268 Report of Experiments with different Manures 
its proportion of Graminaceous herbarje. In fact, where the 
largest crops were obtained, namely, where the mixed mine- 
ral manure and ammoniacal salts were used together, the pro- 
portion of the whole produce that was Graminaceous, was more 
than 97 per cent., whilst that without manure was only 76 per 
cent. The characteristic effects of nitrogenous manures to in- 
crease the proportion of leaves and shoots, and of mineral 
manures to determine more to flowering and seeding, are also 
strikingly illustrated. It will be obvious, therefore, that not 
only must the character of the gross produce be very different 
according to the description of manure employed, but that the 
proper time of cutting must vary very considerably to secure the 
majority of the herbage at any given point of ripeness. 
But it has been seen, that the Graminaceous herbage varied 
much in character according to the manure, not only in regard to 
its proportion in the total produce, and to the proportion of the 
whole that was leafy and stemmy respectively, but also in the 
description or species of plants developed. 
Under the particular conditions of soil, season, original distri- 
bution of plants, and other circumstances of these experiments, 
common Rye-grass was the most predominant of the grasses in 
the unmanured produce. The inferior Woolly soft-grass occurred 
in nearly an equal quantity ; and then succeeded in lesser quan- 
tities, in the order here given, the tall Oat-like grass, the Sweet- 
scented Vernal-grass, the Creeping-rooted Bent grass, the common 
Quaking-grass, and the Crested Dog's-tail — the last in very small 
amount. Farm-yard manure, which increased the actual amount 
and proportion of total Graminaceous herbage, gave a consider- 
ably increased proportion of Rye-grass and of tall Oat-like grass ; 
a somewhat diminished proportion of the Woolly soft-grass ; 
scarcely any of the other grasses found on the unmanured plot ; 
but a very large amount of the valuable Smooth-stalked Meadow- 
grass, which was not found at all in the produce without manure. 
The addition of ammoniacal salts to the farm-yard manure di- 
minished the proportion of the more valuable Rye-grass, and 
Smooth-stalked Meadow-grass, but increased tliat of the tall Oat- 
like grass, and that of the inferior Woolly soft-grass. 
Leaving out of consideration here, those artificial manures 
which did not much increase the total produce of hay, namely, 
tlie mixed mineral manure used alone, and the ammoniacal salts 
alone, the jjeneral result with the more active artificial coinbi- 
nations was as follows : — The mixed mineral manure with the 
more moderate amount of ammoniacal salts gave about 2iV times 
as much produce as the unmanured land, and the proportion of it 
that was Grauiinaceous was more than 97 per cent., instead of only 
76 per cent, without manure. This enormously-increased Grami- 
