A7id Improvement of Soils. 195 



be eaten greedily by the cattle after they have been sa- 

 tiated with the soft blades of the oats ; under this ma- 

 nagement, beeves have been fatted for family use and 

 taken off in December, without any grain. It is ob- 

 served that the oats scour at first, but the free use of 

 salt, readily corrects the complaint, and in no pasture 

 do they rise faster in flesh ; and the juices of their meat 

 uncommonly grateful. 



The fields which have been in corn the preceding 

 year, have also been sown in the spring ; without being 

 reploughed, and have done equally well, except upon 

 heavy clays, when the spring has commenced \\\x\\ 

 heavy rains, which have rendered the soil too compact 

 to be opened, even with a heavy brake harrow, drawn 

 by four horses. The fields from the oat pasture the 

 foregoing autumn, have also been sown, without re- 

 ploughing, when the spring has set in without much 

 rain, after severe frost : not only the oat pasture, but 

 also the clover sown therewith, have answered well. 



Oats have also been sown amongst the hills, and 

 drills of corn, after it has received the last dressing. It 

 has succeeded, without any visible injury to the corn, 

 provided, care has been taken not to injure the roots, 

 by the plough or harrow at the time the oats were 

 sown. 



It has been enquired, are not all crops of oats ex- 

 hausting, if so, how can two sowings of oats in the 

 same year, render the soil fertile ? it is granted, if oats 

 shall be matured into seed they will certainly exhaust, 

 but if cut off, while in the blade, they, and all culmi- 

 ferous plants, will fertilize. The experiment was made 

 with lucliaa corn, sown broad-cast, cut twice and car- 



