SHEEP AS IMPROVERS OF CROP YIELDS 29 



and it may be by other insects. By grazing with sheep the 

 maturity of the seed crop may be so hastened that the crop 

 will escape injury from the midge. 



When clover intended for seed is grazed by sheep the 

 grazing should begin soon after growth begins in the 

 clover. The aim should be to so stock the land that the 

 grazing shall be reasonably close and also reasonably uni- 

 form. The continuance of the grazing should be deter- 

 mined by the character of the season and by the variety 

 of the clover. In a dry season it should be short, in a wet 

 season longer, but in no instance should it continue many 

 weeks from the beginning of the grazing. The common 

 red clover may be grazed longer than the other varieties. 

 Unless the grazing is uniform the red clover seed will 

 not ripen evenly. 



Such grazing should not be attempted on clay soils 

 when they are so wet that impaction would follow the 

 grazing; nor should it be too long continued, lest the abil- 

 ity of the plants to produce sufficiently strong stems and 

 plants for abundant production of seeds should be too 

 much curtailed. As the nature of the weather cannot be 

 forecasted with certainty, it is difficult to determine when 

 such grazing should cease. It should be remembered, 

 however, that to graze too little is wiser than to graze too 

 much. 



Sheep on all farms — Several reasons may be given 

 showing why sheep should be kept on all or nearly all 

 the farms of the United States and Canada. They should 

 be so kept, first, because of the service which they can 

 render; second, because a small flock may be so main- 

 tained at little cost ; and third, because the conditions un- 

 der which they may be so kept are most favorable to their 

 thrift. 



The service which they may render in destroying 

 weeds has already been discussed. See page 13. So 

 marked is this service that it alone would furnish a justi- 

 fication for keeping them in at least limited numbers. 



