 



Conditions undek whtcit liket.v to be rrtoFiTABEE. 

 The fact has been referred to that a large proportion of our 

 pastures is producing relatively little feed. Whether they can 

 be ])rofitably improved by top-dressing is an ini])ortant question. 

 In a great many of our ]iastures improvement by top-dressing is 

 the only ])racticable method, since, owing to the conditions ex- 

 isting, it is im])ossible to ]dow them. Not all pastures, how- 

 ever, are in such condition that to])-dressing can be advised. It 

 is not believed it will 1)0 found profitable except in those cases 

 where the turf is mostly free from foreign growths, such as 

 shrubs, bushes, hardback (spirea) and ferns. If any consid- 

 erable proportion of tb.e area is occupied by such foreign 



