PASTURAGE. 269 



A field of Johnson grass needs to be re-seeded once in 

 every five or six years, and this can easily be done by 

 allowing small patches of the grass scattered over the 

 meadow to go to seed. The latter, when fully ripe, may 

 be either gathered and sowed broadcast, or left to drop 

 w^here it may. 



It is a good plan for a pasture, to sow both Johnson and 

 Bermuda together. The former will be thicker and finer, 

 and the latter will grow faster than if set alone ; but, after 

 a year or two, the pushing roots of the Bermuda will get 

 the better of the others, and finally the Johnson (or Means) 

 grass will retire from the field of battle until the war-cry 

 of the plowshare, and the clash of the trace-chain shall 

 summon it to the front again. 



The amount of nutrition in Johnson grass, properly 

 cured, is almost but not quite on a par with that of Tim- 

 othy or Bermuda, and all kinds of hay-eating stock are 

 extremely fond of it. 



It is cured in the same manner as Bermuda, with the 

 advantage of drying better in the windrows than the lat- 

 ter, as it does not lie so close, exposing the grass to the air 

 as much as possible and as little to the sun as may be. 

 These are the main objects to be attained in curing hay. 

 Too much sun is as hurtful as too little drying. 



When we add that this grass, unlike the Bermuda, will 

 not endure being occasionally overflowed, much as it likes 

 a reasonable degree of moisture, w^e have said all that is 

 necessary regarding this particular grass, which is destined 

 to take a significant part in the future welfare of Florida. 



Another most valuable grass, either for pasture or hay- 

 making, is the Para grass, which, as the name implies, 

 comes to us from Brazil. 



The seed of this grass does not mature in this climate, 

 and therefore it is propagated by x'ootlets only. The rows 



