ON THE MIXED HERBAGE OE PERMANENT MEADOW. 
1345 
total mixed herbage, Poa pratensis is perhaps the most uniformly predominating, 
Festuca ovina and Agrostis vulgaris coming next in this respect; the one or the other 
being relatively the more prevalent in the different separation-years according to the 
characters of the season. A number of other grasses have, however, generally con¬ 
tributed a fair proportion to the herbage; thus, Holcus lanatus has yielded a consider¬ 
able average percentage and actual amount, Dactylis glomerata about the same average 
proportion, but with more tendency to increase, Arena elatior also has shown consider¬ 
able tendency to increase, whilst Anthoxanthum odoratum has yielded a small but not 
greatly varying quantity, and Alopecurus pratensis less still. On the other hand, 
whilst Poa pratensis has much increased in both percentage and actual amount, Poa 
trivialis has, in a considerably greater degree, diminished, in fact almost become 
excluded; and, whilst Arena elatior has greatly increased, A. pubescens and A. 
jlavescens have each very greatly diminished, indeed almost disappeared. Of the other 
grasses which have gone down in this struggle among free, luxuriantly-growing, stem¬ 
forming, and maturing species, are Bromus mollis, Lolium perenne, and in much 
smaller actual quantity Festuca pratensis. 
Under the influence of such gramineous luxuriance, as already said, the Leguminosse 
occurred in most insignificant amount, so much so that it is of little interest to go 
into any detail as to which of such species was the most persistent and prominent. 
Lathyrus pratensis was so, indeed, but in most immaterial quantity each year. Ononis 
arvensis, which may be designated as a weed, gave, however, the largest, though a 
very small percentage and actual quantity, in the last separation-year. There was, on 
the average of the four separation-years, only between 10 and II lbs. of total legu¬ 
minous herbage per acre—a quantity which gives to its occurrence on the plot an 
almost accidental character. 
The division of the table relating to the Miscellanese shows that under the condi¬ 
tions of luxuriant growth of the grasses on this plot, only three species of the 
miscellaneous group come under the category of those yielding more than one per 
cent, to the total herbage in any one of the separation-years. These are, in the order 
of their average prevalence, Rumex Acetosa, Conopodium denudatum, and Achillea 
Millefolium. Each of these varied considerably in amount from year to year according 
to the character of the season ; but each of the three gave by far the most in the 
second separation-year, which, it will be remembered, was extremely favourable for 
Miscellauese generally; indeed, in that year the quantity both of Rumex and of 
Conopodium was extremely large. In each of the other years the Rumex gave more 
than the other two together. In fact, it is obvious that the conditions were, notwith¬ 
standing the severe competition of the free-growing grasses, very specially favourable 
for this vigorous, free-seeding, and objectionable weed. 
In actual yield, each of these three most prominent of the miscellaneous species gave 
much more, on the average, than without manure, especially the Rumex; but of the 
numerous species, taken collectively, none of which have yielded one per cent, to the 
