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104088

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Cornell University Library
SB 197.K48 1880

“Willan

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GRASSES.

d
MEADOWS AND. PASTURES:

SORGHUM

AND THE

MANUFACTURE OF SUGAR.

BY

J. B. KILLEBREW, A. M., Ph. D.

|| Commissioner of Agriculture, Statisties and Mines for the State of Tennessee.

+00

NASHVILLE:
TAVEL, EASTMAN & HOWELL.
1880.

MEADOWS AND PASTURES.

A
. COMPENDIUM
&
<> OF ‘THE

GRASSES OF TRNNESSER,

PREPARED EXPRESSLY FOR THE

FARMERS OF TENNESSEE,

BUT

ADAPTED TO THE WHOLE COUNTRY.

BY

J. B. KILLEBREW, A. M., Ph. D.,

Commissioner of Agriculture, Statistics and Mines for the State of Tennessee.

i ut { Cy f
NASHVILLE:
TAVEL, EASTMAN € HoweE.L.u.
1880. |

‘To His ExcELitency, Gov. A. S. Marks:

The original work issued from this office, entitled
“The Grasses of Tennessee,” including Cereals and Forage
Plants, was so popular that the means at my disposal were
entirely inadequate to supply the demand from the farmers
throughout the State. The members of the last House of
Representatives having frequent calls for them from their
constituents, passed a resolution authorizing me to publish
seven thousand five hundred copies for their use, but requir-
ing the expense of such publication to be paid out of the
annual appropriation made to this department. As this ap-
propriation was not immediately available, I was compelled
to wait until a sufficient sum had accumulated to the credit
of the department before putting this brochure to press.
It is believed that for most farmers this little work will be
as useful as the larger and more scientific manual, of which
this isan abridgement. In this all the scientific terms have
been excluded, and descriptions of all grasses‘of doubtful
utility have been omitted. This edition embraces five thou-
‘sand copies, and their distribution will no doubt increase
the growing desire of our farmers to engage more largely
in the cultivation of the grasses, at once the sign and sup-
port of a vigorous civilization.

Very truly,

J. B. KiLLEBREew.
November, 1880.

INTRODUCTION.

No surer test of the degree, of agricultural advance-
ment of a country can be found than the relative acre-
age of land laid down to grass and devoted to tillage.
Wherever the grass is most abundant there is the
highest farming. This statement is most strkingly estab-
lished by comparing the agricultural systems of France and
England. In France 53 per cent. of the tillable land is
annually sown in some kind of grain, while in England the
grain-bearing per cent. of land is only 25. On the other
hand, while France has but 22 per cent. in grass, England
has 50. Notwithstanding this difference in the amount of
land devoted to grain, the yield of wheat to each inhabitant
is almost identical in the two countries. Every acre of
grain land in England receives, on an average, the manure
from the animals fed off three acres of grass. In France,
on the contrary, the manure made from each acre of grass
has to be spread over 23 acres of grain. In other words,
each acre of grain in England gets nine loads of manure to
one load given to the acre in France.

A further comparison would show that the acknowledged
superiority of English cattle, sheep and other domestic
animals, over those of France, or any other country for
that matter, is due more to the superiority in quality and
quantity of the meadows and pastures of that wonderful
island than to anything else. If we turn our attention to
other countries we shall find that the amount and character
of grasses grown may always be taken as a measure of the
degree of advancement to which their agriculture has
reached. It must be borne in mind that this statement

(6)

holds good only of the cultivated grasses, but of these it is:
perhaps universally true.

Under this test the agricultural system of Tennessee falls
very low. It isa notable fact, often observed and com-
mented upon, that the great leading, dominating error in
the farming of Tennessee has been, and is, the putting too
much land in corn and oats, and too little in grass. Under
this system a very large breadth of the land has been well-
nigh ruined. Indeed, the damage is so serious that some
change has come to be absolutely necessary. Judging from.
the experience of other countries, the one and only thing
capable of redeeming this almost ruined land and saving the
farmers from absolute bankruptcy, is grass.

Fortunately, the climate, soil and geographical locality.
of Tennessee all combine to render it by nature a grass

‘region. In all the essentials to success in this great branch
of agriculture, but few sections of the United States surpass
East and Middle Tennessee, while the northern part of
West Tennessee is well suited to many grasses. It is not
unreasonable to anticipate at no distant day, under an im-
proved system of farming, these natural capabilities will be
thoroughly and judiciously developed, and where now are
only vast wastes and forest wilds, trackless and unculti-
vated, rich pastures will bloom and countless cattle roam.
But no such result can come without a radical change in
the system of farming.

From the circumstance of the peculiar position of Ten-
nessee as a border State to the cotton belt, she has lost much
time in agricultural progress. The large returns of the
cotton planters South, and the wonderful ease with which
they achieved great wealth, induced those living near to
attempt the same role that succeeded so well further south.

Tennessee possesses in her bosom all the elements of a
grazing country. Scarcely a foot of land exists in all her
borders that will not in an eminent degree meet the wants
of some one or other of the grasses. Living streams of

(7)

water, fed by perennial springs, as sweet as those of Casta-
lia, hasten down the mountain slopes and lazily meander
through the beautiful valleys. Being midway between the
lakes and the gulf, we live just where the warm, moist
southern winds encounter the condensing blasts of the
north, so that we are rarely the sufferers from droughts.
In fact, nature intended this State as a grazing region, while
man in his thirst for riches has made it what it is.

Grass is wealth. As lowly and bumble as it appears, it
comprises about one-sixth of all the vegetation of the
world. It nourishes more animals than all other food
combined, and furnishes all the elements for the growth of
animals.

Grasses are divided into two general classes, natural and
artificial. The former includes those grasses with long,
simple, narrow leaves, with a prominent mid-rib or vein in
the center, and smaller ones running parallel to it, and at
the base the leaf divides and clasps the stem in such a way
that the stem seems to pass through it. Asa rule the stem
is hollow and closed at the joints, though a few are solid
stemmed. The classification of grasses would be impossible
were their general appearance only considered. So great
are the changes produced by modes of culture, by soil and
climate, botanists, to arrive at the precise plant, therefore,
have adopted characteristics that undergo no change, such
as flowers, etc. From the rule of botanists in giving all
plants technical names, it would be a difficult matter to.
recognize an old familiar friend under the new guise of a
generic term; but we will endeavor, by giving also the
name in common use, to remove this difficulty and bring
them within the comprehension of any one who will take
pains to properly read the descriptions.

Artificial grass includes all leguminous plants, such as
clover, peas, beans, etc., while cereals, such as maize, wheat,
oats, barley, rye, rice, sorghum, dhouro, chocolate-corn and

(8)

broom-corn, though really true grasses, are generally classed
with the artificials.

