248 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
view.” He goes on to explain his reason for this view by showing 
that these pastures are just one huge Cherry orchard. No doubt 
the pastures have proved costly, hut if the outlay be spread over a 
given number of years, it is a moot point whether pasture so rich 
as this, which will carry at least ten sheep an acre, is not really 
profitable apart from the Cherry trees. It should be added that 
Mr. Carruthers, the Consulting Botanist of the Royal Agricultural 
Society, strongly supported Mr. De Laune’s views about Rye Crass 
in 1882 and subsequently. 
In a letter published in The Times on February 9th Mr. J. H. 
Millard of the firm of Oakshott & Millard, Reading, said, “ 1 will 
now briefly refer to the allegation made by Mr. FaunceDe Laune— 
viz., that Perennial Rye Grass is not suitable for permanent 
pasture. In discussing this let it be remembered there are some 
sixty different forms of Rye Grass, but which are reduced practi¬ 
cally to three—each of which can be procured separately from the 
best collections—the Perennial, the Annual or common, and the 
Italian. All are different in seed ; the first and second named are 
awnless, but the Annual is a longer and broader seed than the 
Perennial, while the Italian has long awns. The true Perennial 
Rye Grass, called by some Lolium perenne Paceyanum, or Pacey’s 
Rye Grass, is very heavy, never weighing less than 26 lbs. per 
bushel, and sometimes 30 lbs. per bushel. It is strictly a perennial 
plant, of thicker growth than the annual variety, the leaves are 
narrower, and its habit is altogether different, and I have seen it in 
fifteen-year-old pastures as strong and vigorous as it was at three 
years. I also found it in some rubbed out heads of Grass gathered 
on Mr. Faunce De Laune’s own fields, and handed to me by one of 
the special correspondents who went down to inspect his pastures. 
The Annual Rye Grass is a biennial plant, at the most never weigh¬ 
ing more than 24 lbs. per bushel, and frequently only 20 lbs., and 
is known hereabouts as Hampshire bents. This, in my opinion, is 
the plant which Mr. Faunce De Laune and Mr. Carruthers are both 
mistaking for the true Perennial Rye Grass.” Mr. Millard adds 
farther on, and in our opinion well adds, “ The primary object of 
both Mr. Faunce De Laune’s and Mr. Carruthers’ essays was to urge 
onlmdlords the importance of sowing only the purest and best 
seeds. They have so far done good service, for I have no hesita¬ 
tion in saying that, with the germination clause of the Royal 
Agricultural Society of England insisted upon, landlords and 
tenants are getting seeds 25 per cent, better and cheaper than they 
could ten years ago.” • 
On March 4th Professor Fream addressed a large and influential 
meeting of the Surveyors’ Institution on this subject, and he ex¬ 
pressed how, with a view to obtaining some definite information on 
the exact nature of the herbage which covers our best old Grass 
lands, he obtained during the winter of 1887- 8 twenty-five blocks 
of turf, representing some of the best old Grass lands in England 
and Ireland. “ With one or two exceptions these turves were of 
uniform size—2 feet long, 1 foot broad, and 9 inches deep. As they 
were received they were planted in a special bed in the botanical 
garden at the College of Agriculture, Downton. The English 
specimens included three from Somerset, two each from Dorset, 
Wilts, and Kent, and one each from Lincolnshire, Leicestershire, 
Derbyshire, Staffordshire, Buckinghamshire, Gloucestershire, Here¬ 
fordshire, aud Devonshire. The Irish specimens were one each 
from the counties of Dublin, Kildare, Meath, Mayo, Clare, Tippe- 
rary, Cork, and Wexford. On the twenty-five turves were as many 
as twenty species of Grasses altogether ; but on no single turf did 
more than ten species of Grasses reveal themselves, and on one turf 
from Herefordshire, yielding 88 per cent, of gramineous herbage, 
this high proportion of Grasses comprised not more than three species, 
Undoubtedly, however, the most important evidence these blocks 
of old pasture afforded was that relating to Rye Grass. As many 
as twenty-four out of the twenty-five yielded this species, which in 
the generality of its distribution came out at the head of the list. 
More than this, out of the twenty-four cases in which it was present 
Rye Grass was first in actual quantity on twenty-one_’of the turves. 
[ March 21 ,18 
M 
Taking one turf with another it is found that the average propor¬ 
tion of Rye Grass yielded by the whole series is no less than 68 per 
cent, of the total Grasses. In other words, if the turves had been 
planted close together they would have covered an area 50 feet 
long by 25 feet broad, which is equivalent to one thirty-fifth of an 
acre. On this composite pasture, made up of equal parts of twenty- 
five different pastures existing in as many districts in England and 
Ireland, it was found in the month of July, after the herbage had 
been allowed to grow, that Rye Grass formed no less than two- 
thirds of the total quantity of Grass produced.” That Pacey’s 
Perennial Rye Grass is suitable for permanent pasture we have no 
doubt. We have large fields of it on two farms some forty miles 
apart, both of which were sown five years ago. One has been 
regularly grazed with sheep and horses, the other grazed and also 
mown for hay. Both have now a close well-knit growth, and the 
pasture is excellent. T wo years ago we laid down some permanent 
mixed pasture with a large proportion of Perennial Rye Grass, and 
so far have ample reason to feel satisfied. Depend upon it there 
would be none of the much-talked-of failure, or rather semi-failure, 
in the third or fourth year of new pasture if it were really culti¬ 
vated as it ought to be. Of the nutritive qualities of Rye Grass 
there can be no doubt, and the result of our experience is that 
sheep, cattle, and horses are alike fond of and thrive upon it. 
