No. 4.] NEW ENGLAND PASTURES. 13 



from the Forest Service of the United States Department of 

 Agricultnre. 



The great majority of New England pastnres can, how- 

 ever, be l)ui]t np to a point where they will ]>r()(luce mnch 

 more feed than at the present time. There are six general 

 methods by which snch pastnres can be bnilt np, at least 

 one of which can be nsed on nearly every New England 

 pastnre. 



First. — Prevent overgrazing. The reasons for this have 

 already been given. 



Second. — Do not graze too early in the spring. In many 

 instances if the cattle were ke])t off the pasture for two weeks 

 longer than is the prevailing practice the pasture would pro- 

 <luce far more feed and would carry a great deal more 

 stock. 



Third. — The investigations that have been carried on 

 during the last few years show that one of the most essential 

 ])(»ints in pasture improvement is that of fertilization. Nearly 

 all of the New England pastures show a striking lack of veg- 

 etable matter. The best method for replacing this is to top- 

 dress with barnyard manure. Experiments that have been 

 carried on in top-dressing land show that a light coating ap- 

 plied for two or three years in succession will give mnch 

 better results than if a large quantity is used in any one 

 year. With many of the farmers the question of where the 

 barnyard manure is to come from is a very serious problem. 

 It is probable that in many instances the farmer could 

 profitably use commercial fertilizer on some of his meadow 

 land for a time, and use the barnyard manure that ordinarily 

 goes on that area on his pastures. If the barnyard manure is 

 not available, or if the land is too rough to permit of getting 

 it on the ground readily, it is possible that commercial fer- 

 tilizers may be of value in this restoration process. While 

 there seems to be considerable difference of opinion as to the 

 value of commercial fertilizers in the improvement of pas- 

 tures, there is evidence at hand which indicates that this 

 metlioti can be used to advantage. At the present time a 

 series of experiments in pasture im])rovement an^ being car- 



