54 MISCELLANEOUS PAPERS. 
to remain on the ground. Aside from this, the field receives no at- 
tention and in most cases it is not pastured in the fall. When grazed 
during the autumn of the first year care should be taken to avoid 
overpasturing. 
RENEWAL OF MEADOWS. 
Under ordinary conditions a meadow of brome-grass will remain 
productive for three or four years, depending largely on the kind of 
soul and the nature of the treatment which it receives. Although it 
has been grown for a number of years in this country, there has been 
very little done in an experimental way by farmers to determine the 
best methods of renewing old meadows. In the Canadian Northwest 
more attention has been given to this subject, and farmers there have 
obtained very good results by their methods. 
The history of a field of brome-grass is in general as follows: 
During the season in which it is seeded very little is obtained from 
it, except, perhaps, a small amount of pasturage; the next year a 
very fair crop of hay is secured; the third year, a maximum crop; 
the fourth year the yield is considerably reduced; and following 
this it decreases rapidly, owing to the meadow becoming what is 
commonly called “sod-bound.” As before stated, the decrease in 
yield after the third year depends to a large extent on the kind of soil, 
since on heavy, rich soils the grass usually remains productive for a 
longer period. The character of the season also is thought to have 
an effect on the life of the meadow, and some farmers are of the 
opinion that if conditions are exceptionally favorable for a large crop 
the second year the grass has a tendency to diminish in yield earlier 
than if an ordinary crop was produced at that time. 
The method of renewal giving best. results in the Canadian 
Northwest and also practiced to some extent in the Dakotas is that of 
shallow breaking, the time of year depending largely on the amount 
of rainfall. The experimental farm at Brandon, Manitoba, recom- 
mends that the meadow be plowed about 2 inches deep in June or 
early July, after a crop of hay has been removed, the sod being 
then rolled and worked down thoroughly. As a result of this treat- 
ment a good crop of hay is secured the following season. Farther 
west, in Saskatchewan and in the drier portions of the Dakotas, 
breaking the meadow in the spring, about May, gives best results. 
This method is recommended by the experimental farm at Indian 
Head, Saskatchewan. Satisfactory results have been obtained in the 
more humid sections from shallow-breaking the sod in the spring 
and putting it in condition for a light seeding of grain, oats being 
frequently used. If thought necessary, 6 to 8 pounds of brome- 
grass seed is added. In this way a crop of grain is secured the same 
year, and a good crop of grass the next, so that the ground is not 
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