254 Report of Experiments with different Manures 
The evidence is, nevertheless, suffic ientlj clear, that the bulky, 
luxuriant, and generally useful Rye-grass, was considerably de- 
veloped by high artificial manuring, when this supplied a suffici- 
ency of mineral constituents, and a pretty full, but not excessive, 
amount of nitrogen. But when ammoniacal salts were used in 
addition to farm-yard manure, the proportion of the Rye-grass 
appeared to be diminished. It will be afterwards seen, that this 
result was due to the fact, that two other grasses (Tall Oat-like 
grass, and Smooth-stalked Meadow-grass), which occurred either 
in comparatively small proportion, or not at all, on the other 
plots, were very considerably developed by the farm-yard manure. 
2. — Holcus lanatus — Woolly Soft-Grass, or Yorkshire Fog. 
This grass is said to be natural to damp and peaty soils ; to 
give a considerable amount of after-math, but not to be liked 
by cattle either when green or in hay, being too soft, spongy, 
and insipid. In fact, some consider it as almost a weed. It is 
further said, to usurp the land in sandy soils, not to be reduced 
by cultivation, and to have the tendency to banish the artificial 
grasses. It flowers in July. 
Such are the characters of the grass which was found second in 
amount among those in culm, on the unmanured land. It oc- 
curred, however, in larger proportion still on some of the manured 
plots. A considerable proportion of the leafy produce was also 
referred to this plant. The Woolly soft-grass, in the condition of 
flowering and seeding stem, constituted 14 per cent, of the pro- 
duce without manure, 6 9 per cent, of that by mineral manures 
alone, 14 4 per cent, of that by ammoniacal salts alone, 32"6 per 
cent, of that by the mineral manures and 400 lbs. per acre of 
ammoniacal salts, and 26'4 per cent, of that by the mineral 
manures and the 800 lbs. of ammoniacal salts. Lastly, in the 
produce by farm-yard manure alone, the proportion was only 
10"7 jicr cent., and in that by farm-yard manure and ammoniacal 
salts 19"9 per cent. 
The general result was, that the proportion of the \yoolly soft- 
grass was very much increased by nitrogenous manures. The 
effect was the more apparent when the leafy portion of the pro- 
duce attributed to this plant was taken into the calculation. In 
fact, it is tliose artificial manures which developed the largest 
proportions of total Graminaceous herbage, that yielded the 
largest amounts of this grass. It amounted, culm and leaf to- 
gether, to more than a quarter of the total produce when ammo- 
niacal salts were used alone, to nearly 40 per cent, of it when the 
mineral manures and the 400 lbs. of ammoniacal salts were em- 
ployed, and to more than 40 per cent, of the total produce when 