To one not acquainted with the subject, the facility with
which grass scatters and diffuses itself is very surprising.
But it seems that so important a vegetation should not be
subject to the fancies or caprices of man. The seeds are
prepared in such a way, that they are self-sowers. It is
this remarkable facility of transportation that has given rise
to the surmise of many, that it grows by spontaneous gene-
ration. Some of the seeds have hooks, and by these they
fasten to any passing animal and are carried for miles.
Others lie undigested in the crops of birds, or maws of
animals, and are scattered with the dejecte. Snows gather
them on the hill-sides and bear them far away on the melt-
ing torrents, and scatter them, mayhap, along some foreign
shore. The air also assists in this, and lifts them on its
wings and they fly in all directions. When grass once
stands, even if a passing beast cuts off its annual supply of
seed, its rhizomes or creeping roots thrust their tender
spongioles through the yielding soil, and thus many a field
is clothed with verdure. And besides, many of the grasses
are perennials, and though torn and tramped by stock, they
gather new strength for another year, and push on their
foothold.

There is a large class resembling the grasses in general
appearance, but very different in the physical structure and
nutritive elements. I allude to the rushes and sedges, of
which there are over five hundred varieties growing in the
United States, and eighty of them are found in Tennessee.
What is commonly known as “broomsedge” is not a sedge
at all, but a true grass, while the well-known “ seed-tick ”
grass is a sedge.

There is a simple method of separating the grasses from
these rushes and sedges, which will be briefly stated:

The sheath of sedges is a hollow tube, through which the

ems pass, and it cannot be removed without tearing it

(9)

open. This is not the case with grass, as the sheath can be
stripped down, it being open to the joint. Besides, the
leaves of all grasses are two-ranked, that is, the stem has
leaves on each side, some opposite, others alternate, but
always only on two sides. The leaves of sedges are three-
ranked, or come out on three sides of the circle of a stem.
In other words, the stem forms a circle of 360 degrees.
The grass leaves are 180 degrees from each other, and the
sedge leaves are 120 degrees apart.

In the grass-like rush the flowers are divided into six
points, within which are six stamens and a triangular ovary
containing three seeds. A grass has never but one seed to
the ovary.

The English farmer is able to take long leases of farms
from the rich landholder, at from $20 to $50 per annum
rent. How does he pay this extravagant rent and support
his family? He could not do it in any other manner than
by improving, manuring and increasing the meadows with
which they are constantly set. A Tennesseean will manure
his garden, and sometimes his corn land, but whoever thinks
of spreading manure on his meadows. Yet the Englishman
will spend large sums of money, and devote labor through
the whole winter, in accumulating a large compost heap to
apply to his meadows! The result may be imagined.
While the Tennessee meadows will average from 800 to
1,500 pounds of hay to the acre, English meadows will
make from two to five tons on land that has no other ad-
vantage than the care bestowed on it by the owner.

Besides this, the grass grown in a a damp cold climate is
never so sweet and nutritious as that raised under a warm
sun and with a quick growth. In this State there is an
occasional drought that begins in June or July, interfering
seriously with the development of the later crops. But
such a condition of climate is scarcely known in the earlier
months during the growth of the grass crops. Yet there is
with the spring rains a degree of temperature unknown to

(10)

the Englishman, a degree sufficiently high to give grass all
the necessary heat to enable it to attain its full supply of
sugar and nitrogen from the soil.

The beautiful lands of Kentucky and Missouri, to say
nothing of the Northern States, still retain a great value,
and are in demand at high prices. It is- because these.
States have more land in meadows, while broad stretches of
valuable pastures and prairies dot the landscape in every
direction. Poor land will not make much grass, and with-.
out a great outlay of capital land cannot be placed in first-
class order at once. But it only requires a start, and then
the persevering, provident farmer will soon see his farm
blossoming as the rose. Land in Europe not infrequently
reaches the sum of $1,000 per acre for purely agricultural
purposes, while here it is a difficult matter to extract, with
our best farming, $50 per acre, and then the expenses are-
to be drawn from that meagre sum.

Let us draw a comparison between our leading staples.
Cotton here will make on average land 800 pounds seed
cotton per acre. This at the usual price makes $20 per:
acre. Corn will produce on good land eight barrels per
acre, and at $2.00, the laborer will get $16. Tobacco, our
most remunerative crop, on good land will make 800 pounds
of leaf, which is about $50 to $60 per acre. Wheat will
make, on good land, fifteen bushels per acre, and at $1 will
yield about $15. Taking the cost of production from these
amounts, the average farmer will not have left, at the best,
more than twelve dollars per acre. A good meadow, in full
bearing, with ordinary care, will yield, with two cuttings,
at least two tons per acre. The cost is altogether in har-
vesting, while the trouble of sending to market is no greater
than either of the other crops. This, at the price for which
it has been selling for several years, will be $20 per ton.
Here, then, is a difference in actual receipts of almost
double that obtained from other crops, nothing paid out for
production, and besides the land can be enriched year by

(11)

year, until it attains an almost fabulous fertility. Nor is
this all. The amount of hay produced from a single acre
can be increased almost to any extent by the application of
stimulating manures. If then, land in Europe can produce
five tons of hay per acre, and sell for $1,000 per acre, why
cannot Tennessee lands, far better naturally, and in a more
genial climate, be made to rival these results? One thing
only prevents, and that is the fatal apathy and want of en-
terprise on the part of the land owners. It is the thirst for
immediate returns. ‘To create this state of tillage, it will

e necessary to proceed slowly, and look for no returns of
consequence for one or two years. Pressing necessities
weigh upon the farmer, and he thoughtlessly drives on in
the same interminable furrow, regardless of the loss of time
and fertility. The Northern husbandman bales his hay,
and is able to ship it to all parts of the South in search of a
market, and after paying heavy railroad charges, is still
able to sell his produce at a remunerative price. The
Southern man has no freight charges to tax his hay, and
yet he is content to let his Northern rival enjoy, without
competition, this great market. When will our eyes be
opened to our interests, is a question often asked, but diffi-
cult to answer.

A capitalist invests his money in United States bonds,
and without risk or labor contentedly cuts off his coupons
and enjoys his ease, while the merchant, with the same cap-
ital, is harrassed to death meeting bills, collecting accounts,
and watching with unceasing vigilance the turn of the
markets. So itis with farmers. A prudent farmer will
invest his farm-capital in grass, and he contentedly watches
the growth of the grass and the browsing of his cattle,
while his neighbor raising corn and cotton, is busy all the
year in cultivating his crops, watching his laborers, buying
mules, bacon and hay from his more prudent friend, and
when he counts his receipts at the end of ihe struggle, he
will find his neighbor has absorbed the greater part of them.

(12)

Not only this, but a stranger appears in the country desi-
rous of investing in land, and while he would turn from
the cotton plantation at ten or twelve dollars per acre, he
would gladly invest in the grass farm at forty or fifty dol-
lars per acre.

Land that will yield ten or fifteen dollars per acre clear
of the expense of cultivation, cannot be supposed, and is
not entitled, to the same value with land that will produce
thirty or forty dollars on the same breadth. And yet the
farmers of Tennessee hesitate to pursue this course. Gaulli-
ver, in the midst of his extravaganzas, uttered a truism
that will go down to all ages, when he said “the man who
makes two blades of grass grow where one grew before, is
a great public benefactor ;” and when the citizens of Ten-
nessee look at their own interest in a proper light, they will
realize this truth, and then by acting upon it, double or
even quadruple the intrinsic value of the lands of the State.

