RECAPITULATION. 89 



and leaves, and the small amount of silica in the clover plant, that it decays with 

 more rapidity and more perfectly than the grasses, and hence its effects are more 

 immediate than those of other green manures, excepting sea weeds. We have, then, 

 in the large stems and roots of clover, a large amount of food for other plants, and 

 which is so combined and constituted that it is soon ready for their uses after it is 

 covered with earth. 



In many instances, the crop of clover is too large to be ploughed in to advantage. 

 In this case, farmers are in the habit of feeding it to their cattle. The proper course 

 to be pursued is indicated by the crop itself. If it is small, the whole ought to be 

 given to the succeeding crop : on the contrary, if large, it is useful to feed it down 

 wholly or in part. 



[Agricultural Report — Vol. ii.] 12 



