212 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER, 



Jan. 25, 1828, 



v,aASSKS. 



ig Ihe articles selected for thai valuab 



Tbe follow: 



work, eiHillec! ' Hints for American Husbandmen," &c. pub- 



fohed under the auspices of the Peims^'lvania AgricullurnI 



Society. — 



On G'asses — Orchard — Rye — Clover — Sainfoin, 



(fc. their proil'icts, comparative vatuis, constituent 



parts, modes of .-.owing, managing, quantity, qual- 

 ity of Seeds, an I adaptation tn particular Soils. 



In soint" planu tliere is a comparative e.'ccess of 

 (saline matter, "ml when such plants are friven un- 

 mixed with any other to cattle, they are most s b- 

 jeit to iliseasp, or continue for a length of time 

 be ore they improve, however abundant the supply. 

 The followiiis facta, which came within my own 



palatable nature of the hay^ The plants of gtas I ten.iis) ■ 2 bushels 



are likewise much weakened by the production of Rough-stocked meadow-grass (Poa tri- 

 sped, for in all the e.xperiments I hive made, the | vialis) o n 



produce of latter-math proved always less, in Tall oat-like soft-grass /■ //o/c«5 arena- 

 many instances one-half less, in a given time after ecus) Oi " 



the seed crop, than after the crop take i at the 

 time of flowering ; I never could perceive, howev- 

 er, that the bad eflTects extended in any degree to 

 the next following season, the weight of produce 

 being then as frequently superior as equal or less. 



Rye-grass appears to have been cultivate'! pre- , Wood meadow-grass (Poa nemoralis) 

 vious to thf year 1677 ; besides which, red clover, j Narrow leaved meadow-crrass (Poa an- 

 sainfoin, spurrey, trefoil, and nonsuch, were the' gustifolia) 



only plants then cultivated as grasses, or termed i Broad leaved creeping bent, or florin 

 such. And it is only of late years that any other (.igrostis stolonifera, var. lalifolia) 

 immediate observation, may serve as an instance I gppcies of the natural grasses has been tried as Rye-gr-dsa (Loliwn perenne) 

 to point out the iuiportance of a mi.xture of such i a substitute for it in forming artificial pastures While, or Dutch clover (Tn/o/iuOT re- 

 ™-o„.,„. «„ «„t..„.„ . ■ .„ 1 .. — _^^ cat's-tail grass (Ptileum praiense) ; cocks- peas) 



foot grass (Dactylis glomerata) ; and fox-tail Bust] vetch yFtcia sc;)tumj 



grass (Atopecxirus pratensis). The cat's-tail grass ' Sweet-scented vernal gra.ss (Anthoxan 



appears to have been made trial of before ei- ! thum odoratum) 



ther of the other two. ni^t more than fifty years ~ 



affo. by Mr Rocque, a farmer at Walhamgreen, 



grasses as possess some difference in the qualities 

 of their nutritive matter ; and at the same time 

 they will show, th t the bitter extractive is effica- 

 cio IS in correctin'.' the over-succulency, or laxa- 

 tive natire of jrrepn tbod, without the aid of dry 

 veeetab e fibre. 

 Two 



Meadow cat's-tail (Phkum pratense) 15 pounds. 

 Hard, or smooth fescue (Festuca durius- 



cula, vel glabra) 2 bushels 



Crested dog's-tail (Cynosiirus crislatus) 1 " 

 Nerved meadow-grass (Poa uarvataj Oi 



Oi" 



r " 



15 pounds. 

 OJ bushel 



fiells were sown down Inr pasture; one I near London. The seed of the cocksfoot grass 

 with white clover and trefoil, only, and the other „as introduced about the same time from Virginia 

 with a variety of the natural grasses, for experi- by the S!ocipty of .A.rts, &c . b.it no trial was made 

 tnent, with a portion of white clover. The two of it till several years afterwards ; it was then 

 fields .vere depastured with sheep. In the inclo- callprf orchard ffrass ; and the merits of which 

 sure of white clover a considerable quantity of gppn, ,(, |,avp heen first accurately pointed out by 

 cocksfoot grass grew on the ed^e of the fence : the late excellent Mr. Curtis in his several works 

 it was of a very harsh quality, from its unfavora- g^ grasses. 



ble situation, and consi-ted almost entirely of There has been much difference of opinion re- 

 culm.s. In a few days the sheep went to this specting the merits and cotnpirative value of rye- 

 ^ass, and site it do«n entirely, though there was grass. It produces an abundance of seed, which 

 a profusion of white clover. In the course of is easily collected and readily vegetates on most 



since, I find it does not exceed the income of toy 



tiinp mam- nf tip Qhpp,i hpnmp nfTpctpd with tl,p i ■ j c -i , \ c jo- lOwn, nor, some ot my neighbors. Therefore, I 



nine many oi it.e sneep oecame anecieu witn tne Icmds of sou under circumstances of different i „:„„ . . /• j ■ , • ^ 



0^ 



Perennial red clover (Trifolium pra- 

 tense perenne) 12 pounds. 

 Achillea millefolium, yarrow 4 " 



The proper quantity of grass seed to sow, per 

 acre, is a point of the greatest importance, as re- 

 gards the expense of the seed, and the speedy for- 

 mation of the most valuable sward. 

