(102) 



fall. Both heat and cold are injurious to young grass plants, 

 but of the two, cold is much less injurious than the 

 droughts of summer. It was the experience of the writer, 

 on one occasion, to sow a large meadow. He began about 

 the 1st of September and sowed on until rains stopped him, 

 and again in the middle of October, and finished early in 

 March. On the September sowing there was a magnificent 

 stand that stood over the ground with a solid turf. On the 

 October crop the stand was fair, but much was destroyed 

 during the winter, and the weeds were very troublesome 

 the next year. On the March sowing the stand promised 

 as well as the September crop, but the droughts of summer 

 destroyed it completely. 



But there will always be a difference of opinion on this 

 subject, and this difference mainly arises from the difference 

 in the character of soils. Some soils are better sown in the 

 spring, while others secure better results by fall sowing 

 and in either case the successful farmer will advocate his 

 plan. But in either case, as Gen. Harding truthfully says, 

 a man will fail sometimes, let him sow as he will. 



A few words are only necessary in regard to the manner 

 of sowing. In the first place, the ground should be thor- 

 oughly prepared, and a season on hand, and if rain has 

 fallen since the ground was put in order and packed the 

 surface, run a sharp toothed harrow over it to break up the 

 crust, then sow the seed and roll it in. A light harrowing 

 will also do on clayey soils. If its surface is too rocky, 

 stumpy or sloping, to admit a roller, the next best thing is 

 to brush it with a light full brush. If the surface is 

 perfectly smooth before the seeds are sown a light brushing 

 does very well, but if it is not, a roller is preferable, as it 

 will not cover so deeply as a brush. Remember that all 

 seeds covered two inches deep will not germinate. If sown 

 with grain, smooth the ground over with a brush after the 

 grain is sown, and let a hand follow immediately behind and 

 cast the seed into the brush. Never usq a heavy thin 



