MEADOWS AND PASTURES 373 



grass grown alone. Some grasses are shallow rooted while 

 others grow medium deep, and still others penetrate quite 

 deep into the soil. For this reason, the roots of several 

 grasses more completely occupy the soil and together 

 produce a larger yield than a single grass. There are 

 some grasses which start early in the spring, while others 

 do not start growth until later in the season ; certain ones 

 grow well during the hot, dry part of the season, while 

 others produce little forage at this time ; still others grow 

 later in the fall than the majority of grasses, and certain 

 kinds may be better adapted to some portions of the field 

 than others. Thus not only does a greater production and 

 a more continuous growth result from a mixture than from 

 a single grass, but also a greater variety of herbage is 

 obtained. In selecting grasses for a pasture, those best 

 adapted to the field to be seeded should be chosen. Thus 

 if the field is low and undrained and likely to be wet, the 

 principal grass of the mixture should be one adapted to wet 

 soils. Redtop usually forms the principal part of such a 

 mixture. If the land is lacking in lime, this element should 

 either be supplied before seeding, or such grasses as grow 

 well on acid soils should enter into the mixture. Grasses 

 used as mixtures for hay should ripen at the same time, 

 or some may become dry and unpalatable before the 

 rest of the crop is ready to cut. In seeding grasses for a 

 permanent pasture that requires some time to become 

 established, such as Kentucky blue-grass, other quick 

 growing grasses should be seeded with it to furnish forage 

 until the blue-grass becomes established. In mixtures 

 for pasture, clovers may be included, white clover being 

 desirable in almost all permanent pastures. The clovers, 

 besides giving variety to the herbage, add nitrogen to the 

 soil, making it more productive. The adaptations of the 



