STOCKING SEED-GKO WING. 359 



or two of rock-salt in the troughs or racks is also bene- 

 ficial ; and some old clover, sainfoin, or even a stubble field, 

 should be reserved for the stock to fall back upon should 

 the food at first be too strong for them or should wet 

 weather supervene. The great object of care in feeding 

 off rape is to prevent the sheep gorging themselves with 

 it on an empty stomach, or when it is wet in such 

 cases accidents and losses are sure to occur; indeed, it 

 is better at first to give a small break to them, morning 

 and evening, than a larger one that would suffice for the 

 whole day. 



In places where the crop is cultivated for seed, both the 

 colza and the rape may be sown at the ordinary time, and 

 after having been fed off, be allowed to remain for seeding 

 the following year ; or they may be sown at a later period, 

 up to September, and left without being stocked at all. 

 If fed off in the autumn, it is advisable not to let the 

 stems be eaten down too close to the crown of the root, 

 as in that case the wet and frosts of winter are apt to in- 

 duce decay, and thus destroy the plant. For seed-growing 

 purposes the "colza" is more productive than the "rape;" 

 the yield of both, however, is materially influenced by 

 the quality and condition of the soil in which they are 

 grown. For forage purposes the humous class of soils 

 are considered the most suitable, as they encourage and 

 support the development of the herbaceous tissues ; but 

 for seed purposes the stronger class, as loams and alluvial 

 soils, are generally the most productive. The crop is 

 generally ready for harvesting about the end of June, and 

 as the seed-pods mature very irregularly, some considera- 

 tion is required as to the best time for cutting, so as to 

 secure the largest yield. The upper pods are always ripe 

 earlier than those on the lower branches of the plant ; and 

 in order to give these as long a time as possible, it is recom- 

 mended not to cut until the earlier pods are dead ripe, 



