376 
The Herbage of Pastures. 
WELSH PASTURES. 
No. 55. — A turf sent by Mr. Charles S. Mainwaring, Galltfaenan, Den- 
bighshire, from the fertile Vale of Clwyd. Mr. Mainwaring describes it as : — 
" A piece of our best turf, from the best feeding-pasture I know in 
the district, and which has, I should think, been in pasture 100 years 
or more. It at one time received a portion of the sewage of a town 
two miles off." 
The turf was nine inches deep, and there was no trace of rootlets on the 
lower face. The soil was a rich, brown, friable loam, more clayey near the 
surface. The turf threw up a rich, grassy herbage, and, cut July 4, yielded : — 
Gramineous herbage, 90 | Leguminous, 2 | Miscellaneous, 8. 
The leguminous herbage was exclusively Trifolium repens. The mis- 
cellaneous herbage was chiefly Leontodon hispidus, the remainder being 
Ranunculus acris and Bellis perennis. The grasses gave : — 
Lolium perenne 85 I Poa sp 1 
Agrostis stolonifera .... G j Ilordeum pratense .... a trace 
Cynosurus cristatus .... 8 | Undetermined 5 
No. 56. — A turf sant by Mr. D. Williams, Gorddinog, Llanfairfechan, 
Carnarvonshire, from the estate of Colonel Henry Piatt. It was cut from 
the middle of one of the best old pasture-fields laid down about twenty or 
twenty-two years ago. The turf was nine inches deep, and no root-fibres 
could be seen on the lower face. The soil was a greyish loam, somewhat 
adhesive and stony. Cut on July 22, the turf yielded : — 
Gramineous herbage, 46 | Leguminous, 15 | Miscellaneous, 39. 
The leguminous herbage was Trifolium repens, with a trace of Trifolium 
minus. The miscellaneous herbage was nearly all made up of Plantago 
lanceolata, with very small quantities of Ranunculus bulbosus, Cerastium 
triviale, and Bellis perennis. The grasses gave on separation : — 
Festuca ovina et var 35 I Alopecurus pratensis .... 1 
IIolcus lanatus 27 j Poa trivialis 1 
Lolium perenne 23 ! Avena flavescens 1 
Agrostis vulgaris ...... 2 | Undetermined 8 
Cynosurus cristatus .... 2 | 
No. 57. — A turf sent by Mr. J. Maitland, The Home Farm, Tan-y-Bwlcb, 
Merionethshire, bailiff to Mr. W. E. Oakley. It is from the richest and best 
pasture in the valley, resting upon land which was reclaimed, drained, and 
improved over twenty years ago. The pasture has never been broken up or 
seeded down, so that it is the natural herbage of the soil. 
The turf, nine inches deep, showed no traces of root-fibres on its lower 
face. The soil was a verv dark brown, friable loam, with a somewhat peaty 
appearance, and slightly ferruginous. Cut on July 20, the turf yielded: — 
Gramineous herbage, 7G | Leguminous, a trace | Miscellaneous, 24. 
Trifolium repens was the only leguminous species present. The miscel- 
laneous herbage was practically all Kumex Acetosa, there being besides 
merely traces of Cerastiuiu and Ranunculus. The grasses were : — 
Lolium perenne 50 Poa trivialis 
Agrostis sp 21 Cynosurus cristatus • 1 
IIolcus lanatus 21 Anthoxauthum odoratum . 
Alopecurus pratensis .... 5 Undetermined . . . , , 2 
Both Agrostis vulgaris and A. stolonifera were present. 