WORK ON THE HOME FARM. 
In good time the tveather has changed and become favourable for all 
work on the land. As soon as the surface became dry enough for the 
drills to be used Tares and Peas were sown, and now Barley sowing is ia 
full swing. On some of the heavy land duclc’s-foot harrows have been 
used to stir and break up the surface to facilitate drying, but if possible 
we avoid this, as it involves so much extra trampling of the soil. If the 
land was well ploughed in autumn it should crumble beneath ordinary 
harrows sufficiently for drilling without requiring stirring to a greater 
depth. It is well to look into this closely now for guidance in the 
future, and if the soil of any field proves more than usually tenacious it 
ought certainly to be thrown up into high ridges in autumn, so as to be 
fully exposed to frost, wind, and rain. Any land with a bad character, 
such as being wet, barren, or cold and heavy, should always have special 
attention. It is absurd to suppose there is no cure for such evils ; more 
than once we have tackled the bad field of a farm which had never been 
known to yield a full crop, and proved to our own satisfaction and the 
owner’s profit that the fault lay more in the cultivation than in the 
land. 
Sheep folds on Swedes and white Turnips have been followed closely 
by the ploughs in order to have the land ready for Barley as soon as 
possible. Tue lambs now eat the roots freely, they also have a moderate 
quantity of mixed lamb food, due care being taken that the troughs are 
quite cleared before more food is given. We have been much troubled 
this season by a deficiency of milk among full-mouthed ewes. This has 
not caused any serious loss of lambs, but it has rendered many of them 
very feeble, for no matter how liberal may be the cows’ milk given 
them, this substitute never answers so well as the mother’s milk. Now 
that the lambs can eat they will soon gain strength and be practically 
independent of the ewes. We know of a sad case of a heavy loss of 
ewes and lambs by a young farmer, and fear it is owing to an injudicious 
use of roots. When will tiockmasters learu that to fold pregnant ewes 
upon Turnips involves a serious risk of abortion, as well as the loss of 
the ewes 1 
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS, 
CAMDEN SQUARE, LONDON. 
Lat. 51° 82'40" N.; Long. 0° 8'0" W.; Altitude, 111 feet. 
DATE. | 9 A.M. I IN THE DAY. 
1889. 
2 -S 
Hygrome¬ 
ter. 
Direction 
of Wind. 
Temp, of 
soil at 
1 foot. 
Shade Tem¬ 
perature. 
Rad iation 
Temperature 
a 
3 
March. 
s3 Jr* a —I 
Dry. 
Wet. 
Max. 
Min. 
In 
sun. 
On 
grass 
Sunday . 
Inches. 
29.753 
deg. 
36.7 
deg. 
35.4 
E. 
deg. 
38.0 
deg. 
44.5 
deg. 
31.8 
deg. 
68 3 
deg. 
26.8 
In. 
Monday.,... 
11 
29.946 
39.2 
37.3 
N.E. 
S7 7 
45 9 
333 
8-5.9 
28 6 
_ 
Tuesday ... 
12 
30.294 
3A0 
33.3 
s.w. 
37.2 
47.0 
27.8 
61.8 
24 0 
0.011 
Wednesday. 
13 
30.187 
44.9 
43.1 
N.W. 
37.2 
63.6 
30 1 
80 2 
29.2 
Thursday... 
14 
30.378 
41.3 
37.7 
N. 
38 8 
48.7 
37.6 
91.6 
31.2 
Friday . 
15 
3<>.577 
35 9 
32.0 
N.E. 
38.9 
41.1 
30 7 
80.4 
95.9 
_ 
Saturday ... 
10 
30.485 
34 8 
32.9 
s.w. 
87.9 
50.0 
28.6 
81.6 
21.1 
— 
30.231 
38.3 
38.0 
38.0 
473 
32.3 
7877 
27.0 
0 .0U 
REMARKS. 
10 th.—Fine, but without bright, sunshine. 
11th.-Bright and fine. 
12 th.—Overcast, with spots of rain in morning, misty afternoon. 
13th.—Dull eary.fine and generally bright day. 
14th.—Fine bright and mild till about 3.30, then c’oudy with spots of rain. 
15th.—Fine and generally bright. 
10 th.—Cloudy early, bright morning, fair afternoon and evening. 
A fine, bright and almost raiuless week, but temperature still a little below the 
average.—Q. J. SYMONS. 