Grass means-less labor, less worry, fewer hands, more
enjoyment, finer stock and more charming homes, and as a
consequence, happier families, more education, more taste
and refinement, and a higher elevation of the moral char-
acter. Let grasses be sown and our homes beautified, and
there will be more contentment, more satisfaction, less
gloom and despondency, less carping and discontent.

MEADOW GRASSES.

The following are the most trustworthy grasses for the

meadow in the latitude of Tennessee.

I give both the com-

mon and scientific names, the average number of pounds in
a bushel, the number of seed in an ounce, and depth of soil
at which the greatest number of seeds will germinate. :

2 | F lgsae
_ w a5 ES
g | & [EBs
u | oe tee PS.
Common Names. Scientific Names. ¢ = Ss 2 & S
wm cm = 3 al
: 252
mee
Timothy «00.00... cscs vesees Phleum pratense........ 44 | 74000|4 inch.
Herd’s-grass or Red Top|Agrostis vulgaris....... 12 |425000'4 inch
Orchard Grass ........... Dactylis glomerata....| 12 | 40000)4 inch
English Rye Grass........ Lolium perenne......... 18 t030} 15000)4 to $ in.
Italian Rye Grass.........)Lolium Italicum....... 15 | 27000/0 to 4 in.
Millet.............000 00 .-| Panicum miliaceum...| c.cccce|cesseeeee [eseeee ceeeee
Gama Grass.......c.es scree Tripsacum dactyloides).........| cesses |oseees seeeee
Meadow Oat Grass........ Avena pratensis......... 54 |118000)0 to ¢ in
Means Grass.........0+ 000 Sorghum halapense....|....0:00+| escesees | cesses ceeees
Red Clover .........ssscceeee Trifolium pratense.....| 64 | 16000)0 to 3 in.
Alsike Clover.... ...|Trifolium hybridum...| 64 | 16000)0 to 3'in.
Sapling Red Clover......|Trifolium erectum.....| 64 | 16000/0 to 3 in.
Crimson Clover.........++ Trifolium incarnatum| 64 | 16000,0 to 4 in.
Lucerne ........00 see eeeoeees: Medicago sativa........ 60 | 12000).........0
Sainfoin or Esparsette...'Onobrychis sativa...... 26 ' 10280 3 to 1 in.

TIMOTH Y—(Phleum Pratense.)

This grass is known in New England as Herd’s grass,
from a Mr. Herd, who found it growing wild in New Hamp-
shire, and introduced it into cultivation.

Further south,

(14)

however, this name is only applied to Red-top, or Agrostis
vulgaris.

Mr. Timothy Hanson carried it from New York to Caro-
lina, and from him it is known as timothy grass.

Its leaves are abundant near the ground, but those on the
stalk are comparatively few. Like most other meadow
grasses it attains its greatest value as a food before the seeds
are ripe. The latter are very abundant and highly nutri-
tious. From ten to thirty bushels are made on good land.
yNG It ripens late, and consequently favors
ims the farmer very much, as he is able to
/ save his wheat before cutting and curing

his hay. It was a common custom at
one time to sow it with clover, as it added
to the value of the hay, and from the
strength of its tall stems it prevented the
clover from lodging, but the fact of rip-
ening so much later than clover, causing
a great loss from shrinkage, has ‘done
,, away with this practice, especially as or-
VA chard grass is so much superior in that
HI respect. Timothy is not suitable for pas-

.
Ir

i i turing, having scarcely any aftermath.
i! Besides, the roots are easily destroyed if
f; the stems are taken off below the first

yy joint, this much being required for their
jp \\ vitality. For this reason, also, it is nec-
, cessary to be careful to set the blade of the
mower sufficiently high to leave the first
joint intact. ‘The roots of this grass are
both fibrous and bulbous. Its bulbs have but few rootlets
starting out from them, the plant depending for its support
principally on the store of nourishment laid up within the
bulbs. If, therefore, the stem is shaved off entirely, the
bulbs, being deprived of all nourishment, throw out tubers
all around, and these send up shoots, seeking food in the air,

(15 )

‘but they are feeble, and if spared by the frosts of winter are
so crippled they fall an easy prey to the scorching suns of
summer. For the same reason pasturing will effectually
destroy a timothy meadow, if persisted in. The stock will
bite off all foliage, leaving the roots to perish, or if hogs are
allowed to run on it they quickly discover and destroy the
succulent bulbs. When about half the blossoms turn brown,
and at least the upper part of the spike or head is still pur-
ple, a yellowish spot will make its appearance at or near the
first joint, and this is the true indication for the harvest to
begin, for this spot will soon extend, if allowed to remain,
to the spike, and the whole plant will be a stem of wood.
The appearance of this spot also tells of the maturity of the
bulbs, and they are not so liable to injury from cutting as
before. If this joint is left, the tubers will remain green
and fresh during the entire winter; but their destruction is
inevitable if it is taken away at any time during the year.
These remarks do not apply with equal force to timothy
when it has a fibrous root, but the two kinds are so inti-
mately mingled there is no practical difference.

Timothy stands at the head of all grasses in its nutritive
‘qualities. A specimen taken from the field according to
the above directions, yielded on analysis, water 57.21, flesh-
forming principles 4.86, fat-forming principles 1.50, heat-
producing principles 22.85, woody fibre 11.82, and mineral
matters 2.26, in one hundred parts.—(Way.) A compari-
‘son of its relative value as a food will be made further on.
But the above nutritious specimen will never be produced,
if the plant is allowed to stand too long. On the contrary,
as a food it would become woody and worthless, all its
starch, sugar, albuminoids, and other nutritive principles
having been deposited in the seeds, and the stalk is nothing
more than a woody support.

Cattle fed on this kind, or on hay that has been allowed
to get wet and ferment, will quickly lose their flesh and the
hair become rough.

(16 )

Timothy is exhaustive to the soil, and being a heavy
feeder, requires attention. No crop can be raised on ground
that will not extract a certain amount of its vitality, but
unless something is taken the farmer would receive nothing.
Therefore, it is the duty of the farmer to supply by ma-
nure the deficiency that occurs; and this is made the more
apparent from the fact that the man who applies the most
manure will invariably get the best returns for his labor.
On good rich land—bottom is best—timothy will make two
tons per acre. By a heavy application of compost or ma-
nure from the barn-yard, it can be raised to five tons, and
the straw lengthened from two feet, its usual height, to five
and even six feet, and from the same cause, the heads from
two inches to twelve inches in length.

It is a great and sure bearer of seeds, but the seeds are
easily destroyed by heat in the mow, unless precautions are
used in caring for them.

The time of sowing is various. If sown in the spring it
is liable to be killed by summer heat, and if sown late in
autumn it runs the same risk with frost. It is, therefore,
bad policy to run the risk of not only losing the cost of seed,
but also the labor of preparing the ground. Much must
be left to the judgment of the farmer in selecting a suitable
day, but it is safe to say that it should always be sown in
the fall, early enough to get a root strong enough to resist
winter killing. If sown in a very dry soil it will incur the
further danger of germinating from dews, and of being killed
by the sun. Select the time when the ground is moist, and
the days not excessively hot. The quantity of seed per acre
is various, but the sower who spares his seed will reap in
proportion. Not less than 12 pounds, if mixed, and if alone,
at least three gallons of clean seed, will be required to se-
cure a good stand. But it will ve better to test the seeds
beforehand, for a failure from bad seeds will cause a year’s
delay.

