409 
The greatest drawback on this kind of husbandry in this climate is 
the length of the winters, and the consequent necessity of providing a 
large amount of fodder in the growing season to be fed out during the 
long winter months. 
It will be seen that little attempt has been made to describe the best 
inodes of culture for grasses and grains ; the object being to call attention 
to the different kinds, and to give such figures and descriptions as will 
enable any one to detect the various species, and thus become familiar 
with their respective merits and demerits. Much caution must be used 
in applying the rules laid down in books for the culture and management 
of crops. These rules are usually constructed to suit particular districts 
where the soil and climate may be very different from any we have in 
Wisconsin ; and consequently much of the great mass of matter found in 
the books becomes useless, until tested here, and the results made known 
through our local publications. The operator must use his own judg¬ 
ment in deciding between that which is valuable, and that which is not 
worthy of his attention. But this very important portion of the subject 
must be left for some other person whose greater experience may enable 
him to do it ample justice. 
It is known that the cultivation of a constant succession of the same 
or similar crops, soon destroys the value of the soil, and renders it, in 
a great degree, unfit for future use. Some of the older States are now 
suffering the evils resulting from this injudicious practice. To prevent 
the bad consequences of such a system, it is necessary to restore con¬ 
stantly to the soil the amount of food of plants annually abstracted. 
This is usually done by the direct application of such food, in the form 
of manure, lime, plaster, bone-dust, &c.; but it is found that a certain- 
succession of different kinds of crops will, in a great measure, prevent 
this exhaustion of the soil. In such a system each cultivated field is 
allowed to lie a certain portion of the time in grass, either for the purposes 
of meadow or pasture. 
The culture of the grasses, therefore, becomes one of the most im¬ 
portant means of keeping up the natural fertility of the earth, and thus 
enable slier to bring forth her promised fruits and harvests. 
The importance of introducing new grasses, and of efforts to improve 
those already cultivated, cannot be over-estimated. It is not at all cer-^ 
