THE EARTH'S BOUNTY 



fibrous interference. Sandy soil cannot cohere 

 without its aid. 



Our stock was not large enough to supply, 

 in one season, sufficient manure to repay the 

 years of robbery. Buying it, or adopting the 

 new system of sowing crops, to plow under as 

 " green manure," would have been beyond the 

 exchequer; so, as usual, a modified course had 

 to be adopted on the first field, which was the 

 heavy soil. Turning in the sod, poor as it was, 

 supplied some humus. 



Early in the spring, as the ground was dry, 

 it was harrowed, sowed with Golden Vine va- 

 riety of Canadian peas and oats, two bushels 

 of peas and one of oats to every acre, mixed, 

 and planted with a drill; rows eighteen inches 

 apart; seed covered two inches. Cost of seed 

 for the ten acres, $25. 



On June 20th we commenced cutting for 

 green fodder, using a scythe, and slicing down 

 just the quantity to feed each day. By July 

 7th not quite an acre had been cut. The silo 

 was not finished, and we did not wish to keep 



61 