Timothy does best on rich alluvial, moist land; but any

(17)

rich land, whether upland or lowland, will produce it, if
proper attention is given. Wherever calcareous loam ex-
ists it can be profitably put to timothy. It will not growto
apy extent ata greater elevation than four thousand feet
above the sea, but on any less height there is no grass capa-
ble of greater diffusion.

In order to secure a stand of timothy, the following sim-
ple rules may be adopted:

1. Be sure of your seed b7 testing them before sowing.

2. Put plenty of seed on the ground; if too thin, it will
require time to turf over, if too thick, it will quickly ad-
just itself.

3. Sow early enough to enable the seed to get a foothold
before wivter sets in. Late fall and winter sowings are al-
ways precarious. September is best, if there is no drought,
otherwise wait for a ‘“ season.”

4, Unlike other grasses, timothy will not admit of pas-
turage. The nipping of stock will destroy the bulbs.

5. NEVER CUT THE SWARD BELOW THE FIRST JOINT.

6. Be sure to have the ground well pulverized.

It is necessary to impress one idea that has already
been stated. Do not allow the timothy to staid longer than
the time that the yellow spot appears near the first joint, as
it will from that time ripen very rapidly, and be worthless.
General Harding, before the Farmers’ Club, called atten-
tion to the fact, that the greatest enemy of timothy is blue-
grass. If stock is allowed to pass from a blue-grass pasture,
at will, to a meadow of timothy, they will quickly sow the
meadow in blue-grass, and the latter will, in a short time,
supersede the former. In the meeting above alluded to,
timothy being the subject of discussion, Gen. Harding being
called on for his views, said “he had had considerable expe-
rience with timothy. He regarded timothy the most valua-
ble of all the grasses for hay, and more especially for hay
that must be handled or shipped or baled. He had tried
several varieties. Before the introduction of blue-grass our

2

(18 )

timothy meadows lasted almost without limit, and produced
year after year for twenty or thirty years. But since we
have been growing blue-grass more extensively, it gets into
our timothy meadows and in a few years and will root it out;
so now, in buying my timothy seed, I look more carefully
for blue-grass seed than for the seed of any noxious weeds.
I would rather sow dock—I would rather sow anything in
my timothy than blue-grass. Still I value blue- grass in its
place as the first of grasses, yet it causes more trouble in our
meadows than anything else. Again, our seasons have be-
come dryer, and there is much greater difficulty in getting
a stand of timothy than formerly. When I commenced
sowing meadows, I had no trouble in getting a stand of
timothy, whether I sowed the seed in the fall or in the
spring, whether I sowed in the fall with wheat or barley, or
in the spring with my oats. For many years I never failed.
Now I sow in the the fall, and the timothy is frequently
winter-killed ; I sow in the spring, and it is killed by the
long droughts of summer. But these difficulties should not
deter us; we should continue to sow, and persevere until we
get astand. Hence if I sow in the fall and my timothy is
killed, I sow in the spring ; if it is then killed, I sow again
and again until I succeed. I have never given up, and
have never entirely failed after repeated efforts. I got a
good stand of timothy many years ago with a gallon of seed
to the acre, now I would recommend not less than one and
a half gallons, or even a peck of seed to the acre. Again,
the better the stand you get, and the thicker your grass
comes up, the more will it keep out the weeds. The white
blossom, like the blue grass, has also increased largely, and
seems to be yet increasing. That is a troublesome weed for
our meadows, sti]] it is not as pernicious as it seems to the
inexperienced. ‘True, you cannot sell white blossom in the
market, but if you expect to consume the hay at home, and
make your timothy with a large amount of white blossom
in it, you will find you will have good hay. Stock will eat

(19 )

it, and readily, mules and cattle seeming to do almost as
well upon it as upon the timothy alone.

“T know that some differ from me in considering the
white blossom as troublesome as any other plant, and throw
it away. I have some hands to run along the windrow and
pick out the white blossoms, and make hay of the white
blossoms alone. It pays very well for the labor of sepa-
rating it. I will not throw the white blossom away, for it
is valuable. I stack it in my pastures and let the cattle go
to it at will during the winter. I also stack my straw, and
that helps the cattle.

“Now, what is the proper time to cut timothy? Some
would say as soon as it blooms, others would say after it has
bloomed and the bloom has fallen. IfI could cut it all on
the day I thought it would make the best hay, I would cut
it just about the time it has lost the largest portion of ite
bloom. If you cut it too green—like green fodder—the
stalk will shrivel and, after being cured, the stalk will
break short, but if allowed to get a little riper the stalk will
bend.

“ How much sun should it have? This is a question that
can only be determined by experience. The proper time to
put it up is when it has had as little sun as possible, so you
are assured it will not mould. If there is too much moist-
ure in it, it will mould, and thereby injure the hay. If the
weather is settled, it will cure better in cocks, but all these
things must be governed by circumstances.”

It is highly probably that the reason Gen. Harding’s
meadows fail in six or seven years, is the fact, he admits, of
pasturing them. It is a well ascertained fact that timothy
will not bear pasturing, and attention to this and leaving
the first joint uncut will most probably make our meadows
again live twenty or thirty years.

At the meeting of the Stock Breeders’ Association in
February, 1878, Gen. W. H. Jackson said, that the best
forerunner of timothy is Hungarian grass. If this is sown

( 20)

in the summer and harvested in August or September, and
timothy sown upon the stubble and harrowed in, the best
stand could be obtained. The Hungarian grass destroys all
noxious weeds, and gives a certain degree of compactness to-
the soil necessary to secure a good stand of timothy.

RED-TOP—HERD’S GRASS—(Agrostis vulgaris.)

It was introduced from England, where it was known as.
Bent grass. When first cultivated it went by the name of
English grass. There are many species now raised in
England, which are still known as Fine Bent. It is scat-
tered over the whole State, and but few old pastures are free-
from it, but there it is so dwarfed by close grazing and.
treading that it shows to but little advantage.. It is com-
monly called in these situations fine-top.

Next in importance to timothy as a meadow grass stands.
Herd’s grass. Unlike the former, it also makes a good
grazing grass—in fact grazing is necessary to its preserva-
tion, as, if allowed to go to seed a few years, it dies out. It
loves a moist soil, and on swampy places that will grow
scarcely anything else, Herd’s grass will thrive wonderfully.

g It is the most permaneent grass we have,
and by means of its long, creeping roots,
will even, if sown too thin, quickly take
possession of the ground. It is greedily
eaten, while young and tender, in the
spring by all kinds of stock, and affords a
fine nourishing hay, though in less quantity
per acre than timothy. It grows from two
to three feet high, and with its purplish
panicles, when in full bloom, presents a
most charming sight in its soft feathery
undulations.

