HUSBANDRY. S[Q 
fell pt ion, with fiich fuccefs as to afford good crops. The 
feed can ’always be procured with facility wherever it 
grows. It is laid to l'ucceed well on all the heavier forts 
of foil, and to be of great utility when fown with other' 
grades, where the lands are to remain in a flate of grafs 
for the occadonal paiturage of cattle.—See, for its culture 
and valuable properties, the article Trifolium medium. 
Trefoil. —This is confidered like wile as one of the mod: 
ufeful of the grades, being capable of litcceeding on foils 
of different deferiptions. It may be objected.to as being 
only a biennial; but-, as it annually fheds much feed, it is 
faid feldom to wear out of the lands on which it is efta- 
blilhed. This plant is often diftlnguifhed by the-titles of 
Nonfuch, Yellow Clover, See. As it is always of much 
importance to the farmer to have the land he lays down 
for palture to produce an ample crop the drd year ;-and 
as there are fome grades or plants which require two or 
three years to eftabiifth themfelves, and acquire their per¬ 
fect growth, while others arrive at their extreme growth 
and expandon the firft year after they are fown ; fome of 
the latter fort fliould be chofen, among which trefoil wiil 
be found extremely lerviceable. This proves the advan¬ 
tage of mixing it with other fown grades, and converting 
it, like white clover and cow-grafs, into an artidcial grafs. 
—Forks culture, and valuable properties, fee the article 
Msdicago lupulina, in this Encyclopaedia. 
Rib-grass, or Rib-wort PlaNtain. —This is grafs 
anuch relidied by horned cattle and horfes; and on 
grounds that are rather foft and porous, as fands and 
loams, in good heart, arid which have a tendency to moif- 
ture, it affords a large produce of herbage ; but bn thofe 
that are dry and binding, its produce is but fcanty. It 
has been long .eltablifhed in fome dillricts, where it is in 
much edeein for dieep-feed, but from its fucculent nature 
improper for hay. It is faid to be a valuable plant for 
thickening the bottom of meadows and natural grafs-paf- 
tures. Cattle are faid to difrel'ifh it; but an attentive ob- 
ferver may foon fee how eagerly it is eaten by all forts of 
flock. It comes early in dower, and dourilhes even in 
mofs-lands that have been drained, affording feed in great 
plenty. The grafs-leaved plantain is all'o a plant capable 
of being employed with advantage in the laying down 
lands to pafture. It is laid to l'ucceed on barren foils 
and clays. It has the property of refilling the effects of 
the winterly fea-air ; and, as growing well on land liable 
to be overflowed with falt-water, may be a valuable plant 
in fuch forts of ground. Its leaves, from their fmallnefs, 
have the appearance of the thicker and better forts of 
grafs. Cattle, llieep, and horfes, feed upon its leaves 
with much avidity, but particularly llieep, which pare it 
as clrife as poflible.—For its culture and management, fee 
the article Plantaco lanceolata, and tenuifolia. 
Burnet.— This plant may be cultivated for honied- 
cattle ; but its principal ufe is for flieep-padurage. It 
Succeeds on moil forts of foils, as thole of the fandy, 
clayey, and peaty, kinds. It forms a large proportion of 
the natural pafturage of the moll fertile parts of the South 
Downs; and abounds on molt other downs of the cal¬ 
careous kind. Its moll beneficial application is in the 
way of an early green feed for llieep, or other forts of 
Rock. It ihould be always made uieof while in a young 
and tender Irate.of growth, as being better reliffied by- 
cattle. In foilsThat are fertile and fuited to its cultiva¬ 
tion, it is faid, under proper management, fometimes to 
afford good paiturage in the latter-end of January-, and 
through the whole of the two following months. The 
fevere weather in winter affedls it lels than moll other her¬ 
baceous plants, being fo hardy as in fome cafes to vege¬ 
tate in that feafon,'when the weather is a little open. If not 
fed down, it may be cut at the above period as a green food. 
