212 FARM CROPS 



it must be sown early; in the Northern states as 

 early as August. It must then be grazed some- 

 what closely, for if allowed to grow too rank the 

 head may form, which would destroy its power to 

 grow in the spring. But a more important reason 

 for grazing it closely is found in the tendency in 

 the grazing to rust when it becomes of rank growth. 

 While the weather is still warm cropping it down 

 prevents it from rusting. It may thus be made to 

 produce a large amount of grazing in the autumn, 

 but when it does, the grazing furnished in the 

 spring is less than that obtained from rye under 

 similar conditions of growth, but sown later and 

 not pastured. In the spring grazing is furnished 

 earlier by rye than by any other plants used as 

 pasture. The duration of the grazing depends 

 somewhat upon the closeness of the cropping, but 

 usually it does not continue good more than five 

 to six weeks. By that time, however, other graz- 

 ing is abundant as a rule. 



Securing a Stand of Grass. — If rye is sown in the 

 autumn and timothy or red top, or both, are sown 

 along with it, these plants will root in the autumn 

 and will not only be ready to furnish grazing along 

 with the rye in the spring, but they will continue 

 to grow and furnish grazing indefinitely. Another 

 way is to defer sowing the seeds to the early spring, 

 and then to sow such clovers and grasses as flourish 

 in the locality and cover them with the harrow. 

 Under proper conditions the harrowing will help 

 the rye. There may be soils on which the early 

 grazing of the rye would injure the growth of the 

 grasses. On other soils, however, such grazing will 

 be helpful to them, rather than harmful. Where 

 this method succeeds it enables the farmer to get 



