110 MASSACHUSETTS AGRICULTURE. 



1865, in a very rough state, covered with biislies and brakes, a 

 part of it rocky. It was very wet and cold, too soft to drive a 

 team iii)on. In July I mowed the whole piece, Imrned it over 

 and cut four ditches through the whole, sinking them four 

 inches into the hard pan, so as to drain off all the water. A 

 part of it soon became firm enough to plough ; other parts we 

 dug over, filling the holes and covering the wild stuff with 

 sand and soil. 



In 1866, I planted the part which was ploughed the year be- 

 fore, with potatoes and cabbages ; the crop was small, owing to 

 the land being so wet and cold. In August we covered the 

 two and a half acres, which had been broken up, with soil, put 

 on seventy horse-loads of stable manure and seeded it down, 

 using thirty-five pounds of clover, five pecks of timoth}" and 

 three bushels of redtop seed. Many would say that quantity 

 of seed was too large, but I worked by the rule laid down in 

 Holy Writ, " as a man soweth so shall he also reap." The 

 seed took well, and in the following year, 1867, it gave a heavy 

 crop of first quality of English hay, eight and three-fourths 

 tons at the first cutting and three and a half tons at the 

 second. 



In 1867, 1 ploughed and dug over the balance of the lot, 

 taking from it at least one hundred tons of stones, selling the 

 large ones and filling cross ditches with the small ones. In 

 August, 1868, 1 sowed it down in the same manner in which 

 the previous piece had been sown. 



The quantity of hay cut in 1868, was about the same as in 

 1867, except the second crop, which was about three-fourths of 

 a ton. In October I top-dressed a portion of it with stable 

 manure and a portion with leached ashes, at the rate of seventy- 

 five bushels to the acre. The ashes proved to be a better 

 dressing than the manure, and also killed the rust, which had 

 injured the grass the year before. I have used ashes on high 

 land with very satisfactory results, and their use on low land, 

 provided it is well drained, has proved equally satisfactory. 



In 1869, the whole lot in grass, I got twelve and a half tons 

 of hay at the first cutting, and one and a half tons at the 

 second. After mowing I put on a slight dressing of manure 

 and ashes. 



