GREEN CEOPS FOE SHEEP. 431 



generally produce a larger yield of green food than peas 

 alone or oats alone, and the combined crop may be pastured 

 as early as peas alone. 



OATS are an important crop for pasturing when sown 

 alone. The oat is also frost-proof in the spring, and may 

 be drilled in the first moment that the land is fitted for it, 

 and, on warm, early soil, will be six inches high and strong 

 by May 20th ; and, on being eaten off by the sheep, will 

 start anew at once. If left till the seed head is formed, 

 there will be no second growth. The struggle in all plants 

 is to perfect the seed ; and most of our annual plants, if 

 cut when small, will grow again, and when having a strong 

 and vigorous root will push on the second growth very 

 rapidly. 



The second feeding of the green oat crop should be when 

 the plant has reached the flowering stage ; and if the crop 

 be rank, sheep may waste too much of it when fed off upon 

 the land. If mown and fed to them in racks, it will have 

 the largest amount of nutriment when the seed is in the 

 milk. But the sheep, at that stage, are not inclined to eat 

 the whole stalk unless tempted by a small allowance of 

 meal upon the left stems. As we have seen, this extra 

 grain food will be refunded by extra growth, find the land 

 will get the benefit of the enriched manure. This is the 

 end towards which sheep-feeding on worn lands should 

 point. The oat has the advantage of being adapted to 

 nearly all soils, and it may be the best crop with which to 

 begin the improvement. 



MILLET FOE PASTUEE. 



Millet is grown in all parts of the country, more or less, 

 both for the seed and fodder. It requires dry, warm land 

 to produce the best crop, and the soil must be made very 

 fine, or the seed, which is small, will not grow. In a fine, 

 rich loam millet produces a very large growth of excellent 