(21)

It is oftener mixed with other grasses than sown alone,
‘especially with timothy and clover. But it fails to come
into harvest as early as clover, and the same objections may
‘be urged against it that are to timothy. It yields, on moist
bottom land, from one and a half to two tons per acre, but
‘on uplands it is not a good producer. On thin lands it will
not gain a sufficient height to justify harvesting at all. It
withstands the effects of drought much better than timothy.
In England it is supposed to grow best on sandy soils.
Its effects when fed to milk cows are to greatly enrich and
yellow the butter, and European dairymen think they can-
not do without it in their pastures. By the Woburn experi-
ments at the time of flowering, it yielded 10,209 pounds
of grass, which lost in drying 5,615 pounds, and furnished
-632 pounds of nutritive matter. Cut when the seeds were
ripe, it yielded 9,528 pounds of grass, which lost exactly
half its weight in drying, and afforded only 251 pounds of
nutritious matter. From this it would appear that this
‘grass is doubly as valuable for feeding purposes when cut at.
the time of flowering.

For stopping gullies in old fields it is superior to blue-
glass, as it will throw its long, searching roots from the top
down the sloping banks of the washes, and fasten to every
patch of good soil at the bottom, and then from every joint
‘starts up a stalk to get a fresh hold. It affords a very
‘good aftermath from which, in wet falls, a fair crop may be
‘cut. Unless well tramped in the late fall it is liable to
form tufts that rise out of the soil from the effects of
freezing, and is destroyed. Therefore, after cutting, let on
‘the stock, and their feet will insure a good turf, and
besides, will destroy weeds. But the cattle should be taken
-off the pasture after rains have filled the earth with water, or
it will become too rough for the proper use of the mower.

The quantity of seed per acre, when sown alone, is about
‘one bushel. The seed is usually sold in the chaff, it being
difficult to separate it.

( 22)

The time for harvesting is when it is in full flower, or as
soon thereafter as possible, when all the elements that are
necessary to form the seeds are still in the stalk and leaves.
Left to ripen fully, it becomes woody and innutritious.

Many pursue the plan of sowing the timothy and Herd’s
grass together, as they ripen together, and the Herd’s grass.
being much lower than the former fills in well, and the two.
will make a more abundant yield than either separate. But
one requires pasturage and that will destroy the other.

It should be sown in September, unless sown on wheat,.
and then as early as practicable, to enable the roots to get
sufficient depth to resist the cold of winter. IPf sown alone
it will, like timothy, make about a half crop the ensuing
year, but it is usually sown with grain, wheat, rye or barley.
There are a great many marshy spots in Tennessee, es-
pecially on the Tennessee and Mississippi rivers, so full of
water that nothing can be cultivated on them, and on these
fine crops of Herd’s grass could be secured every year,
which would certainly be far preferable to allowing them to
run to waste. These bottoms are usually of surprising fer-
tility, and would go far to supply the great deficiency of
hay, and obviate the necessity of importing from our more.
thrifty Northern neighbors. It is a perennial, and if prop-
erly tramped every autumn will keep good an indefinite
length of time.

This grass also finds a most congenial soil throughout
West Tennessee, in many places in that division of the
State attaining the height of five feet. It is probably better
adapted to all the soils of the State than any other grass.
I have seen it growing in princely luxuriance 6000 feet
above the sea on the bald places of the Unaka Mountains.
It flourishes upon the slopes and in the valleys of East Ten-
nessee. It yields abundantly upon the sandstone soils of
the Cumberland Table-land, and beautifies the rolling sur-
faces of the Highland Rim. In the Central Basin it spar-
kles in the beauty of its verdure, and is second only to red

( 28 )

clover and timothy as a meadow grass. No other grass is.
sown so much for hay upon the Jands lying at the western
base of the Cumberland Table-land. In Warren county
especially it is highly esteemed for its longevity and {ruit-
fulness.

ORCHARD GRASS—(Daetylis Glomerata.)

Whether a native of America or
Europe, or indigenous to both coun-
tries, it is well known that orchard
grass is diffused more extensively than
almost any other grass, growing all
j over Europe, the northwestern parts
of Africa,and in Asia Minor. Known
as cock’s foot in England for many
centuries, it was not appreciated as a
) forage plant until sent to that country
j from Virginia. It is a perennial, and
grows upon congenial soils anywhere
between 35 and 47 degrees north lati-
tude. It likes a soil moderately dry,
porous, fertile and inclined to be sandy. On atiff clay soils
retentive of moisture, the roots do not acquire such a vigor
as to give a luxuriant top growth. The feebleness of the
roots upon such a soil makes them liable to be thrown up
by the earth. It may be grown successfully on a lean,
sterile soil, by a top dressing of stable manure, yielding
during a moderately wet season from two to three crops.
In its rapid growth in early spring lies one of its chief
merits, furnishing a rich bite for cattle earlier than almost
any other grass. It also grows later in the fall. It is very
hardy when well set, makes a great yield, grows rapidly
and vigorously upon suitable soils, supplies a rich, nutri-

( 24 )

tious hay, which, compared with timothy, is in value in the
proportion of 7 to 10. It starts out early in spring, and
comes into blossom about the time of red clover. It attains
a height, upon good soils, of three feet, though upon soils of
great fertility it sometimes reaches the height of five feet.
After being cut, it springs up rapidly, sometimes in rainy
weather growing three or four inches within a week. This
quality of rapid growth unfits it for a lawn grass unless cut
every week.

Nevertheless, this very quality makes it stand unrivalled
as a pasture grass. The Hon. John Stanton Gould says in
his essay upon this grass: “The laceration produced by
the teeth of cattle, instead of injuring, actually stimulates it
to throw out additional leaves, yielding the tenderest and
sweetest herbage.”

The chief objection to orchard grass is that it grows too
much in stools or tussocks. This can be remedied by sow-
ing a larger quantity of seed per acre. Never less than two
bushels (14 pounds to the bushel) per acre should be sown,
and two and a half bushels would even be preferable. Mr.
Gould says that if the meadows are dragged over in spring
with a fine toothed harrow, and then rolled this disposition
will be completely overcome. The disposition to stool can
also be checked by sowing with other grasses. A half gal-
lon of clover seed, one gallon of Herd’s grass, and two bushels
of orchard grass, per acre, sown about the 25th of March,
in our latitude, will make an excellent pasture. By the
middle of June, upon good soils, the amount of forage will
equal the best fields of clover. It should not, however, be
pastured the first season until August, however tempting it
may be. In this many Tennessee farmers have made a mis-
take. By pasturing before the roots are well established
much of the grass is pulled up and destroyed. I have met
with many furmers who condemned the orchard grass for
want of hardiness and endurance, but in every case the fault
was with the farmer himself in pasturing too early.

(25 )

Orchard grass grows well in the shade, and hence its
name. It withstands hot, dry weather better than any
other valuable grass. Three yood crops of leafy hay, if the
weather is seasonable, may be counted on after the first year,
but only one will blossom.

