ON THE MIXED HERBAGE OE PERMANENT MEADOW. 
1291 
of foliage, dense undergrowth, backwardness, and little tendency to form stem, or to 
flower and seed. 
Second season of separation, 1867.—In 1866 both the first and second crops were 
over average, and the second were cut and left on the ground. The autumn, winter, 
and spring of 1866-7 were very changeable, and growth was much checked. June, 
the maturing period, was again changeable; upon the whole drier, but not so warm 
as usual. With very varying climatal conditions, there was great irregularity in the 
character of growth of the different plants, and with the different manures. Without 
manure, and with deficient manuring, there was more than average produce; with 
mineral manure and ammonia-salts together there was a considerable deficiency ; and 
with mineral manure and nitrate of soda a considerable excess. With the nitrate the 
excess was 'almost all gramineous, and the most forward grasses produced much stem, 
under the influence of the dry, though not warm, weather of June. With deficient 
manuring, and with ammonia-salts alone, there was, on the other hand, restricted 
growth of the grasses, but miscellaneous plants were unusually abundant. Upon the 
whole, the different grasses were very differently affected; Leguminosse were generally 
deficient; miscellaneous plants were in excess; and, excepting with the nitrate, the 
growth was much more characteristically leafy than stemmy. 
Third season of separation, 1872.—The characters of the seasons intermediate 
between the separation-year of 1867 and that of 1872 undoubtedly exercised con¬ 
siderable influence on the straggle from year to year. The first of the four inter¬ 
mediate years gave very heavy produce, characterised by great stemminess and 
maturity; the second, again, gave very heavy produce, but characterised by great 
luxuriance and leafy growth; the third yielded the smallest crop of the whole series, 
prematurely ripened; the fourth was one of variable characters, giving more than 
average amounts of produce, with great unevenness of development of the plants. It 
is obvious that these various conditions were calculated to influence the character and 
results of the struggle in very various ways; and, in the facts adduced, we have 
illustrated in a striking manner how greatly the question is complicated by the 
element of season. 
The season of 1872 itself was extremely changeable; favourable for fair luxuriance, 
but of very varying tendency to stem and seed formation, and to maturation, according 
to the already established character of the herbage, and to the conditions of manuring 
supplied. There was generally less than average produce with deficient, and more 
than average with high, manuring. By virtue of the characters of the four preceding 
seasons, and especially of the two years of heat and drought, 1868 and 1870, the 
distribution of plants had become considerably modified. With deficient manuring 
Festuca ovina especially, but Agrostis vulgaris also, had much increased. With more 
liberal manuring, when the nitrogen was supplied as ammonia, Dactylis glomerata and 
Poa pratensis, and when as nitrate, Bromus mollis and Boa trivialis had become more 
prominent. The season of 1872 was favourable for superficially feeding Leguminosse 
