110 



roll with a heavy iron roller ; apply twenty-five ox-cart loads of 

 composted manure to the acre ; harrow with Geddes's harrow, 

 by far the best implement for this purpose that I have ever 

 used; brush or harrow in lightly the seed, and roll again. 

 This process has never failed to give me a heavy grass crop the 

 following yeai*. Twelve acres, which last year yielded but half 

 a ton of hay to the acre, gave me this year, under this manage- 

 ment, three tons of excellent herdsgra&s hay to the acre. 



I have top-dressed a great deal of run out grass land ; but 

 not with the advantage which I anticipated. Heavy lands un- 

 questionably need stirring now and then ; and light lands 

 require frequent incorporation of manure. 



GRAIN. 



Corn and barley are the grain which I raise in any consider- 

 able quantity ; on gravelly soils, a little rye, as much for the 

 straw as for the grain. I raise corn because it is the best crop 

 I can take from land which I propose to lay down to grass. 

 I think grass follows it better than it does any of the root 

 crops, potatoes included. I believe, moreover, that- corn well 

 cultivated is a profitable crop ; and that corn fodder properly 

 cured and properly fed to cattle will amply repay the cost of 

 cultivation. Manure is spread upon the surface of my corn 

 land and harrowed in ; and a little super-phosphate of lime or 

 ashes, the Ibrmer placed in the hill, and the latter applied at 

 the first hoeing, generally gives abundant crops. 



The field appropriated to corn this year contains about four- 

 teen acres. It is rather low, and intersected by a small brook. 

 On one side of this brook, the land is clayey and heavy ; on 

 the other it is a mixture of sandy and clayey loam, strong and 

 warm, in some places presenting the appearance of having 

 been washed from the surrounding ledges by heavy floods, and 

 all interspersed with small shallow deposits of decayed vege- 

 table matter. Last year this field yielded a very small crop of 

 hay — not more than half a ton to the acre. Its surface 

 was broken by boulders, and by a knoll covered with Red 



