74 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
following, than I had before seen upon it. A portion of 
the sand, where it first struck the field, was a foot 
thick, and remained entirely barren of herbage, and it 
became necessary to scrape it off. The reader may at 
once say that a covering thus brought on by a stream, 
has more or less of fertilizing properties mixed with it, 
and no doubt this is quite generally the case; but my 
observation has frequently been attracted to similar oc¬ 
currences, with like results, where nothing but coarse 
sand or gravel could be detected. Probably, the true 
reason for the improved vegetation, is, that it is sup¬ 
plied abundantly with the elements of a new and more 
vigorous growth by the decaying vegetable matter of 
the sod thus covered, and the land is relieved for a time 
from its former turf-bound condition. 
Improvement of Pastures. —Judge Hayes 7 manage¬ 
ment of his pastures is most excellent, and worthy of 
particular consideration. A few of the pasture-fields 
are used occasionally for mowing and tillage, and some 
of the mowings as pastures; and he finds advantage in 
the practice. All the pastures are plowed as often as 
once in 6 or 7 years. As large a tract as his time al¬ 
lows, is turned over each year. The ground is careful¬ 
ly plowed at the most convenient time after haying, and 
the field rolled. Early in the spring—generally upon a 
late u sugar snow, 77 as farmers say—a variety of grass 
seeds are sown, together with rye, and the field is left 
in common with the rest of the pasture, the rye furnish¬ 
ing considerable feed for the cattle while the youug 
grass is getting root. The moss, grass, small bushes, 
ferns and droppings of the cattle, are thus turned un¬ 
der to decompose and furnish food for the new seeding. 
A new surface is brought to day, to be renewed by at¬ 
mospheric influences ; the decomposing sod underneath 
renders the land light and friable; thus permitting the 
roots of the new plants to expand and penetrate the 
soil in every direction. For 4 or 5 years after, a bet¬ 
ter quality of grass, flourishing in a more robust life, 
has possession of the soil; and the pastures steadily im¬ 
prove under the management. Judge Hayes would 
confidently recommend the practice to favorable consi¬ 
deration, where the pastures can be plowed and the far¬ 
mer has not a surplus of manure to apply to them. 
Although some of the pasture-land is somewhat une¬ 
ven in surface, he has not found it to be injured by 
washing, from being plowed. He is always particular¬ 
ly careful to run the furrows across, or at right angles 
with the slope of the hill, which prevents injury from 
heavy rains. 
About twenty years ago, Judge Hayes purchased a 
pasture of 60 or 70 acres, a mile or two back, for the 
sum of $500. It was not very valuable land, and was 
thought to be high at that price. He commenced im¬ 
proving it by an occasional plowing and' re-seeding in 
the manner described, and I think he informed me that 
about all of il had been gone over in this way, 3 times. 
An opportunity occurring to purchase a pasture nearer 
home, induced him to sell this. He obtained $1200 for 
it; and thinks it was cheaper to the purchaser at that 
price than it was to him, at the time of his purchase; 
the increased productiveness mainly making the differ¬ 
ence. 
Much light is thrown upon the efficacy of Judge H. 7 s 
various methods for the improvement of grass-lands, by 
the remarks of Prof. Johnston, in his “ Lectures on 
Agricultural Chemistry, 77 —a work which the practical 
fermef may read with much pleasure and profit. After 
Speaking of enriching exhausted lands by plowing in 
green erops, the Professor says:— 
“ There is another mode in which, recent vegetable 
m&fter is employed in nature for the purpose of enrich- 
iifg' the soil. The natural grasses grow and die upon a 
meadow or pasture field, and though that which is above 
tire Surface may bd mowed for hay, or cropped by cat- 
March, 
tie, yet the roots remain and gradually add to the quan¬ 
tity of vegeteble matter beneath. If the quantity of ^ 
organic (vegetable) matter which these roots contain, 
be greater than that which the crop we carry off has 
derived from the soil, then instead of exhausting, the 
growth of this crop will actually enrich the soil in so 
far as the presence of organic matter is concerned. Ho 
crops, perhaps, the whole product of which is carried 
off the field, leave a sufficient mass of roots behind 
them to effect this end, but many plants, when in whole 
or in part eaten upon the field, leave enough in the 
soil materially to improve the condition of the land- 
while in all cases those are considered as the least ex¬ 
hausting to which are naturally attached the largest 
weight of roots. Hence, the main reason why poor 
lands are so much benefited by being laid down to 
grass, and why an intermediate crop of clover is often 
as beneficial to the after crop of grain, as if the land 
had lain in naked fallow. 77 
11 An interesting series of experiments on the relative 
weights of the roots, and of the leaves and stems of 
various grasses, made by Hlubek, 77 is given. “ The 
beds were grown in beds of equal size (180 square ft.) 
in the agi’icultural garden at Layback, and mown on 
the fourth year alter sowing, just as they were coming 
into flower. The roots were then carefully taken up, 
washed, and dried." I have not room for the details, 
but it appears that,—“ If we take the mean of all the 
grasses experimented on, as an average of what we 
may fairly expect in a grass field—then the amount of 
living roots left in the soil when a four-year-old grass 
field is plowed up, will be equal to one sixth more than 
the weight of that year’s c%op.” 
“ A mixture of white clover, of ribwort, of hoary 
plaintain, and of couch-grass, in an old pasture field, 
gave 400 lbs. of dry roots to 100 lbs. of hay—and in a 
clover field, at the end of the second year, there were 
56 lbs. of dry roots to every 100 lbs. of clover hay, 
which had been carried off. In an old pasture or mea¬ 
dow field again, when plowed up, the living roots left 
are equal to four times the weight of that year’s hay 
' crop. In the case of clover, at the end of she second 
year, the quantity of dry vegetable matter left in the 
form of roots, is equal to upwards of one-half the 
weight of the whole hay which the clover has yielded. 
Suppose there be three cuttings, (one in the first and 
two in the second year) yielding four tons of hay, then 
two tons of dry vegetable matter are added to the soil 
in the for'rn of roots, when the clover stubble is plowed 
up." 
“ This burying of recent vegetable matter in the 
soil, in the form of living and dead roots of plants, is 
one of those important ameliorating operations of na¬ 
ture, which is always to some extent going on, where- 
ever vegetation proceeds. It is one by which the prac¬ 
tical man is often benefited unawares, and of which— 
too often without understanding the source from 
whence the advantage comes—he systematically avails 
himself of some of the most skilful steps he takes with 
a view to the improvement of his land. 77 
Improvement of Wet Lands. —One of the best spe¬ 
cimens of systematic and profitable husbandry within 
my knowledge, may be found upon Judge Hayes 7 bog- 
meadow. He has some 60 to 70 acres, in one body, 
which he has been steadily reclaiming, for abowt twen¬ 
ty years past. A portion of k had been cleared and 
mowed as sour meadow, for a period ®f nearly 200 
years. 'll is of oblong shape, and of quite uniform 
width, surrounded on ail sides by gradually rising up¬ 
lands. It had, therefore, no natural outlet, and all tb« 
water flowing in from springs in the surrounding up¬ 
lands, remained in the soil, making, it sour, cold and 
and boggy, without being sufficiently abundant to form 
a pond upon the surface. The muck, or peat, upon the 
