370 



THE GENESEE FARMER. 



GBAZmG SHEEP. 



SuKKP, in order to tlirive ou grass, require a 

 short, sweet, and nutritions herbage; and to this 

 end clover is especially adapted for them. Less 

 attention is paid to the special wants of each kind 

 of stock, as regards the preparation of pasture lands 

 for them, here than in England. Our grasses are 

 coarser, and grow more rapidly than there; and 

 every farmer here keeps a variety of stock, and 

 herds them together too much. Sheep do well in 

 a pasture after other stock have eaten away the 

 first coarse growth, provided the after-growth has 

 well started, and no greater number are kept on 

 the pasture than is consistent with keeping the 

 grass up to a certain point — say so high as to hide 

 the feet of the sheep from view when standing in 

 the field. Breeding ewes with lambs at their sides 

 require such pasture as will enable them to give a 

 steady and uninterrupted flow of milk, up to the 

 time of weaning. Lambs are usually weaned during 

 the month of August, and at this time the ewes 

 may be turned into a bi^re pasture or stubble for 

 a few weeks, till their milk dries up; after which, 

 they should be brought into good condition again 

 before the time of putting the rams with them. 

 Lambs, when separated from the ewes at weaning 

 time, are usually placed in a field of young clover 

 by themselves, where the grass is rich and succu- 

 lent. In England they are allowed a small portion 

 of oil-cake, daily, in addition to the pasture. Rams 

 require to be separated from the ewes before wean- 

 i0g time, and should be got into as high condition 

 as possible, without making them too fat and indo- 

 lent, by the time they are to be again placed in 

 their company. Great attention is necessary in 

 seledxiig good-sized, well-shaped, thrifty animals to 

 breed from; and on no account should a badly- 

 shaped or unthrifty animal be retained, merely be- 

 cause it possesses good blood or came from a good 

 stock. Like breeds like, and defects are much 

 easier to propagate and inherit than excellencies. 

 Every exceptionable animal should be condemned 

 to the knife of tlie butcher without mercy. 



On the subject of the grazing of fatting sheep, 

 we think we can not do better than give the views 

 of a writer in the London Mark Lane Express of 

 June 27th, 1859: 



"It is now becoming the almf)3t universal custom 

 to accomplish the fatting and prt'f)ariiti()n for mar- 

 ket of all the sheep stock not required for breeding 

 purposes, at an early age. Fattened sheep now sel- 

 dom exceed twenty-one months, and are only shorn 

 once. There are various modes of fatting sheep 

 stock, according to the precise character of the 

 pastures upon which they are grazed. The best 

 mode OQ the common grass fattening pastures is 



this: Let the pasture be laid in for the most part 

 during the winter, or certainly not later than the 

 Lst of February. It will then have time for the 

 soil to lighten, the roots to expand, and tlie blades 

 of grass to put forth. When it is well greened 

 over, i. <3., the grass itself is fairly seen, it is ready 

 for a partial stocking, and a few of the best slicep 

 may be drafted into it, so that they may be getting 

 forward, ready to be sent to market as the pasture 

 requires easing in the summer. As thepixsture im- 

 proves, more may be added, according to the re- 

 quirements of the pasture: for it must he borne in 

 mind that these fatting pastures must be kept in a 

 true fatting state, or the sheep will not thrive fast 

 enough. They must be kept short, thick, and of a 

 uniform growth of from 1^ to 2 inches in length. 

 No tufts or hassocks must on any account be per- 

 mitted to accumulate or stand. For this purpose a 

 horse or two in a field, or a few young cattle^ as 

 "Je/i<er«," are desirable adjuncts to good sheep 

 grasing; and, if my readers won't smile, I wonld 

 say a small flock of geese would be an additional 

 help to the well-doing of the sheep. They crop 

 the long coarse blades of grass, the buttercups, the 

 sorrel, many weeds, and other not very desirable 

 herbage. 



" Our best sheep-grazing lands will thug admira- 

 bly fatten the stock put upon them; but should the 

 land and herbage not be of this tirst class order, 

 then resort must be had to corn or cake to bring 

 them equally forward. It is exceedingly good 

 practice, too, on almost any land, as it not only 

 helps the best lands to fatten them faster, but it 

 enables all lands to carry more stock, and adds 

 greatly to their grazing powers. Grass lands arc 

 amazingly improved by this mode of grazing. The 

 writer has about seventy acres of grass land upon 

 which this course has been practiced with great, 

 success; and if the prices of wool and mutton 

 retain their present rates, he will adopt it up m tlie 

 grass of his whole occupation. Inferior grass lands 

 have thus been converted into very useful fatting 

 pastures, carrying a large amount of heavy sheep. 

 The number of sheep fatted per acre upon these 

 and similar lands would average about seven light- 

 woolled, and six to seven heavy-wooled .sheep ; 

 and what is remarkable this year is, that the light 

 wool is not worth so much per lb. as the heavy 

 wool. We are speaking of fatting pastures, not of 

 the general pastures devoted to grazing the breed- 

 ing flock and store flock; these may be depasture^] 

 in greater numbers. It is superfluous to remark 

 that these grazing lands must be kept clear of 

 weeds, i. e., thistles, nettles, ragwort, and every 

 other pest." 



Roup ix CnicKKNs. — The Cottage Oardener says: 

 " Wash the head once or twice daily with tepid 

 water, and give one grain of sulphate of copper 

 daily, mixed in oatmeal mashed with ale. Separate 

 the infected fowl from the others; give it only soft 

 food, but an unlimited supply of grass, lettuce, and 

 other greens. If not better in a week, kill it." 

 ^ ■ — ■ — 



The reason that the Cockle-bur, that great pesl 

 on farms, can not bo destroyed by being cut off 

 once a year, is that nature has provided for its prop- 

 agation by bestowing on it seed vessels which ripen 

 at two different times of the year. — Western Farmer 

 and Gardener, 



