22 
ILLINOIS STATE DAIRYMEN’S ASSOCIATION. 
plished in many sections of the Northwest by selecting what is generally termed th 
low lands, which are composed of a black soil, from two to three feet deep, resting o 
a subsoil of clay. The land should be drained with care so as to relieve the soil of tb 
excess of moisture, then cultivate the surface sufficiently to secure a good seed be 
and to give a smooth surface; sow a combination of grass seed similar to that use 
on plat No. 4; mow it the first season, which will allow the sward to become firme 
and the grass to take deep root, which will enable it to withstand the strain upon 
while the herbage is being cropped off bv the grazing stock. This class of soil i 
usually retentive of moisture when dressed with a heavy covering of vegetation, sue 
as the combination recommended will produce, and enable the plants to withstand 
severe drouth without seriously affecting its vitality. This has been demonstrated i 
many instances in the State of Wisconsin. 
Plat No. 5 consisted of thirty-three acres; soil composed of black mold situate 
near a higher elevation of cultivated grain land ; surrounded by an open ditch; th 
surface of this plat was covered with a very light growth of native or slough grass 
The cultivation was done by surface culture and the following varieties and quantit 
of grass seeds sown about the 10th of September, 1877: Timothy, ten pounds; red to 
seven pounds; fowl meadow grass, five pounds. Results as follows : On the 10th o 
the following July I selected fully developed red top plants, and fowl meadow gras 
as well as timothy. I am quite positive that there was no red top growing on tin 
tract of land at the time it was cultivated, for I superintended the work in person an 
made a close examination of the grass that was growing there when the cultivatioi 
of the lot was commenced. The first yield of hay was about two tons per acre. Thi 
plat is now in use for a meadow, being covered with a very strong sward and yieldinj 
about three tons per acre. 
Plat No. 6 contains one hundred acres joined by plat No. 5. The surface wa 
very smooth and good; soil similar to plat No. 5, from two to two-and-a-half fee 
deep, resting on a clay subsoil, drained by open ditches, and covered by a heavie 
growth of vegetation than plat No. 5, consisting largely of sedge grass. The land wa 
cultivated and sown about the 2d day of September, 1878, the design being a perma 
nent meadow. The following combination of seed were sown, to wit: Timothy 
twelve pounds; red top, seven pounds; fowl meadow grass, five pounds. Threi 
pounds of red clover was sown per acre in the spring. 
When the grass seed was sown in the fall it was mixed with one bushel of hart 
wood ashes per acre, after the ashes had been run through a fanning mill, which mad< 
them a good, clean fertilizer. This plat is yielding a good supply of hay, and th< 
stock is not allowed to feed off the aftermath, which is very injurious to the growtl 
and vitality of the cultivated grasses, especially in this class of soils. The ashei 
which were sown with the grass seed proved to be a good fertilizer, as the effect coulc 
be seen for a long time on the growth of the young seedling. 
Plat No. 7 consisted of forty acres—an old meadow lot. Soil sandy loam, abou' 
two feet deep, resting upon a porous subsoil. This lot of land had been heavily toj 
dressed with compost manure; surface smooth, as it had been cultivated and croppec 
to several kinds of the cereals and also with hay for about eight years, though giving 
a light yield. Time of seeding about the 15th of April, 1876; cultivation by surface 
culture. Quantity and varieties of grass seeds sown per acre, to wit: Timothy, twelve 
pounds; orchard grass, seven pounds; red top, five pounds; red clover, six pounds 
The cost of labor, $5 per acre ; result, a splendid stand of grass and a good yield ol 
hay the first season, as the young timothy plants were but one foot in height, and the 
young plants of orchard grass were about the same height, which made a desirable 
quality of hay for winter feed for the dairy stock. Another important fact is demon¬ 
strate u in seeding this plat, i. e., heavy seeding on this class of soil will very mucl 
assist in the retention of the moisture contained in the soil, which is very essential ii 
promoting the luxuriant growth of these varieties of cultivated grasses. 
Plat No. 8 consisted of seventy-fiye acres of cultivated land cropped with wheal 
and oats; cultivated the last week in August; soil clay, mixed with sand, resting 
upon a porous subsoil. The following combination of seed was sown for a meadow 
to wit: Timothy, twenty pounds; orchard grass, ten pounds; sown the last week ii: 
August, 1876 ; and the following March, when the freezing and thawing process was 
going on, the following amount of clover seed was sown, to wit: Red, eight pounds 
and alsike, five pounds per acre. This combination of seeds makes a very fine quality 
of winter feed for all classes of neat cattle if cut early, cured without being wilted 
and bleached by heavy rains during extremes of heated weather. This combination 
is very desirable for a crop of hay for the reason that the timothy and orchard grass 
will absorb a large portion of the excessive moisture in the clovers. Also the alsike 
haying a smaller stem and of a more soft and pliable nature, forms a very desirable 
adjunct with the other grasses, while they all flower about the same season of the 
year. 
Plat No. 9 contained forty acres of stubble land, cultivated by surface culture the 
first week in August, 1877. The following combination of grass seed was sown, tc 
