226 Reclamation of Bog and Moorland in Galway. 
On November 12th, 1875, 180 lambs had the run of these 12 acres, with 
other land, till 17th March, 1876. 
The firet crop was cut for hay in July 1876, and was estimated at 30 cwt. 
per statute acre. 
The cost of making and carrying the hay was not ascertained. On 15th 
April, 1877, it was top-dressed with nitrate of soda, 1 cwt. at 15s. ; super- 
phosphate, 2 cwt. at 14s. ; broad-casting and harrowing. Is. ; total, 30s. per 
acre, 18/. The artificials were sown on a windy day, and were not mixed with 
ashes, hence the lines of sowing were very clearly marked in June. The grass 
was then rank immediately over the drains, but the crop as a whole was rather 
poor, especially so on the level land at the top, where the peat attains a depth 
of 3 feet. On the slope of the hill the peat is about half that depth, and the 
grass there is much better. The crop yielded 20 cwt. of hay. It is intended 
to put intermediate drains between those already put in ; this will add nearly 
20s. per acre, and make the total cost of draining about 55s. I must also 
take 11. per acre for the cost of the buildings and fences over the 260 acres 
of moorland on the farm. 
The total cost for building, fencing, draining, breaking up with the plough, 
and liming, will thus be 8?. 5s. per acre, a very moderate outlay for fitting the 
laud for cultivation. The subsequent work is the usual routine of the farm, 
but some economy might be effected in it by sowing only rape and ryegrass 
seed : the 18s. spent on the finer grasses and on clover is evidently thrown 
away. The land will not be fitted for these until it has been longer under 
cultivation. The artificials would be more efficient if mixed with ashes or 
sand before sowing, and it will probably be better to substitute some ammoniacal 
manure for the nitrate of soda, which in such an extremely wet climate must 
be dissolved and washed into the drains before it can be taken up by the 
crop. 
The only part of the farm that has been previously cultivated is a corner 
of this field close to the farm buildings. A well and the foundation of an old 
cabin remain in the middle of 4 acres of lapsed land, cultivated sixty years 
ago. These 4 acres were ploughed and drained in 1874, cropped in 1875 with 
•oats, in 1876 with turnips, and in 1877 with oats, seeded down, the yield was 
8 cwt. of oats and 16 cwt. of straw per acre. 
No. 25. The Lawn, 19 a. 1 r. 38 p. — The most interesting plot in this field is a 
Ix)rtion of the 4 acres in grass after oats in 1876 and potatoes in 1875. This 
plot of grass is generally well up to the average in condition, but a strip next to 
the road is of marked superiority, being quite the best grass on the farm. It 
received a dressing of sea-weed and coral-sand, and is strong in ryegrass, with 
a little cocksfoot, the only cocksfoot to be found on the farm in June 1877. 
Timothy grass could not be found ; being a very small seed, it was probably 
buried too deep by the chain-harrow. There is very little fog-grass, and no 
xushes are to be found on the strip. The grass adjoining is not nearly so good 
where no sand was put. Coral-sand is of the utmost value for reclaiming 
bog-land, and it is a pity that it cannot be obtained in sufiScient quantity near 
the farm. Even deep peat, when it is near the shore, may be profitably 
reclaimed by sand and sea-weed. An excellent illustration of this may be 
observed very near the Kylemore proj^erty at the head of Bamaderg Bay. 
A tenant proprietor has there some splendid gardens of potatoes growing on 
the deep peat, and only manured by frequent applications of sea-weed and 
coral-sand. 12 acres of oats were grown in the Lawn in 1877, half of them 
after oats yielded 8 cwt. of oats, 35 lbs. to the bushel, and 16 cwt. of straw 
per acre ; the other 6 acres were after potatoes, a poor crop, yielding only 4 cwt. 
of oats, 30 lbs. to the bushel, and 10 cwt. of straw. 
1 acre of potatoes in this field yielded 2 tons of sound and 6_cwt. of diseased 
tubers. 