The analysis by Prof. Way of the green grass in blossom
gives the following result :

Per cent.
Wialtetic sncssuay cats iuniay aicen dies wanceueey tenoensaeyees Wage sieesiwes weweapad 70.00
Batty mn ateen awn cos co evan. et ce veveaieice evan. wees eteeteee seaneeanseneses 0.94
Hlesh Foriviersiacgoccides davies toca ces se abestaccissnacsaid so iaveves ceaveneuw 4.06
Heat! prod t Ceies.-..o: assets asses sheataasvounSuusiedoabetse consvieextavtanes 13.30
Wo0d y PIDBG a0 pes csacsevearvecs ice vavecc.cevanaues avaueree yeesevess oe6ees 10.11
SABI 7: Sas dans deves bidnaicssis Gove eeeahta ae evanepedes Sonscsunee> wisbauhacaeuseseed 1.59
Analysis by Scheven and Ritthausan gives:

IWEAUELY eee cos ders case qavnccnvechasies sensu ices sashes sea nseeemtere een 65.00
Wat secon cia ated Seta datn aus vervshevacuhssanweaie Suatveecaka onteeedeee soeaes 80
Hléshisformeres i ssicissncdoecides, sectinpeavdaviaseessdosuearvie wale 3.00
Heat produ ceresucsssehisoss'sctss dees vag {deen can Geadians? scdies asuesenszs 12.60
Woody fibre.

MGW cescacavctdecdnadaveveuecaves peirsvaiveatesereatasankenesies tetatiyeyees

The hay made of orchard grass, as analyzed by Wolff
and Knop, gives:

W ater wesaesocaj craves verarsevecvatees wrsiaca sesteee na naraaede ee tl

OP ANIG THALES Sess isepacdees side veceonesgesedidomen med sasiaseese cigcsuded 81.1
A bUmINOIS: 6 ssvsses tesa ac ancondeatecsvwe evan vd vesadcseveera eves «11.6

Carbohydrates... .3icsaseausicsweus seaasasstasedessasasives veoucnaehs ++ 40.7
Grude fibre: sen ca sess wecwesdienns se) cameneareenesweow aere ene 28.9
Pat: cancnssceetsiseseavais Seti scaniinecaaes keene 2d

It is of great importance that the seed from hardy plants
be sown. In no department of agriculture does the old
maxim “like produces like” obtain in a greater degree than
in this grass. Seed from weakly, sickly plants will pro-
duce the same kind of offspring, however fertile the soil
may be. Messrs Lawson & Son, by selecting the best seed,
and sowing for several years none but the best of each gen-
eration, established a new variety of orchard grass, known

( 26 )

by its great size and vigor as the giant cock’s foot. Let:
farmers be careful, therefore, in saving seed to sow from the
most vigorous growth.

The reason why so many bare spots are seen in pastures.
and meadows of this grass is due to two causes: Ist, the
land is generally not half prepared to receive the seed; and
2d, there is a penny wise and pound foolish policy in sow-
ing too few seed. Let the land be well broken by deep and
thorough plowing, and then be finely pulverized by repeated
harrowings. Sow the seed, the thicker the better, and run
a light brush or harrow over the land so as to cover the
seed slightly. Tosum the whole matter up, “ plow the land
deep, pulverize the soil well, be generous as to the quantity
of seed, let that seed be good, sow it evenly, give the land
as good treatment afterwards as is given to meadow lands
in timothy.”

Its chief superiority over timothy lies in the value of its
aftermath. It will improve under depasturing when a tim-
othy meadow would be rendered worthless.

To sum up the merits of this grass:

1. It is better suited to every variety of soil than any
other.

2. It will grow with greater rapidity than any other grass,
and for this reason will sustain a large number of animals,
and is excellent for soiling purposes.

3. It will grow in the shade. This quality will enable
the farmers to utilize their woodlands as pasture, and so
make them a source of profit.

4, It will resist drought better than any other grass.
The hot summers make this a very valuable quality in any
grass. Often in July and August the pastures become so
parched as to afford but a small amount of grazing. Orchard
grass then comes to the rescue and supplies the deficiency.

5. It is both a pasture and a hay grass. After a crop of
hay has been taken off in June, the aftermath will furnish
a good pasture throughout the remainder of the summer,

(27)

6. It may be sown in the spring or fall with small grain
or alone. It is best not to sow it with grain, as the extra
production of grass, when sown alone, is worth more than
the grain and grass grown together.

ENGLISH RYE GRASS.—(Lolium perenne.)

This was the first grass cultivated in England,
, and is a great favorite, occupying the same posi-
tion there that timothy does with us. It is but
little cultivated in the United States, though
some successful experiments have been made with
it in Tennessee. It is of quick growth, and will
sometimes yield forty bushels of seed per acre.
It produces a nutritious herbage. There are no
less than seventy varieties produced in England.

One of the most valuable species of this grass
is the Lolium Italicum mentioned below.

ITALIAN RYE GRASS.—(Lolium Italicum.)

Prof. Way gives the following analysis of this
grass: Water 75.61, flesh-forming principles
2.45, fatty matters .80, heat-producing principles
14.11, woody fibre 4.82, mineral substances 2.21.

This grass has been lately introduced from
Europe, where it is said to be more universally
adapted to all sorts of climates than any other
grass, and is very popular there. It grows from
two to three feet high, and on moist, rich land,
will perhaps bear cutting as frequently as a soil-
ing or green forage crop, as any other grass, af-

( 28 )

fording a succession of green cuttings until late
in the fall. It can be forced by manures and ir-
rigation to a greater extent than any other known
species of hay.

However, as can be seen from its analysis, it
has, when green, nearly half less nutrient proper-
ties than timothy, and unless the farmer wishes
to cut it asa green food, it has no advantages
over the latter. It is an annual with a fibrous
root, and bears grazing well. The time of sow-
ing is early fall, and ten pounds of seed are re-
quired per acre, a bushel weighing eighteen
pounds. Itisa valuable grass for Southern farm-
ers, where hay is scarce and high. Being sown
in the fall, the farmer will be enabled to cut it
y early in the spring, thus giving the stock a change
from corn alone to succulent hay. It has been
fully tested in Georgia, and has given great sat-
isfaction. It gives a fine color to the butter of
cows fed on it, and they eat it with great relish.
It withstands the hottest suns of summer as well
as the frosts of the severest winter. It must be
sown alone, as it will quickly choke and destroy
clover or other grasses. Its yield per acre, ac-
cording to received authority, is something im-
mense. Mr. Dickens, of England, sowed it on a
stiff, clay soil, well-manured, cut it ten times dur-
ing ane year; the first time, ten inches in March; April
13th again; and May 4th a third time; May 25th a fourth
time; June 14th again; July 22d a sixth time, with ripe
seed and three loads hay to the acre. Immediately after
each cutting it was manured with liquid manure, the pro-
duce of each crop increasing with the temperature of the
atmosphere, from three-quarters of a load, the first cutting,
to three loads the last. He discontinued manuring now,
thinking its growth would be terminated in bearing seed,

(29 )

but he afterwards cut four crops from it. On the 26th Jan-
uary following, it measured sixteen inches in height. The
last cutting was October 30th; and on the 8th April a crop
of twenty-two inches high was cut from it. “I was desirous
to know the exact amount taken per acre for the year, and
it amounted, on a careful measuring and weighing of green
hay, thirteen tons and eighteen hundred and twenty-seven
pounds per acre!” (Coleman’s European Agriculture.)

