242 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ 8<ptember 15, 1887. 
Nor can we wonder at this, knowing as we do how 
frequently the store of winter food runs short in March, 
and how poor in quality the milk is then. Now 
“ H. S. E.” has an acre of land which he laid down to 
permanent pasture in spring with a crop of Oats. In 
common with many other young pastures this year it has 
proved a failure owing to drought, and “ II. S. E.” wishes 
to know what he is to do with it. We would not have 
it in permanent pasture at all, but have half an acre of 
Perennial bye Grass, a quarter of an acre of Hye, and the 
remainder for Carrots, Mangold, and Cabbage. Let the 
Bye be sown at once at the rate of 3 bushels to the acre, 
and if the Rye Grass can be sown not later than the 
second week in September it will answer in the south and 
in the midlands, otherwise it must he sown next April 
cither with or without a corn crop. The Rye is 
generally ready for use early in March, enough being 
mown daily and taken to the yard for the cows. If the 
cars appear before it is all used it should be passed 
through the chaff cutter and mixed with an equal quan - 
tity of dry chaff. After being mown the Rye starts 
quickly into growth again, and a second crop follows 
equal to or even superior to the first, especially if it is 
assisted by a dressing of sewage or nitrate of soda. If 
the land is not rich in fertility we would scatter half a 
hundredweight of nitrate of soda upon the Rye early 
in February, and repeat the dressing for the second crop. 
The Rye Grass should also have similar treatment, the 
bulk of the crop depending very much upon a liberal use 
of manure. 
Where land can be had there should always be a 
crop of winter Oats sown either late in September or 
early in October to follow the Rye, and so enable us to 
turn the first growth of Rye Grass to account for hay, 
which ought to afford an ample supply for winter use. 
The second crop if helped with manure ought to be as 
vigorous as the first, and may either be turned to account 
for grazing or hay. If land can be had for some spring 
Tares, then the second growth of Rye Grass ought cer¬ 
tainly to be made into hay. The spring Tares come into 
use in early summer, and one or two successional sowings 
afford a valuable supply of green succulent food when 
pastures are often parched and brown. 
The possession of an acre or so of grass land is fre¬ 
quently an inducement to purchase a cow in view of 
having plenty of milk. Such an idea is natural enough, 
but results show that it is impracticable. A meadow 
with part fenced off for hay and the other part devoted 
entirely for grazing may answer the required purpose 
if it is heavily manured, but there can be no question 
that the method of culture we have described answers 
best. It affords a much greater bulk of food, and, what 
is of equal importance, it enables us to impart a whole¬ 
some variety to our dietary. But if in addition to a 
field under alternate husbandry, another can be had in 
permanent pasture, by all means let us-have it; only we 
would always make it a secondary matter regarding the 
field under plough or spade culture as quite indispensable. 
To be really profitable, or rather as productive as possible, 
the pasture should consist entirely of plants suitable for 
the growth of sweet, wholesome herbage, and all other 
plants springing up in it are to be regarded as weeds and 
rooted up. Of such the most common and mischievous 
are Nettles, Thistles, Docks, Rushes, Ononis or Rest 
Harrow, Broom, Brambles, and Sedges. A somewhat 
wide experience has brought us into contact with pas¬ 
tures infested with one or other of these pests. Rushes 
and Sedges indicate a want of drainage, attention to 
which leads to their gradual decay, and they are quickly 
replaced by a growth of natural Grasses and Clover. 
The only remedy for the other weeds is to root them up, 
and not to attempt to get rid of them by cutting off the 
part above the surface. In Sussex, on the Hastings sand 
formation, Brambles of the common Blackberry spring 
up so thickly that we once had several waggon loads 
cleared off a few acres of old neglected pasture. In 
Suffolk, Ononis infests pasture both in mixed soil and 
heavy land, upon chalk and chalk marls, often so badly 
as to quite spoil it. When it thus spreads pasture is of 
very little use either for hay or grazing, and the only 
remedy is either to root up the Ononis with spades or to 
pare and burn the sods, to plough and lay down again 
with a really good mixture of Grasses and Clovers. A 
well managed meadow repays us well for our care, and 
strictly according to it, for we have one or several tons of 
rich herbage per acre annually from it, the greater bulk 
arising from the free use of manures. 
(To be continued.) 
WORK ON THE HOME FARM. 
