70 The Suppression of Moss in Pastures. 



and was quite free from moss, which soon began to 

 appear on the land sown with the ordinary mixture 

 suitable for the soil. This is a point to which I shall 

 again allude when treating of the quantity of seed 

 which it is desirable to sow, but I may add here that 

 I was lately struck, in the case of a very mossy field, by 

 the effect thistles have, evidently from their aerating 

 the soil, in suppressing' moss. On our hill pastures the 

 barest places have always most moss, and such bareness 

 is really owing to the almost exclusive close grazing 

 of pastures with sheep. It seems to me quite clear 

 that by increasing cattle and diminishing sheep you 

 would certainly lessen moss, and much improve the 

 pastures, as letting up tbe grass has a tendency to keep 

 the ground more open, and the land therefore better 

 aerated {vide Appendix III.) 



We are often told that the requirements of the 

 farmer impel him to manage his pastures badly, but, 

 from my own experience in the case of an excellent 

 tenant of my own, I can see that it is more often owing 

 to a mixture of carelessness and want of skill that 

 pastures are mismanaged, and the tenant in question, 

 from his attention and judgment in judiciously shifting 

 his stock, has at once more stock and more grass on 

 his land than any farmer in this part of the country. 

 I was particularly struck with this point in the case of 

 one of my grass parks, which was let to him for two 

 consecutive seasons. It consisted of grass in the third 

 and fourth years — the proverbially trying fourth year — 

 and yet he kept more stock on it than has been kept 

 on my best old pastures, which were let to tenants, 

 while all the time the field had an ample supply of 

 grass. 



I turn, lastly, to the consideration of the subject of 

 the management of pastures, so as to obtain from them 

 the greatest amount of winter and early spring food, 

 so that we may be able to maintain our flocks in the 

 most satisfactory manner, and with the smallest possible 