It presents a most charming view, with its broad, dark
green foliage, and especially in a dry year, when vegetation
is parched up all around, it does not show any signs of los-
ing its fresh, living, luxuriant growth. Although an annual,
a meadow of this grass may be made perennial by scatter-
ing fresh seed over the ground every second year, and
scratching it with a harrow with sharp teeth. Its unusual
ability to withstand the vicissitudes of heat and cold would
make it a desirable grass in any thirsty soil, as well as in
moist ones, and might possibly be a valuable addition to the
soils of the western portion of our State. At least it is
worthy of a trial.

Mr. Gould thinks the valuable qualities of this grass may
be summed up as follows:

“ Its habit of coming early to maturity.

“Tts rapid reproduction after cutting.

“Tts wonderful adaptation to all domestic animals, which
is shown by the extreme partiality they manifest for it,
either alone or when mixed with other grasses; whether
when used as green food for soiling, as hay, or as pasturage,
in which latter state its stems are never allowed to ripen
and wither like other grasses.

“ Tis beneficial influence on the dairy, not only augment-
ing the flow of milk, but improving the flavor of the cheese
and butter.

“Tts uncommon hardiness and capacity to withstand the
vicissitudes of both wetness and dryness.”

(30)

CRAB OR CROP GRASS.—(FPanicum Sanguinate.)

This grass must not be confounded with the Hleusine
Indica, also called crab grass, from its supposed resem-
blance to crab.

This species is so familiar to every Southern farmer, that
it would seem to be superfluous to notice it. But as little
as it may appear, it is one of our most valuable indigenous
grasses.

Crab grass is an annual, and so full of seed is it, that it
is never necessary to sow it. Itis never cultivated alone,
which could be easily done by sowing the seed on a smooth
surface about the first of June. When the cultivation of a
piece of ground ceases, it at once takes possession of it, and
soon furnishes a fine pasture. It grows not only in the cul-
tivated fields, but in old pastures, yards and woods.

It is a fine pasture grass, although it has but few base
leaves, and forms no sward, yet it sends out numerous stems,
branching freely at the base. It serves a most useful pur-
pose in stock husbandry. It fills all our cornfields, and
many persons pull it out for hay. It makes a sweet food,
and horses are exceedingly fond of it, leaving the best hay
to eat it. Should it be desired to secure a good crop of it,
do not pasture the wheat or oat stubble, except with hogs,
until the crab grass gets a good start, then take off the hogs,
and allow it to get into bloom, and if the land is good, there

will be a paying quantity to save. It should be sedulously
guarded from rain.

MILLET.—(Panicum Miliaceum.)

There are a great many varieties of this important grass,
and almost every year adds to the list of them. The pre-
ference for any variety is arbitrary, yet there are many
advantages belonging to all. But so far as the planter is

(31)

concerned, one description serves for all, asthe mode of cul-
ture is the same, and the only difference is in the botanic
characteristics.

The first millet cultivated in this State was the kind com-
monly called Tennessee millet. In afew years the Hun-
garian grass, or millet, became popular. It does not yield
so much hay, but it is eaten with more avidity by stock.
The Missouri, which is only a modification of the Tennessee,
next became the favorite, and then the German millet came
and superseded all others. The manner of its introduction
was in this wise:

Two Germans came to Tennessee in 1861. One of them
brought a little sack of millet seed, about a quart, which
he kept in his trunk during the war. At the close of the
war he took it out one day and handing it to a merchant on
Market street asked him to give it to some good farmer for
planting. The merchant gave it to Mr. James Allen, of
Williamson county, one of the best millet seed planters in
the State. The crop was the admiration of the whole coun-
try, and he gave a half bushel to Dr. W. M. Clark. He
planted the entire amount and wrote concerning it so that
the seed sold for from three anda half to five dollars a
bushel. It has taken precedence of all other varieties.

Last year the Department at Washington sent out a new
variety called “pearl millet.” It has proved, however, to
be a variety that has been planted for many years in the
extreme Southern States and is of but little value unless cut
asa green forage. It grows rapidly and is eaten with relish
by stock. But if allowed to attain full growth, or produce
seed, it cannot be eaten, as it becomes woody. It may be
cut every six weeks through the season, or when it gets
high enough to be reached by a mowing blade.

We will now give its cultivation in general and its use,
which embraces every variety as well as one.

At one period, it was deemed sufficient food for any stock,
without the aid of anything else. The fodder was hay and

(32)

the seed was corn. But later investigations have demon-
strated the fact, that when hay ripens. to seed, its usefulness as
a hay measurably ceases. Were stock fed exclusively on
seed-heads, with a sufficiency of good hay, they would
thrive exceedingly well, or if the millet is cut while in the
flower, or even when the seed is in the milky state, and fed
to stock in combination with grain, they would do well.
But even then, it is much inferior to oats, timothy, or Herd’s
grass. Its special recommendation is, that it yields a larger
proportion of hay than other grasses. It requires a rich,
dry soil, and will stand almost any amount of droughts,
seeming to dry up during the heat, but when it rains it will
start off with renewed life, and do as well as ever. It
makes large quantities of seed per acre, the Hungarian
yielding 30 |-ushels; the Missouri 40; the Tennessee 50;
and the German from 60 to 80 bushels per acre. The Hun-
garian millet is a better hay than either of the others, but
its yield is much less. The Tennessee millet perhaps yields
more hay than either of the other three, but the Missouri
has more reputation as a feed for cattle. Should it be
wished, however, to sow for a money crop, it will be far
preferable to sow the German millet. The Hungarian has
a small head, a simple spike, while the others have com-
pound spikes, most notably the German. It is easily raised,
at less cost than corn, and makes, on good ground, nearly
double as many bushels as the latter per acre. For all
kinds of fowls it is unsurpassed, and it is a powerful stimu-
lant to laying eggs. .

To sow for hay, prepare the ground in a thorough man-
ner, pulverizing it completely, and when the ground is in a
sufficiently moist condition, in June, sow the seed, a bushel
to the acre. Never sow if the ground is too dry or too wet.
If too dry, the seed near the surface will parch in the rays
of the sun, and a stand will fail to appear. If too wet, the
usual injury to the land occurs and the crop “ frenches” or
turns yellow and dwarfs. After sowing, harrow well and

(383) |

the labor is over. The millet will require seventy or
eighty days to mature, unless it is sown in July, when it
will require a few days longer.

Two crops of Hungarian grass can easily be raised from
the same ground annually. A farmer of Davidson county
raised a most excellent crop of Hungarian grass, sown the
Ist day of September and cut on the 10th of October.
Another, of Williamson county, secured a good crop of
German millet sown on the 13th day of August, and cut on
the 12th day of October.

