SOWING GRASS SEEDS 99 



Occasionally a field in autumn wheat is wanted for a per- 

 manent pasture, and there is no difficulty if the land be clean 

 enough, and the grass seeds can be sown before the wheat is 

 too high. In favourable weather the seeds may be put in even 

 as early as the middle of February, as the corn will defend 

 the young grass from injury by frost. Should the wheat 

 be very backward, however, or stand thin on the ground, 

 the sowing had better be deferred for a time. In the event of 

 the land being at all foul, hand-hoeing must be resorted to, 

 and this will open the ground for the grass seeds. The 

 necessary harrowing and rolling will be beneficial to the 

 wheat plant. 



Sowing with Rape. — Notwithstanding all that has 

 been said in favour of sowing Rape with grass seeds, I cannot 

 recommend the practice. Instances can doubtless be cited 

 where no injury has resulted. But the great objection 

 remains that Rape necessitates feeding off the crop by sheep, 

 and, when the Rape is ready, the grasses rarely have sufficient 

 hold of the ground to bear grazing with impunity. The 

 animals eat the hearts out of some plants, pull up many more^ 

 and altogether do a lot of harm to a young pasture. 



Autumn Sowing. — Many writers have vexed their souls 

 concerning the relative merits of spring and autumn sowing, 

 without getting nearer to a solution of the problem. It 

 cannot be solved at all by generalities, although the attempt 

 has often been made. For practical ends it may be disposed 

 of here by accepting necessity as a guide, and then perhaps 

 there need be little or no controversy about it. The decision 

 largely depends on the possibility of working heavy land in 

 a wet spring. Sometimes autumn sowing is resorted to when 



early cutting at the stage most suitable for them to have full possession of the soil.' 

 lie adds : ' I have sown down one hundred and sixteen acres in this way. The same 

 grasses, sown at the same time, and sometimes on parts of the same field, hut with the 

 oats allowed to ripen, have proved decidedly inferior.' 



h 2 



