172 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND C011AGE GARDENER. 
[ August 20,1885, 
making liis farm contribute materially to the wants of his 
household, and it should also enable him to avoid most of the 
buying and selling for which our contemporary considers him 
so unfit. The especial object of these papers is to assist him 
in doing so, and we now turn to our subject for this week, 
which is the culture of the most useful of the green crops. It 
is not an easy matter to say when such crops are most useful. 
Take, for example, the present time, with pastures parched 
by drought, do we not find a bountiful supply of spring Tares 
invaluable ? In many an instance what a lamentable falling 
off in the supply of milk would there have been, were it not 
for the daily cartage of succulent Tares to the meadows and 
cow-sheds. Therefore, we should always strive to spare 
enough land for successional sowings of Tares from early 
spring onwards into June, and they are used for cows, for 
horses, pigs, and sheep ; or, if not all wanted, the surplus is 
ploughed in for manure, imparting much more fertility to the 
land than it has taken from it. 
Red Clover is another green crop which, under favourable 
conditions, affords at least three growths, the first two being 
made into hay, and the last being fed off by sheep. Just now 
we are turning the second growth to profitable account by 
folding old sheep upon it, and we may mention here that this 
system of folding enables us to keep many more sheep than 
could otherwise be managed. We have had some trouble in 
having due attention paid to our wishes as to the size of folds. 
A hurdle to a sheep is our rule ; but, to save trouble, shep¬ 
herds will use many more hurdles if they can, and then much 
of the Clover is spoilt, not eaten. Small folds insure close 
cropping of the herbage and an equal distribution of manure. 
A mixture of Red and White Clover with Perennial Rye 
Grass affords early green food in spring, and a heavy crop of 
hay later on. It is, however, only upon an emergency that 
we turn cattle or sheep upon this crop in spring, our usual 
plan being to reserve the first growth for hay, and the second 
growth too if the land is rich and green food plentiful. Our 
chief aim is to do all we can to insure good crops, and, when 
we have done this, to turn them to the best account, our 
actions being guided by circumstances rather than by strict 
rules—green food being much more in demand some seasons 
than others. Another very useful mixture, more durable in 
character with the two sorts of Clover, consists of such strong¬ 
growing Grasses as Cocksfoot, Timothy, Fescue, Foxtail, and 
Crested Dogstail. This yields a heavy crop, makes good hay, 
and is to be regarded as a permanent pasture, to which if we 
add a fair proportion of Yarrow, Trefoil, and Alsike, with a 
few of the finer Grasses, we shall impart the best possible 
combination of meadow plants for both cattle and sheep. 
Rape and White Mustard are often sown at this season of 
the year to afford a late supply of green food for sheep. Of 
the two, Mustard is preferable for its quick strong growth 
and its high value as a manure when ploughed in. We may 
usefully repeat here that instead of bare fallow and the so- 
called resting of land, we now get the land clean, sow it with 
Mustard, using 20 lbs. of seed per acre in spring or early 
summer, plough it in as soon as it is in full bloom, sowing 
and ploughing again and again, two, three, or four times 
should the summer prove favourable—drought being the 
chief hindrance, and in autumn sowing either Wheat or winter 
Oats. We must make mention of winter Oats among green 
crops, for in a backward spring winter Oats afford a supply 
of green food of especial value for sheep. If so eaten off, the 
crop may be slightly retarded, but it is seldom that winter 
Oats are not ready by the middle of July. As a corn crop 
they stand in the first rank, the yield, both in straw and 
grain, being excellent in quality and quantity under good 
cultivation. 
Rye is another green crop that is sown in September, or, 
at latest, early in October, for an exceptionally early cut of 
green fodder for horses and dairy cows, as well as for folding 
with the breeding flock. We have no green crop so early as 
this, and none more useful. Trifolium incarnatum is, per¬ 
haps, one of our most profitable green crops, of such easy 
culture that no ploughing is required for it. We first well 
harrow the corn stubbles to clear off rubbish, then sow the 
seed, pass the harrows over to cover it, and the work is done. 
It may be termed a second early green crop, affording a very 
heavy bulk per acre, which is generally used green for horses, 
sheep, and cattle. Trifolium hay was at one time disliked, 
but under the modern system of chaffing and mixing it proves 
as valuable as any other fodder. Lucerne, Sainfoin, and 
Trefoil are also excellent green crops that well repay careful 
culture, without which no farm crop really answers, for, 
simple as is the culture of Trifolium, the soil must be fertile 
to insure a full crop. 
(To be continued.) 
WORK ON THE HOME FARM. 
