Advantages and Disadvantages of Chicory. 45 



with a mixture of plants, amongst which were chicory 

 and burnet. and that in 1800 much chicory was visible. 

 Arthur Young gives many evidences of its suitability for 

 sheep. Finally, he sums up his reasons for advocating 

 the use of this plant as follows : — : 



1. The greatness of its produce for soiling on good 

 land. 



2. Its yielding so amply in feeding sheep on all soils. 



3. Its being remarkably applicable in the very poorest 

 and most barren chalks and sands. 



4. Its forming a most profitable change on all lands 

 upon which clover fails from too often repetition. 



Advantages and Disadvantages of Chicory. — As regards 

 the hay crop the advantages of chicory are — (1) That it 

 effectually holds up the crop, and this not only increases 

 its bulk, but favours the growth of the smaller grasses 

 and other plants, and also small plants which have 

 sprung later in the season ; that (2) when the weather is 

 favourable it quickens the winning of the hay, as the 

 stalks ventilate the cocks; and that (3) the stumps of 

 the flowering stems keep the grass off the ground when 

 the cut grass is in swathe, or in cock. This favours 

 ventilation, and the grass underneath the cocks. 



The disadvantages of chicory, as regards hay, are 

 that, if the weather is wet, it retards the winning of the 

 hay, as it holds much water. Another disadvantage is 

 that hay with chicory in it requires to be used the first 

 year. If kept over a year it becomes dusty, and is 

 therefore unsuitable for stock, but there is no reason 

 to suppose that it is unsuitable for stock and farm 

 horses if used during the first year, nor do I know 

 that it is unsuitable for horses in fast work— though I 

 should not recommend it — but this is a point that 

 requires investigation. In the Bank field we found that 

 by stocking in spring from the first week in April to the 

 20th May, and then shutting up the field for hay, the 

 chicory plant was so far suppressed that no seeding 



