PASTURES AND GRAZING THEM BY SHEEP 185 



worms and stomach worms than when managed in the 

 ordinary way. 



The increase in the return of wool and mutton comes 

 from the increase in the food grown on a given area when 

 it is thus grown. The food furnished from a certain area 

 sown to rape, for instance, may be several times as much 

 as would be obtained from the same or an equal area of 

 old grass pasture. The extent of the increase will con- 

 tinually vary with the different conditions, but the fact 

 that usually there is increase should draw favorable at- 

 tention to the growing of these crops. That such addi- 

 tional increase will more than offset the additional cost 

 of labor is also true in many instances ; in fact, in a great 

 majority of these should constitute a further claim for 

 such attention. 



The aid thus furnished in destroying weeds is most 

 substantial and far reaching. Especially is this true 

 should the land thus used be confined to the growing of 

 catch crops for two or three successive years, and it is 

 more emphatically true with the increase in the number 

 of the crops grown and grazed. The results claimed fol- 

 low from the influence which frequent plowing has on the 

 germination of weed seeds lying in the soil and on the 

 destruction of weeds by burial, also through the crossing 

 of the same while being grazed. The eradication of such 

 annuals as wild mustard is greatly facilitated by the great 

 increase in germination resulting over ordinary methods 

 of cultivation. Each seed thus germinated grows a plant 

 that is consumed. The eradication of biennials becomes 

 easy and sure through their burial. The eradication of 

 perennials in much less sure, owing to the way in which 

 they multiply in the soil ; but if some of the supple- 

 mentary crops grown, as rape, should be grown and cul- 

 tivated, all forms of perennials treated thus would be 

 greatly lessened. 



This method of fighting weeds, in the judgment of the 

 author, will be very efficacious. The opinion thus given 



