22 



Cultivation of the Grasses and 



sowed alone the heat affects them gradually, 

 and if the ground is occupied by weeds, these 

 mature and decay slowly, and not until au- 

 tumn admits the heat of the sun to the young 

 grass. 



The justification of sowing grass seed with 

 grain is our present poverty. It may be, and 

 in nine cases out of ten it will be, necessary 

 to manure heavily land to be put in grass. 

 The necessities of the farmer require that the 

 cost of the manure should be repaid the first 

 year. In that event, he must sow grain with 

 his grass seed, but always remembering that 

 by so doing he loses a year and endangers the 

 grass. 



When grain and grass are mixed both may 

 be sowed either in the fall or spring. Or the 

 grain may be sowed early in the fall, as oats 

 among cotton, the grain may be pastured 

 during the winter, and in the spring it may 

 be harrowed, clover and grass seed sown 

 upon it, and then rolled. The grain will 

 be benefitted by the harrowing and rolling, 

 although at the time it may look like de- 

 struction. 



"WHETHER IT IS BEST TO SOW A VAKIETT OF 

 GRASS SEEDS. 



The only instance in which it is advisable 

 to sow the seed of a single grass or forage 

 plant, are in the case of lucerne, which will 

 not bear admixture, clover in a rotation, or 

 where it is desired to save the seed of a par- 

 ticular grass. Perhaps in all other cases a 

 variety of grass seeds should be sown. 



The reasons for this practice are obvious. 

 There are certain grasses which are called 

 jungle or tussock grasses. These do not spread 

 from the root, but grow in bunches, as orch- 

 ard and meadow-oat grass. It is necessary 

 that some running grasses should be sown 

 with them to fill up the interstices, other- 

 wise broom-sedge, nimble-will, or that pest, 

 the native fox- tail, will take possession. 



Again the appetites of the grasses differ as 

 much as that of the cereals. The food which 

 one grass rejects, another devours. We 

 should imitate nature. If we will take a foot 

 square of land which has been a long time in 

 grass, we shall be surprised to find the num- 

 ber of different grasses which it contains. 

 The lesson taught us is obvious. We should 

 sow a sufficient variety of seeds to consume 

 every variety of food, and so to occupy the 

 ground as to keep out all intruders. Un- 

 fortunately, the list of grasses suitable to our 

 climate is limited. We should use them to 

 their fullest extent. At the hazard of some 

 repetition the variety of forage plants and 

 grasses and the quantity of seed to be sown is 

 given. 



PROPER MIXTURE OF GRASS SEEDS FOR DIF- 

 FERENT PURPOSES. 



For a rotation and to improve the soil, red 

 clover and orchard grass four quarts of 



clover and one bushel of orchard grass and 

 one bushel of meadow-oat grass. These 

 grasses are selected in connection with clover 

 because they mature rapidly ; a slow-spread- 

 ing grass like blue-grass would not answer in 

 a rotation when the grass would occupy the 

 ground only two or three years. These two 

 grasses produce in the run of a year, a vast 

 quantity of vegetable matter. The chief value 

 of the clover is the amount of ammonia which 

 it draws from the atmosphere, and by the de- 

 cay of its roots and leaves imparts to the soil. 

 These grasses would give an additional sward, 

 which turned under would supply a large 

 amount of humus, so necessary to our d~e- 

 nuded and exhausted soil. The sward of both 

 these grasses, being in themselves rich food, 

 when turned under, makes rich soil. The 

 farmer should always remember that plants 

 differ greatly in their value as manures. All 

 vegetable matters ploughed into the soil are 

 a manure, but their value differs as much as 

 our currency and gold. Both pass as money 

 but there is a material difference in their 

 value. The same remark holds true as to the 

 value of the manure of animals fed on differ- 

 ent kinds of food. One-fourth of the mnnure 

 of an animal fed on cotton-seed meal, will go 

 as far in enriching a soil as the whole of the 

 manure of the same animal fed on shucks or 

 straw. 



GRASS SEEDS FOR MEADOW LAND. 



One peck of Timothy, four quarts of Herd's 

 grass, and four quarts of white clover per 

 acre. If it be desired to obtain immediate 

 results, four quarts of red clover may be 

 added. This will disappear in two years if it 

 be mowed so as not to be allowed to seed. 

 For a permanent purpose the addition of red 

 clover is not judicious, because, as has been 

 previously remarked, it is ready for the scythe 

 long before either Timothy or Herd's grass. 

 It should be borne in mind that the word 

 meadow is generally applied to bottom land 

 in grass. When upland is mowed it is usually 

 designated as upland meadow. -Neither 

 Timothy nor Herd's grass are suitable for 

 mowing on upland. 



FOR SUMMER PASTURES. 



Our best summer pastures are Bermuda 

 and crab-grass. Red clover is valuable dur- 

 ing the spring and autumn. Herd's grass will 

 ive fair summer pasture on upland, especi- 

 ally on north hillsides; white clover is ex- 

 tremely valuable for certain kinds of stock ; 

 but, like red clover, after the seed has been 

 matured, it salivates horses. Little reliance 

 can be placed on -the cultivated grasses for 

 summer pasture ; we are, however, abundant- 

 ly supplied with natural grasses 



FOR WINTER PASTURE. 



Meadow-oat grass, orchard, blue and Ter- 

 rell grass, or wild rye, and red and white 