Its property of refilling the eft eels of drought in the linn- 
xner feafon, is likewile a circumftance of much import¬ 
ance- in its favour. It has alfo the quality of growing 
thicker arid clofer on the land by time. For the purpole 
of hay, it is faid to afford a large produce, but requires to 
be .cut early, to prevent its coarfenefs.. The feed is faid 
Vol. X. No. 683. 
to be of much advantage in feeding of horfes, and alfo the 
chaffy material. In the culture of burnet, it is of vail im¬ 
portance to have good feed, and that which is of the pro¬ 
per -fort! It may be the beft procured by flriefting a part 
where the plants are good, as they afford it in a large 
proportion. Where the land is intended as a/ Iheep-paf- 
ture, it Ihould be fown broadcaft over the ground; but 
in other cafes, if admits of being cultivated in drills, in 
the fame manner as lucerne.—See farther under Pimpi- 
nella. . 
It is in general believed that thofe artificial grafle.s'which 
afford much foliage, may be the moll nutritious. The fu- 
per-ior utility of thofe that run much -.0 Item, as well as 
of broad clover, tares, and other limilar-plants, in the fup- 
port of different forts of Hock, Rem to countenance the 
fuppolition. And it is probably on the fame principle 
that the firft crops of hay are better capable of fupporting 
work-horfes, than thofe which arife from the foft herbage 
of the aftermath. 
As all the beft grafs-feeds may now be purchased in the 
feed-lhops, there will of courfe. be much lefts difficulty in 
laying down land with proper graffes than was formerly 
the cafe. In reftpeft to the proportion or feed that may 
be the moil proper and advantageous unief different cir- 
cumllances, it mull depend in a great meafure upon the 
nature of the foil, the lituation of the land, the Hate of 
preparation to which it has been brought, and the inten¬ 
tions of the fanner in its application. But old tillage- 
lands will in general require a much larger proportion of 
feed than thofe.which have been more recently broken-up. 
Cold expofed fituations alfo Hand in need of a greater 
quantity of feed than thofe that are low and warm; and 
where the lands are deiigned for pafture, a -larger propor¬ 
tion mull be allowed than where hay is the principal ob¬ 
ject. ■ 
With refpefl to the feafon of putting in the grafs-feeds, 
the molt ufual has been in the fpring, at the time that the 
grain-crops are fown; but, where the ground has been 
brought to a fuitable Hate of preparation by means of 
green or other fallows, the latter end of the luinmer, as 
about Augull, is by far the better time. In the former 
cafe they are commonly put in with the grain-crops ; but, 
in the latter, without any other fort of crop. There has 
been much diverfity of opinion among agricultural writers 
with regard to the fuperior utility of thefe different fea- 
fons of introducing the feeds, as well as with regard to 
their being fown with or without other forts of crops.’ 
The advantages of the autumnal over thofe of the vernal 
lowings are contended to be, thofe of the grafs-plants 
being lefs expofed to danger from the fliade, clofenefs,_ 
and choakirig, that mull rieceflarily occur at,the latter fea¬ 
fon ; there being lefs rifk of flocking the ground witji 
noxious weeds'in cafe, of the feeds of hay-chambers being 
indiferiminately fown; their being put in upon a better 
preparation and more mellow and fertile ftate of the land ; 
their growth being more ft'rong and vigorous from their 
not -being robbed of their proper riourifhment by other- 
exhaufting crops, and the great fuperiority of the hay- 
produce; while on the .contrary it is maintained.in fup- 
port of the vernal fowings, that, befides their being lefs 
precarious, fliade is neceffary in the early growth of the 
plants to protect them from the effects of heat; the moif- 
ture is better preferved in the foil for their fupport; fmall 
annual weeds more effeflually prevented from riling to 
injure them; and the lofs the farmer muft fuftain from the 
want of the grain-crop guarded againlt. 
But though fome of the arguments urged on both Tides 
6 f this controverted point may be objected to, the autum¬ 
nal fowings not preventing the perennial weeds, from 
rifting and Ihedding their feeds in the following fummer, 
nor the great clofenefs of grain-crops being without in¬ 
jury to the growth of the .young grafs-plants; there are 
facis that render it not improbable but that-each method 
may have advantages under particular circumftances. In 
the more fouthern dillririls,-where the.feverity of the win¬ 
ter is later-in its approach, the. autumnal feafon may fre- 
7 A quently 
