191 1.] Cultivation of Furze for Fodder, etc. 



Furze or gorse (Ulex europceus) is cultivated for fodder in 

 many districts in France, and is often used to replace clover 

 Cultivation of Furze an d lucerne in seasons when green 

 for Fodder fodder is not available. It is readily 



and for Seed eaten by horses and dairy cattle, and 

 in France. • i . , 



cows are said to do as well on it as 



on good meadow hay. 



Before being fed to stock, the stiff spiny branches must be 

 crushed or softened. A hand machine is used for this purpose 

 in France, by means of which the stems are crushed between 

 two cylinders, and then cut by knives into pieces of about 

 two inches in length. The stems are also crushed by hand with 

 a mallet, in awooden or stone trough, when no machine is avail- 

 able. The necessity for treatment in this way constitutes the 

 most serious objection to the use of furze as a feeding-stuff. 



Two varieties of furze are grown in France, the ordinary 

 thorny furze (Ajonc de Dinan) and an improved or thornless 

 variety, known as foxtail furze (Ajonc queue de renard). 



Districts where cultivated. — Furze is cultivated principally 

 in the Department of Cotes du Nord, where the plant is much 

 valued, and where an area of 15,000 acres is under this crop. 

 In Morbihan there is an area of about 1,250 acres under regular 

 cultivation, and an equal area on hedges and ditches. The 

 plant is also grown in the Departments of Dordogne, 

 Mayenne, Loir-et-Cher, Finistere, Loire Inferieure, and Ille- 

 et-Vilaine. In Mayenne it is only found at the summits of a 

 few hills, and mixed with heather. It is used with this latter 

 plant as litter, and does not seem to be cultivated either for 

 fodder or seed. In Loir-et-Cher furze is only used to form 

 hedges, and in Loire Inferieure it grows spontaneously on 

 several soils without being the object of any special care. In 

 Ille-et-Vilaine there are a few agriculturists with regular 

 plantations. 



On hedges and in ditches the unimproved or thorny 

 furze is, as a rule, the only variety grown, while where 

 regular fields (ajonieres) are kept under cultivation, the 

 variety is frequently the improved or foxtail variety. The 

 improved variety, without prickles, is much easier to harvest, 

 but where the cultivators possess suitable implements for 

 breaking the furze, this variety is not in great demand. 



