No. 199.] 139 



mature, should have the first benefit of its virgin richness. This it 

 usually has, for the practice with most good farmers is to prepare the 

 land well for grain before planting it; to see first, that it possesses 

 the three essential mineral ingredients, silica, or sand ; alumine, or 

 clay ; lime, or calcareous earth ; in some shape, all in due proportion. 

 Then the manure scraped from the barn yard, homestead and farm, 

 every thing in the shape of decayed animal and vegetable matter, all 

 properly preserved, mixed and composted, and applied at the right 

 time and manner. Then the tilling, plowing, harrowing, and if con- 

 venient, rolling ; plowed and manured deep, destroy all weeds, and 

 even grass, at this period ; let them aid the manure ; pulverising, 

 deepening, cleaning and enriching the bed, are the great objects j 

 constantly keeping in view that all this preparation is not for the 

 grain crop alone, but for the grass, by far the most important, which 

 is to succeed it. If the latter does as well as it can be made to do, 

 it is to aid materially in producing several grain crops, and many 

 other articles very profitable to the farmer. Timothy and clover are 

 the grass seeds generally used for permanent pasture ; whatever kind 

 is used, should be of the purest, soundest, and best of its kind, and 

 especially free from foul seed. These are to be sown after the win- 

 ter grains, wheat and rye j it is usual to sow timothy in autumn, and 

 clover in the spring. "Whenever sown they should be sown separately, 

 not mixed, and at different times. Some farmers sow their grass 

 seeds in the spring with their oats ; this is not safe, the grass seeds 

 are apt to miss ; the oats, if they are large and heavy, as they some 

 times are, choke and smother the grass when it comes up, and it 

 perishes. Although some times the grass seeds take, grow, and do 

 very well when sown with oats. The grass seeds, whether from 

 economy or whatever cause, are generally sown too thin ; it is a 

 great mistake ; like most other seeds, it must be expected some of* 

 these will not come up, they will miss ; and when they do come up 

 they should come up thick, stand close, to protect and support each 

 other, and provide against many accidents, and possibly a total failuse 

 or near it. This would be a much greater damage than a few dollars 

 more laid out in an additional quantity of seed ; more than a peck of 

 timothy and a half a bushel of clover seed to the acre ; and a few good 

 farmers are kno^vn to use more to great advantage. The sooner this 