Harvest work was brought to a speedy and satisfactory conclusion 
in from three to four weeks, the corn being saved in excellent condi¬ 
tion. The weather became broken soon afterwards, and enough rain 
had soon fallen to soften the surface sufficiently to admit of good work 
being done with harrows upon the stubbles, and gladly did we see 
Charlock seed springing into growth. We shall indeed be fortunate if 
we can induce germination of all the seed of this pest before the deep 
ploughing is done, and thus avoid a heavy outlay for hoeing next spring. 
■ Ploughing of clean land and sowing of Rye has been done, as we like to 
have a full strong plant of this useful green crop forward in growth 
before winter* Severe frost may render it somewhat brown, but it does 
no material harm, and the strong plant gives an abundant early 
growth in spring. To those of our readers who have not yet sown some 
Rye we say, Do so at once, and you will have an invaluable supply of 
green food next March just when your store of winter food may run 
short. It can be given to horses, cows, or bullocks in yards, and sheep 
with lambs may be passed over it twice in folds. Land must be got 
ready speedily for Tares, Wheat, and winter Oats. Where only a few 
acres of Oats are grown we strongly advise that preference be given to 
the hardy Tawney Winter Oat, which on good land always yields a 
heavy crop of corn ; the straw affords a supply of nutritious chaff for 
horses, and the growth may also be found of great service for sheep in 
a late spring, when it may be eaten off closely, and it will soon start 
into growth again, and will subsequently yield a useful supply of corn. 
Let all possible care be taken to select good seed of the best sorts of 
Wheat, and to get the sowing done before the soil becomes so wet as to 
render harrowing a difficult and unsatisfactory process. Let the seed 
be steeped in water in which blue vitriol is dissolved, and take 
especial care to use seed without the taint of smut. We have since 
harvest heard of some new Wheat being sold at £1 a quarter weighing 
63 lbs. to the bushel, but so badly affected by smut that it had to be 
sold for full 10s. below market price. It is doubtless owing to careless¬ 
ness in the selection and preparation of our seed that blight and other 
disease become so widespread. 
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 
CAMDEN SQUARE, LONDON. 
Lat. 51° 32' 40" N.; tmj, 0° 8’ 0" W.; Altitule, 111 feet. 
DATE. | 9 A.M. i IN THE DAY. 
1887. 
• O 3 * 
© 
© 
O trt ^ 
Hydrome¬ 
ter. 
a . 
0-0 
73 a 
or 
Temp, of 
soii at 
1 foot. 
Shade Tem¬ 
perature. 
Radiation 
Temperature 
Raiq 
September. 
» C 
a 2 s 
Dry. 
Wet. 
tT 
ft o 
MaxJ Min. 
In 
sun. 
On 
grass 
Sunday . 
4 
Inches. 
29.685 
deg 
6 o 5 
deg. 
56 8 
s.w. 
deg. 
59 6 
deg. 
67.8 
deg. 
55 0 
deg. 
110 2 
deg. 
51.2 
In. 
0-041 
Monday. 
Tuesday .. . 
5 
29.5 ‘8 
57.9 
55.4 
s.w. 
59 7 
68.4 
53.7 
91.7 
51.1 
0.039 
ti 
29 59 J 
60 8 
55.1 
s. 
59 3 
69.5 
55.6 
113 9 
52.3 
0.103 
Wednesday.. 
7 
29 631 
58 8 
54 9 
s. 
59.2 
67.2 
52.3 
11 H .0 
46.9 
0 036 
Thursday .... 
8 
80.410 
53.7 
47.8 
N. 
58.2 
59.9 
39.0 
91.6 
34 3 
Friday .. 
9 
30.254 
55 4 
51.5 
S. 
56.4 
679 
42 l 
1122 
37.2 
0.036 
Saturday .... 
10 
3J.0L5 
56.9 
52.1 
N. 
57.2 
64.2 
534 
111.0 
51.2 
29.879 
57.7 
53.4 
58.5 
60.4 
50.2 
107 0 
46.3 
0.255 
REMARKS 
4th.—'Bright gusty morning; cloudy afternoon with spots of rain; showers in evening. 
5th.—'Wet morning; afternoon generally bright and breezy; tine evening. 
6th.— Fine and generally bright, though with dark clouds about. 
7th.—Ra'n early; morning generally bright, with rain at 11.15 A M. and 1.2) P.M. ; after¬ 
noon overcast, with spots of rain ; fair evening. 
8tli.—Fresh clear morning, foggy about noon, and hazy all the afternoon. 
9th.-Foggy early; tine day ; clou ty after 5 P M , with spot-i of rain in the evening. 
10th.—Shower early; generally fin i, with some sunshine ; evening fair but not bright. 
Temperature lower than last week, and very near the average ; rainfall below it.— 
G. J. SYMONd. 
