On  Irrigation  in  Switzerland. 
609 
months  of  October,  November,  and  December  is  considered  as 
the  most  beneficial  to  the  land.  During'  the  spring,  when  the 
streams  are  swollen  with  the  melting  of  the  snows,  irrigation  is 
discontinued.  In  March  the  system  is  recommenced,  but  the 
land  is  left  dry  for  longer  intervals.  In  April  the  first  crop  of 
grass  is  cut.  This  crop  of  grass  is  made  use  of  for  the  stall- 
feeding  of  the  cattle  ; it  is  so  rich  that  hay  is  always  mixed  with  it. 
After  cutting,  the  water  is  again  turned  on  for  two  or  three  days, 
and  this  is  repeated  at  intervals  of  a fortnight  or  three  weeks  till 
the  end  of  May  or  beginning  of  June,  when  the  grass  is  cut  for 
hag.  After  this  crop  has  been  got  in,  the  land  is  left  dry  for  ten 
or  twelve  days,  when  the  same  system  of  irrigation  is  again  pursued, 
except  that  a somewhat  longer  period  is  allowed  to  elapse  between 
each  successive  watering.  The  second  hay-crop  is  generally 
cut  in  August;  the  land  is  then  subjected  to  a similar  kind  of 
treatment,  and  the  grass  is  cut  for  the  fourth  time  about  the  end 
of  September  or  beginning  of  October;  and  this  last  crop  is  also 
generally  made  use  of  for  the  stall-feeding  of  the  cattle  who  are 
never  turned  out  into  the  water-meadows.  From  this  method  of 
treatment  it  appears  that  four  crops  of  grass  are  usually  raised, 
and  in  very  favourable  seasons  an  additional  crop  may  be  obtained. 
The  quantity  of  hay  produced  by  an  acre  of  water-meadow  varies 
from  53  to  63  cwt. 
M ater-meadows  are  sometimes  (I  do  not  imagine  the  practice 
to  be  at  all  general)  broken  up  after  a period  of  four  or  five  years, 
and  potatoes,  corn,  clover,  & c.  are  grown  for  a few  seasons,  when 
the  land  is  again  converted  into  water-meadow. 
W ith  regard  to  land  where  irrigation  cannot  be  practised  very 
much,  the  same  system  of  cultivation  is  pursued  as  in  the  better  ma- 
naged farms  in  England — solid  manure  being  applied  in  autumn, 
and  liquid  manure  in  spring  and  after  each  crop  of  grass.  Liquid 
manure  is  mixed  with  water  only  in  the  very  hot  weather.  I saw 
a field  on  M.  Herzog’s  farm  which  he  had  already  cut  four  times 
this  year.  There  was  then,  September  23,  a rich  crop  of  grass 
which  would  be  fit  to  cut  in  the  beginning  of  October. 
In  the  Canton  of  Berne  the  system  of  irrigation  is  not  so  gene- 
rally or  so  exclusively  employed.  Through  M.  Zellweger’s  kind- 
ness I had  introductions  to  M.  Robert  d’Erlach  of  Chateau 
d’Hildelbank,  and  M.  Emile  de  Fellenberg  of  Hofwyl.  M. 
d’Erlach  farms  at  Hildelbanlc  about  180  acres,  45  of  which  are 
arable  and  the  rest  grass-land.  He  pursues  nearly  the  same 
system  as  that  which  I have  already  described  as  practised  in  the 
Canton  of  Aargau,  except  that  after  May  he  never  leaves  the 
water  on  the  meadows  during  the  day,  but  irrigates  only  by  night. 
He  does  not  often  get  more  than  two  crops  of  hay,  the  first  being 
generally  cut  in  the  beginning  of  June.  He  turns  his  cattle  out 
