GRAZING INDUSTRY OF THE BLUEGKASS EEGION. 



15 



stocked with a sufficient number of animals so that the grass will not 

 have an opportunity to form seed. (Figs. 12 and 13.) 



There is nothing lost by keeping the sod grazed reasonably close. 

 While there is a greater bulk of forage produced when the grass is 

 allowed to mature, the young grass has a much higher nutritive value/ 

 which offsets the deficiency in yield.^ 



CARE OF PASTURES. 



Very little labor is necessary to keep a good pasture in first-class 

 condition. All loose stones and rubbish that are removed give that 

 much more space for grass plants to grow. All brush or trees not 



Fig. 13.— a bluegrass pasture lightly grazed. 



needed for shade or other purposes should be cut or deadened by 

 girdling. 



In addition to the above suggestions, all tall-growing weeds should 

 be mown at least once a year, preferably just before they form seed. 

 It is a common practice in central Kentucky and in some other sec- 

 tions of the bluegrass region to mow the weeds. This is done with a 

 mowing machine if the fields are sufficiently smooth; otherwise, by 

 a man with a scythe. The difference in the appearance of fields in 

 localities where weed mowing is practiced and where it is not is very 

 striking. (Figs. 14 and 15.) Mowing will usually hold in check most 

 of the common weeds, such as ragweed, oxeye daisy, thistles, and 

 briars. A few sheep on cattle pastures have been found very effi- 

 cient in keeping down many troublesome weeds. 



1 EUett, W. B . The bluegrass of southwest Virginia. Va. Agr. Exp. Sta. Bui. 180, p. 89-96. 1909. 



2 EUett, W. B., and Carrier, Lyman. The eflect of frequent clipping on total yield and composition of 

 grasses. In Jour. Amer. Soc. Agron., v. 7, no. 2, p. 85-87. 1915. 