 (To be continued.) 

 [From the Rutland Herald.] 



Mr. Editor, — Having seen a statement of Mr. 

 Jonathan Dyer"s dairy, in your paper a few days 



(li9pflsp f4r,, p<l i-frl irnler nP which KPvpnl Hiorl V ^ V e .• "i I g'^e you a statement of my dairv, thp income of 



uisease termed tea wain, oi wnicn several aiea. management; it soon arrives at perfection, and ,^^,, j .■> 



But in the adjoining field, which contained the produces in its first years of growth a good sup 

 tlntural grasses, cocksf>ot grass, rough stalked ply of early herba e, which is much liked by cat 

 meadow grass, rye-grass, fo\t nil -grass, and white tie. These merits have, no doubt, upheld it till 

 clover, the sheep were not affected with th.it, nor the present day in practice, and will probably, for 

 any other disease, and they left untouched the some time, continue it a favorite grass with many 

 stems of the cocksfoot, which were here of a farmers. But the latter-math of rye-grass is very 

 more tender succulent nature, than those on the inconsiderable, and the plant impoverishes the soil 

 edges of the other field, which were so greedily in a hieh degree if the culms, which are invaria- 

 devonre'l by the clover sheep. ^ bly left untouched by cattle, are not cut before 



It may remain only to observe, that if the hard the seed advances toward,^ perfection. When this 

 stalks of the cock's-foot in the clover field had , is neglected, the field after midsummer exhibits 

 been in sufficient quantity, they would most prob ' only a brown surface of withered straws, 

 ably have prevented the disease from attacking! Let the produce and nutritive powers of rye- 

 the sheep; but this could not have been by virtue grass bo compared with those of the cocksfoot 

 of the rfr;/^6rc only of the culms, because in the ^ grass, and it will be found inferior in the propor- 

 adjoining field, where every thing was contrary ' tion nearly of 5 to 18 ; and also inferior to the 

 •to disease, the sheep rejected the culms altogether. ! meadow fox-tail in the proportion of 5 to 13 ; and 

 The dry, or mechanical action of the culms, was | inferior to the meadow fescue in proportion of 5 



here wanting; yet the animals continued healthy, 

 and fattened, because the bitter extractive was 

 »n greater proportion in the loaves or herbage 

 than in the culms which they rejected ; and also 

 proved beneficial, though combined with succulent 

 food, whicli could have nothing of the action of 

 ihe dry hay or stra-w before mentioned. 



The proportional value which the grass at tli 

 time of flowering bears to that at the time th 

 peed is ripe, is as 11 to 10; and to the grass . 

 the latter-math, as .5 to 2. 



Ther© has often been occasion to observe, ti 

 though grass, when left till the seed be ripe, ii. 

 ■afford a greater quantity of nutritive matter, nc 

 crtheless the value of the latter-math which is I' 

 by this means is often greater thm the extra qua 

 tity of nutritive matter thus obtained; add to th 

 the impoverishing effects of the plants on the sc; 

 ky the process of ripening the seed, aud the les 



ty-nine cows, which you may publish if you 

 please. 



16 calves killed for veal, averag- 

 ing .$3 . ... 

 2 calves sold for 5 50 . 

 11 " disposed of at 4 days old 

 at seventy-five cents 

 100 lbs. of butter sold in the spring 



at 9d 



77.i4 lbs. of cheese sold for seven cts. 

 per pound 

 800 lbs. of cheese otherwise dispos- 

 ed of, and on hand . 

 289 lbs. of skim-milk cheese sold for 



3J cents per pound . 

 200 IbsTand 3 of butter sold in Troy 

 for Is. 4rf. 

 65 lbs. of butter on hand, worth 15 

 cents .... 



to 17. In these comparisons, from which the 

 above proportions arose, it was necessary to omit 

 the seed crops from the truth of comparison. 



Cocksfoot grass perfects an abundance of seed, 

 and the plants arrive at a productive state as soon 

 as those of rye-grass ; hence its superiority over 

 rye-grass, as above, is equally great for perman- 

 ent pasture and the alternate husbandry ; which 

 is not so precisely the case with the fox-tail grass I °^ twenty-eight dollars — and have as 

 and meadow fescue. One peck of rye-grass, with | much worth in shoats at the com- 



Tlie slop of the dairy, with about 

 20 bushels of corn, has made 1.500 

 weight of pork, worth, (after deduct- 

 ing the corn) at $.> per hundred . 



We have sold shoats to the amount 



14 pounds of clover, per acre, is generally consid- 

 ered sufficient for sowing artificial pastures. 



The proportions in which the seeds of the dif- 

 ferent species should bo mixed for permanent 

 pasture : — 



Cocksfoot grass (Dactylis glomerata) 2 bushels 

 M.ea.Ao\\-^p.scao (Festuca pratensis) 2 •• 



Meadow fox-tail grass (Alopccurus pra- 



mencement of the season 



^722 47 



65 00 



28 00 



$815 47 

 We have osed as much milk and butter through 

 the season, as the proceeds of three of the poorest 

 cows. Leaving an income of 8815,47 from twen- 

 ty-six cows. EDW. WOODRUFF. 

 Tinmouth, Ft. Dec. 24, 1827. 



