S20 AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. [Jan. 



12. Report on General Farm Work (1894). 



The lands assiijned for the use of the Massachnrsetts State 

 Agricultural Experiment Station cover an area of fifty acres. 

 Ten acres are natural woodlands, and forty acres, including 

 the space occupied by the buildings, are used for the raising 

 of farm crops. At present from fifteen to sixteen acres are 

 under cultivation, and from sixteen to seventeen acres are 

 permanent grass lands. As every portion of the land is at 

 present serving for some special experiment, the general 

 management of the farm is to a controlling degree subjected 

 to the requirements of the work called for in connection with 

 the various questions under investigation. The adoption of 

 a thorough mechanical preparation of the soil, supported by 

 a careful, clean cultivation of the crops raised, has brought 

 the lands into a fair condition for field experiments. Each 

 field has had for years its own system of manuring, and 

 becomes thereby from year to year more valuable for experi- 

 mental purposes. Wherever circumstances have been favor- 

 able, forage crops have been chosen, for the purpose of 

 studying the influence of various systems of fertilization and 

 cultivation on their growth and special character. This 

 practice has resulted already in the successful introduction 

 of some valuable forage plants new to our locality, and has 

 also materially assisted us in an economical support of quite 

 extensive experiments in stock feeding. The beneficial effect 

 of many of these crops on the physical and chemical condi- 

 tion of our cultivated lands is everywhere noticed, when 

 compared with their previous general condition. 



During the past season soja bean, vetch and oats, vetch 

 and barley, and vetch, oats and horse bean have been raised. 

 The vetch and oats was fed in part green and the remainder 

 was converted into hay for dairy cows. The soja bean was 

 used in a mixed silage with corn. The vetch and barley and 

 vetch, oats and horse bean were used for liay. 



Twenty-six tons of corn have* been put into the silos, 

 about three to four tons being in the form of mixed silage 

 with soja bean. Of the remainder, part was fed green and 

 the rest harvested at maturity. 



