GRASS. 



GRASS. 



of two or three plants only. The plants which ' 

 usually tenant the best natural pastures are 

 the meadow fox-tail, round cock's-foot, meadow 

 fescue, meadow cat's-tail, sweet-scented vernal 

 grass, tall oat-like soft-grass, creeping vetch, 

 rye-grass, field brome-grass, annual meadow 

 or Suffolk grass, meadow oat-grass : these yield 

 the principal grass in the spring, and a chief 

 portion of that of the summer. Then, again, 

 we find the yellow oat-grass, meadow barley, 

 crested dog's-tail, hard fescue, rough-stalked 

 meadow-grass, smooth-stalked meadow-grass, 

 woolly soft-grass, perennial red clover, white 

 or Dutch clover, yellow vetch or meadow la- 

 thyrus, and the smooth fescue, which yield the 

 principal portion of the summer arid autumn 

 produce. Lastly, we find the yarrow, creeping 

 bent or fiorin, marsh bent-grass, and creeping 

 wheat-grass or couch, vegetating most vigo- 

 rously in the autumn. Besides these," conti- 

 nues Sinclair, " in the richest natural pastures 

 are invariably found the butter-cups (Ranuncu- 

 lus acris), rib-grass or ribwort plantain (Planta- 

 go lanceolata), and sorrel dock (Rumex acetosa)" 

 Of these, however, except in cases of necessity, 

 live-stock will only eat the rib-grass. 



To examine the nature of the change pro- 

 duced on rich pasture land by a course of grain 

 crops, Mr. Sinclair made the following valuable 

 experiments : 



" A space of 2 square yards of rich ancient 

 pasture land was dug to the depth of 8 inches; 

 400 grains of this soil, freed from moisture and 

 the green vegetable fibres, contained 



Gr. 



Calcareous and silicious sand - 102 

 Decomposing vegetable matter and parti- 

 cles of roots ------ 55 



Carbonate of lime (chalk) - - - 160 



Silica (flint) 50 



Alumina (clay) ------ 25 



Oxide of iron ____-- 4 



Soluble vegetable matter, and sulphate of 



lime (gypsum) ----- 4 



400 



"This soil was then cropped for 5 seasons 

 alternately with 1, oats; 2, potatoes; 3, wheat; 

 4, carrots ; 5, wheat. It was then examined, to 

 ascertain what change it had undergone by 

 bearing these crops. It appeared to consist of 



Gra. 



Calcareous and silicious sand - - - 100 



Decomposing vegetable matter 48 



Carbonate of lime (chalk) - - - - 159 



Silica (flint) ------ 57 



Alumina (clay) 26 



Oxide of iron ------ 5 



Soluble vegetable and saline matter 3 



Loss 



400 



"Thus, the earthy portion of the soil had 

 undergone but little change, but it had sus- 

 tained a very considerable diminution of its de- 

 composing vegetable and animal matters, par- 

 ticularly when it is considered that the turf 

 also was incorporated with the soil. Manure 

 was now for the first time applied, and, with 

 the wheat stubble, dug in to the depth of 6 

 inches. The surface was then made fine with 

 a rake, and sown with a mixture of the follow- 

 ing grass seeds, at the rate of 5 bushels to the 

 acre: Meadow fescue, meadow fox-tail, round 

 572 



cock's-foot, tall oat-like soft-grass, creeping 

 vetch, rye-grass, meadow cat's-tail, crested 

 dog's-tail, yellow oat, meadow oat, hard i'escue, 

 smooth-stalked meadow-grass, fertile meadow- 

 grass, nerved meadow-grass, cow clover (Tri- 

 folium medium'), Dutch or white clover, and 

 fiorin, marsh-bent. These were sown on the 

 28th of August, 1813. They all vegetated be- 

 fore the first week of October except the creep- 

 ing vetch (Viria sepium}, which did not germi- 

 nate till the autumn of 1814. Before the frost 

 set in they had a top-dressing with a compost 

 of rotten dung, lime, and vegetable mould, laid 

 on in a fine and dry state, and rolled, and again 

 rolled in February. The plants sprang earlier 

 than those of the old pasture (a circumstance 

 common to young plants in general). In the 

 first week of July the produce was cut and 

 weighed: it amounted to one-eighth more than 

 the produce of the ground in its original state. 

 The aftermath, however, of the seedling grasses 

 weighed one-fifth less than that of the natural 

 pasture. But in 1815, upon cutting and weigh- 

 ing the grass in the first weeks of June and 

 August, and again in the middle of September, 

 the total weight of these three crops exceeded 

 that of the old turf exactly in the proportion of 

 9 to 8." (Hort. Gram. Wob. p. 131.) 



2. The grasses which are the natural tenants of 

 dry sandy and elevated soils. These, according 

 to Sinclair, are the sheep's fescue, viviparous 

 fescue, purple fescue, pubescent fescue, glau- 

 cous fescue, wall fescue, wall barley, fine bent, 

 brown bent, lobed bent, rock bent, snowy bent, 

 purple bent, tufted-leaved bent, waved hair- 

 grass, feather-grass, slender foxtail, hairy oat- 

 grass, blue melic grass, upright mat-grass, 

 blood-coloured panic-grass, green panic-grass, 

 barren brome-grass, crested brome-grass, up- 

 right annual brome-grass, nodding brome-grass, 

 Alpine meadow-grass, Alpine foxtail-grass, 

 blue moor-grass, crested hair-grass, panicled 

 cat's-tail grass, reflexed meadow-grass, flat- 

 stalked meadow-grass, meadow-barley, bird's- 

 foot clover, larger bird's-foot clover, trefoil or 

 nonsuch, sainfoin, soft brome-grass, creeping 

 soft-grass, and white or Dutch clover. (Ibid. 

 p. 256.) 



" When these sandy upland soils are im- 

 proved by the application of clay or marl, they 

 are then capable of supporting a very superior 

 description of grasses to these, and the follow- 

 ing varieties," says Sinclair, "should be sown, 

 for experience will prove that, under such cir- 

 cumstances, they are the best for that purpose." 

 (I'uid. p. 337.) 



lUrlcy-likr sheep's-fesciie - 

 Cock's -font grass - 

 Crested dog's-tail grass 

 Yellow oat-grass - 

 Rye-grass - ... 

 P'lat-stalked meadow-grass - 

 Various-leaved fescue - 

 Hard fescue - - - - 

 Lesser bird's-foot trefoil 

 White clover - 



3 pecks. 

 3 



1 



2 

 1 

 1 



Ib. 



3 



3. The grasses of bogs, or other very moist soils. 

 These are commonly of the most worthless 

 description to the cultivator : they are chieflr 

 the marsh bent, awnless brown bent, awned 

 creeping-bent, smaller-leaved creeping-bent, 

 creeping-rooted bent, white bent, flote fescue, 

 tall fescue, turfy hair-grass, knee-jointed fox- 



