■V 



106 



Mess 



sown OT. A\iv^^^^^ 



soils, Tlie annual species of Rye-grass are common only to land under cultivation • 

 will be found under the head of Plants adapted for the Alternate Husbandry. 



Root perennial^ fibrous. 



Experiine^its. — On the 16th of Aprils the produce from a rich brown loam, is, 



dr. qr. or. lbs. 



Grass, 6 oz. The produce per acre . - - - 65340 = 4083 12 n 



64 dr. of grass afford of nutritive matter - 2 1 - - 2297 = J 43 n n 



At the time of flo^yering, the produce is, 



Grass, 11 02. 8dr, The produce per acre - - _ 125235 =: 7827 3 n 



80 dr. of grass weigh, when dry - - 34 



The produce of the space, ditto - - 78 0? J " ^^^^* ^* ^ ^^^^ ^ 14 



The weight lost by the produce of one acre in drying - - _ . 4438 2 2 



64 dr. of grass afford of nutritive matter - 2 3 



The produce of the space, ditto - . - 7 OiJ * 489115= 305 1115 



At the time the seed is ripe, the produce is, 



Grass, 22 oz. The produce per acre - _ « » 239580 



80 dr. of grass weigh, when dry - - 24 



The produce of the space, ditto - - 105 2f ^ " " ^~^^^^^ ^ "= ^^^2 2 



The weight lost by the produce of one acre in drying - .... 10481 10 



64 dr. of grass afford of nutritive matter - 9. 5 



The produce of the space, ditto - - 15 0| ^ ' * ^^^^^ ^ "^ 643 6 7 



The weight lost by the produce of one acre in drying, is, 

 Grass, 5 oz. The produce per acre - . . . 5445O q^ ^^^^ ^ ^ 



64 dr. of grass afford of nutritive matter - 1 - - . 850 12 



14973 12 



The weight of nutritive natter, in which the produce of one acre, at the time the seed is ripe, 

 exceeds that at the time of flowering, is 



53 2 12 



337 10 8 



The proportional value which the grass, at the time of flowering, bears to that at the time 

 the seed is ripe, is as 11 to 10; and to the grass of the latter-math, as 5 to 2. 



There has often been occasion to observe, that though grass, when left till the seed be ripe, 

 may afford a greater quantity of nutritive matter, nevertheless the value of the 1 atter-math which 

 IS lost by this means, is often greater than the extra quantity of nutritive matter thus obtained; 



*-fc ^ ^i -I- .^^-1-1-^ _ _t_l__ *l* i'V* J^ -w 



add to this, the impoverishing eff-ects of the plants on the soil by the process of ripening th 

 seed and the less palatable nature of the hay. The plants of grass are likewise much weakened 



by the production of seed, for in all the exnprii^ov.+o t i, i i -, n . ^ 



/, , expenments 1 have made, the produce of latter-matli 



proved always less, in many instances one-half Uco \ - - p i -, i 



r , ■ ^ ^^^^^ ^^^s \n a given time after the seed crop, than 



alter the crop taken at the time of flowerino^ • T r>o.rl. i^ • i i \ u A 



rr 1 , . ^xuvvi^ung, A never could perceive, however, that the bad 



effects extended in 



any degree to the next following' season, the weight of produce being then 

 as frequently superior, as equal or less. ' 



Rye-gras, appear, .o have beeu cultivated prevl„; to the year 1677»; besides which, Kad 

 Clover, Samfom Spun-ey, Trefoil, and Nonsuch, were the only plants then cultivated . 

 grasses, or te^rcd such. And it is only of late years that any other species of the natural gr«» 

 !.as been tned as a subsftute for it, in forming artificial pastt„ catVtail grass, r»- 



* Bee the first edition of Woldridg-e's HiKii.n^ 



B Husbandry: my copy is the third edition, dated I68I. 



i 



'*t 



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