1920.] 



Improvement of Grass Land. 



to do is to stimulate the wild white clover on an acre or two of 

 pasture by a liberal dressing of phosphates, and then cut the 

 crop when dead ripe. It is subsequently threshed and roughly 

 dressed, and with cheap home-grown supplies 5 or 6 lb. of seed 

 per acre may be used. Dr. Somerville has had remarkable 

 success in renovating pastures in this way. 



In the great majority of cases phosphates alone are necessary 

 for the treatment of pastures, as contrasted with meadows. 

 In a few isolated cases the addition of 3 to 4 cwt. per acre of 

 kainit, or some other form of potash, may be profitable. Lime 

 used concurrently with the phosphate will generally add some- 

 thing to the yield, but it is seldom that the increase will be 

 profitable. Nitrogen should not be used on a pasture in any 

 form. It will stimulate the grass and weeds at the expense 

 of the clover, with the result that the plant, which above all 

 others should be encouraged, is in danger of being crowded out. 



It is surprising how long the effects of phosphates are 

 maintained. In the majority of cases they are plainly visible 

 for ten years, but in about five 3^ears from the first application 

 a dressing of about half the original dose should be given, and 

 the response in many cases will be almost as good as to the 

 first treatment. 



The clovers, stimulated to luxuriant growth by the phos- 

 phates, gather large quantities of nitrogen from the air and 

 store it in their tissues. This nitrogen, secured at no expense, 

 will make its presence felt should such land be put under the 

 plough. Experiments with cereals on land which has been 

 slagged when under grass, and subsequently broken up have 

 shown that the corn grown on such land was 20 per cent, 

 better than crops grown on broken-up turf that had not been 

 slagged. If, therefore, it is decided to plough up grass land, 

 it should be put through a course of phosphatic manuring 

 while still in grass. The improvement of grass and the poficy 

 of the plough are not incompatible. 



In connection with the Ministry's scheme for the improve- 

 ment of grass land, referred to in the above note, the Ministry 

 have recentlv issued two pamphlets for 

 Pubhcations on the ^^e information and guidance of those 

 Improvement of . , ^ • , , . ^ 



Grass Land. interested m the subject. 



The first pubhcation (Miscellaneous 

 Publication No. 24) deals with the general question of grass 

 land improvement. It is a pamphlet of 50 pages, and Ls 



4 I 



