THE PEEENNIAL GRASSES 205 



yellow, which, in central Kentucky, is soon after the first 

 of June. After the seed has been collected it is put into 

 piles or long ricks to cure. The low vitality of much of 

 the seed on the market is due to the heating of the seed 

 in the curing process, sometimes reaching a very high 

 temperature. Experiments have indicated that better 

 methods of curing yield seed with a good vitality. In the 

 purchase of blue-grass seed, it is important that the per- 

 centage of germination be ascertained, else the purchaser 

 may get a high proportion of seed that will not grow. 



191. Cultural methods. When sowing blue-grass for 

 pasture, it is seldom seeded alone, since it requires two or 

 three years to make a dense sod. It is usually seeded in 

 combination with other grasses and clovers, which will 

 furnish pasture until the blue-grass becomes established, 

 when it will crowd them out and replace them. In this 

 way pasture may be had soon after seeding without waiting 

 for the blue-grass to become established. When seeded 

 alone, 40 pounds of seed per acre is considered a full seed- 

 ing, although if the seed is of good vitality, half this amount 

 is enough. When seeded with other grasses, a mixture 

 of 10 pounds of blue-grass, 10 pounds of timothy, 3 

 pounds of redtop, 2 pounds of meadow fescue, 3 pounds 

 of alsike clover, and 2 pounds of white clover per acre 

 makes a desirable combination. White clover grows well with 

 blue-grass and is often seen with it in permanent pastures. 



When seeded alone, it is well to sow in the fall with a 

 nurse crop, wheat or rye being desirable for this purpose. 

 When seeded in combination with other grasses, the mixture 

 may be sown in the fall, or the grass seed only may be 

 applied at this time, and the clover added early in the 

 spring. When a blue-grass pasture becomes thin, it may 

 be renovated without plowing it up by disking and sowing 



