168 



HOCKINGS' GARDEN MANUAL. 



inch deep, two or three in a hole, twelve inches apart 

 in the rows. By this arrangement the plough or cul- 

 tivator will have room to pass between the rows to 

 keep down the weeds. 



In July prepare the soil, and sow the seed in August. 

 Other sowings mav be made in suitable weather during 

 February and March. The crop takes about four 

 months to ripen the seed, and, for green fodder, will 

 yield several cuttings in favorable seasons. It is not 

 liable to lodge in heavy rains, withstands high winds 

 with little damage, is not injured by frost, and will 

 exist and even thrive in a season of drought which 

 would prove destructive to most other crops. The 

 green stuff is easily cured by stacking it after it is 

 dried, and the cattle eat it as greedily dry as green. 



The average yield of seed is said to be thirty bushels 

 per acre, and the seed coverings are valuable for dyeing; 

 the exterior pellicule gives a dark purple, and the 

 inner coat a bright yellow. 



NATURAL GRASSES, &c. 



Two essays upon this important subject competed 

 for a prize offered at the Toowoomba Show in August, 

 1875. They were written respectively by Mr. Angus 

 Mackay, the indefatigable editor of the Queenslander, 

 and Mr. F. M. Bailey, the talented author of the 

 Ferns of Queensland. While the country is but 

 partially occupied, a practical consideration of this 

 question will not be forced upon the people ; but the 

 time is near when its immense importance will be felt, 

 and when that time has arrived, the information col- 

 lected in the two papers referred to will be found useful 

 as the basis of further investigation. 