Seldom if ever have we seen the ewes brought into the market In 
such poor condition as at the present time. This is doubtless an out¬ 
come of hard times, the lambs having been kept with the ewes much 
later than usual; food has been scarce, much of the pasture being parched 
by drought, and other food was not to be had for the flock. The result is 
lamentable in the extreme, for in such instances the ewes have become so 
greatly reduced in condition that they are driven to market in wretched 
plight, and are got rid of at prices in some instances as low as 16s. Such 
cases are of course extreme ones, and they are probably only practised by 
those farmers having old ewes not worth keeping for another lambing 
season. Lambs and sheep under careful management are in excellent 
condition. All the sheep have been dipped in Cooper’s mixture. We 
have five flocks, and may mention as a pleasing fact that we have not 
had one bad case of fly striking. That pigs answer and are profitable if 
well managed is quite true, but that they are so greedy that without due 
care there may be a considerable loss with them in a very shoit time. 
We have now about 200 nice young porkers ready for the stubbles, 
where they are tiken daily by boys as the corn is cleared from the fields. 
By the time they are again settl-d in the yards they will have mate¬ 
rially improved in condition, and then they will have home-grown corn 
regularly, and be drafted for sale as they become big enough. With 
su h young pigs it answers to use unthreshed Peas, giving them enough 
of the haulm daily to keep them plump. This answers well, and in con¬ 
nection with this use of unthreshed c.rn for home consumption we may 
mention the chaffing of Oat sheaves for horses, cattle, and iheep. The 
corn is chaffed with the straw, and it makes a wholesome and nutritious 
mixture. This is a lesson in economy which we gained from a shrewd 
Scotch farmer, and we commend it to the notice of our readers as one of 
the important little things which tend to successful results. Repeatedly 
do we have evidence of the soundness of the advice often given to keep, 
really well-bred cows and store cattle. On the day we write this note we 
have seen polled heifers sold at really profitable prices simply because 
they had lipened for the butcher so early without any loss of calf 
flesh. Inferior animals, on the contrary, are now so low in price as to 
entail a loss upon those rash farmers who will persist in keeping them 
despite the stern lessons of adversity which cannot be ignored with 
impunity. 
OUR LETTER BOX. 
Clover Pest (IF. Catleugh ).—The “stuff” which comes in patches 
among the Clover is the common Dodder (Cuscuta trifolii). It is a para¬ 
sitical plant, its seed germinates in the soil, and the slender stems run over 
the Clover, affix themselves to every branch or leaf with which they come 
in contact, feed upon and eventually smother the plants. To eradicate it 
not only pare the soil containing the dead patches of Clover, but a margin a 
foot wide around them, and burn the whole on the spot, for if yon attempt, 
carrying the dead plants and pared soil to one large fire, seed of the Dodde* 
may be scattered about to bring more of the pest next season. 
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 
Camden Square, London. 
Lat. 51° 32'40” N.; Long. 0° 8' 0" W.; Altitude, 111 feet 
DATE. 
y a.m. 
IN THB DAY. 
a 
"2 
1885. 
August. 
Barome¬ 
ter at 32« 
and Sea 
Level 
Hyyrome- 
, ter. 
Direction 
of Wind. 
Temp, of 
Soil at 
1 foot. 
Shade Tem¬ 
perature. 
B ad i at ion 
Temperature. 
Dry. 
Wet. 
Max. 
Min 
In 
sun. 
On 
grass. 
Inches. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
dr-g. 
detr. 
deg- 
In. 
Sunday . 
9 
29.978 
61.2 
57.1 
S. 
G2.0 
73.4 
558 
1124 
50.4 
0.010 
Monday. 
10 
29.671 
64.2 
61.5 
8. 
62.3 
74.8 
58.2 
120.2 
49.3 
_ 
Tuesday. 
11 
29.743 
65.0 
57.2 
s.w. 
62.4 
72.6 
55.7 
121.2 
50.6 
(M»10 
Wednesday .. 
12 
29.837 
61.7 
55.8 
S.E. 
62.2 
(9.6 
52 7 
216.4 
46.9 
0.179 
Thursday .... 
13 
29.973 
58.7 
51.6 
W. 
61.2 
67.6 
50.0 
119.2 
45.9 
Friday. 
14 
30.341 
56.7 
50.5 
U.W. 
59 8 
71.3 
43.3 
119.8 
36.7 
_ 
Saturday .... 
15 
30.339 
60.8 
54. L 
S.E. 
60.2 
69.6 
44 9 
92.9 
38.8 
— 
29.983 
61.2 
55.4 
61.4 
713 
51.5 
114 6 
45.5 
0.199* 
REMARKS. 
9th.—Dull early, with slight drizzle at 9 A M, then fair. 
10th.—Overcast early, bright,and breezy later, then fair. 
11th.—Pleasant day though windy, and frequently cloudy ; shower in evening. 
12th.—Cloudy early, bright till about 4 P.M., then heavy rain ; flue night. 
18tli.—Fine and bright. 
14th.—Cool, hut fine. 
16th.—Very hazy morning ; fine bright afternoon. 
A dry week; temperature very nearly the same as last week, and very near the 
average.-G. J. Stmons. 