For seed, prepare the ground as above described, and then,
with a light bull-tongue or skooter plow, run light parallel
rows thirty inches apart, and with a tin cup or old oyster
can that has three or four holes punched in the bottom with
a 4-penny nail, walk rapidly along the furrow, and the seed
will sift into it from the cup about right forastand. Cover
very lightly with a cotton coverer, and when the seeds begin
to sprout, but before they show the sprouts above ground,
run over the field with a harrow, so as to loosen the ground
and destroy weeds. Afterwards cultivate with a cultivator
and double-shovel, one plowing with each being all that is
required. It will be necessary to thin out the Tennessee
millet with hoes, leaving a mere thread of stems, as it stools
prodigiously ; but this will be unnecessary with either of
the other three, as they scarcely stool at all.

To save it for seed, it must be cut with reap-hooks, tak-
ing just enough of the head to enable the laborer to make it
into bundles; or if preferred, it can be broken off at the
head, taking only the seed, leaving the stubble to renew the
soil. They are, after treading out in a barn or on a clean
spot, separated from the chaff with an ordinary wheat fan.

This grass is of great value to the renter who has no op-
portunity of continuing in possession of the: land long
enough to set a meadow. A crop of millet is a good forerun-
ner for a meadow, as it destroys all the noxious weeds, and
leaves the land in a fine condition for timothy or Herd’s grass.

3

(34)

GAMA GRASS—(Tripsacum dactyloides.)

This is in some sections called sesame grass. It is the
largest and one of the most beautiful grasses we have,
growing to the height of seven feet. Itis abundant through-
out the Mississippi Valley, on moist, slushy places. When
young and succulent it is eaten with avidity by stock, and
makes, from its rapid growth, a good soiling or forage crop,
but when it gets large its stem is so woody stock refuse to
eat it. Its leaves are very large, equal in size to the leaves
of corn, but they are rough and hairy.

The grass may be cut three or four times a year, and
though in its native state it grows in swamps, it thrives almost
equally well on dry or sandy ridges. It will grow where
timothy or Herd’s grass will not, and consequently is well
suited to a large section of our State. The quantity of hay
taken from one acre is simply enormous, and resembles
very wuch corn fodder, and as a hay is fully equal to it, and
it can be saved at one-tenth the labor required to save fod-
der. The roots are strong and large as cane roots, so let
it be sown where it will not be desired to remove it. How-
ever, close grazing for a few years will destroy it.

It is very nutritious and succulent when cut green. The
great mass of roots it has will serve to open, loosen and im-
prove the land upon which it grows. It should never be
allowed to shoot up the seed stem when desired for hay.

It is with difficulty the seed can be made to vegetate, and
therefore it must be propagated by slips from the roots.
Prepare the land well, lay off the furrows with a bull-tongue
plow two feet apart, and drop a small piece of root about
two feet apart in the furrow, covering with a board. The
creeping roots will soon meet, and the ground is quickly
turfed with it.’ It should be planted early in September.
Of course, the richer the land, whether upland or bottom,
the greater the yield, as the time has never yet come when
poor land will make better crops of anything than fertile

land. I bave seen it growing with great luxuriance in
Montgomery county.

(35 )

MEADOW OAT GRASS—(Avena pratensis.)

This is a perennial grass, and is a native of Great Britain.
It is one of the few grasses that do best on a dry soll. It
grows to the height of only eighteen inches in its native
pastures. But here it is quite a different grass, and rises to
the height of from five to six feet. It will not grow well
on moist soils, but on rich upland or good sandy land it
grows with vigor. It deserves a place on every farm, as
the hay is excellent, and is greedily eaten by stock, and be-
sides, the yield is extremely large. Another advantage is
that the seed will be ripe before the hay turns yellow, so
that not only the hay will be saved, but a large amount of
seed can be secured; upon a barn floor enough will shatter
out to supply the wants of most farmers. Or if the farmer
‘wishes to sell the seed, he can cut off the heads with a cradle
and let the mower follow for the hay.

Should the autumn prove a wet one, a second crop can be
cut, but if there is not sufficient aftermath to justify cutting
do not pasture it, but allow it to grow on as long as it will,
and about Christmas it will turn over and the tops turn yel-
low, all prepared for the hungry stock, and it will continue
to sustain them until other grasses take its place. However,
should it be desired to use it for hay the succeeding year,
the stock should be removed about the middle of February.

It will seed in the fall after being sown in the spring,
which is the proper time to sow it. Sow two bushels per
acre. ‘The seed is very light and chaffy. It is a tussock
grass, and does not spread from the roots, consequently the
seed must be depended on for a stand. After the first sow-
ing, there will be no difficulty in obtaining seed, as the yield
is large. It affords, both for hay and pasture, perhaps more
green food than any grass we have.

(36)

SORGHUM—(Halpense.)

Egyptian Sugar Cane, as its proper name is, is a daughter
of the Nile, where it grows fifteen or twenty feet high. So
_ great is its luxuriance there that it has filled all the upper:
Nile so that a canoe cannot be driven through it. Great
numbers of cattle and wild animals resort to it, and, in fact,
it is the chief sustenance of ruminants in that country.

When young it is very tender and sweet, the pith being
full of sugary juice. The leaves are as large as corn fodder,
and very nutritious. It has a perennial root, and so vigor-
ous that when once planted it is a difficult matter to eradi-
cate it. So care must be taken to plant it where it is not in-
tended to be disturbed. The roots are creeping and throw
out shoots from every joint. It is a fine fertilizer, and
sown on a piece of poor washed land will, in a few years,
restore it to its pristine fertility. But there is really not
much difference where it is sown, for a farmer once getting
a good stand will not want to destroy it. It will bear cut-
ting three or four times a year, and, in fact, it has to be
done, for when it matures, the seed, the stem and leaves are
too coarse and woody for use.

The ground must be well prepared as in other grasses,
and in September, the earlier the better, let it be sown one
bushel to the acre.

It can be propagated also by the roots by laying off the
rows each way, and dropping a joint of the root two feet
apart and covering with a drag.

It gives the earliest pastures we have, preceding blue
grass or clover a month. Hogs are fond of the roots, and
any amount of rooting in it will not injure it. In fact, it is
a stick tight. It not only thrives well on bottoms, but it
will grow just as well on upland, and though poor upland
will make but little hay, yet it makes a fine pasture. It
disappears in the winter altogether, but the first warm

(37)

weather brings it up, and it grows with astonishing rapidity.
‘On our lands and in our climate it will grow from five to
seven feet high, while in South Carolina it will grow twelve
feet high.
For soiling purposes it is not equaled by any grass in our
knowledge, as it can be cut every two or three weeks.
Many persons object to it on account of its great tenacity
of life, matting the soil in every direction with its, cane-like
roots, and the rapidity with which it will spread over a field,
and the difficulty of eradicating it. But these very objec-
tions should be its recommendation to owners of worn;zout
fields; and if it is desired to destroy it, it is only necessary
to pasture it closely one year, and then in the fall turn the
roots up with a big plow to the freezes of a winter, renew-
ing the breaking up once or twice during the winter, and
-then cultivating the next spring. The seeds are quite
heavy, and weigh thirty-five pounds to the bushel. Every
one who has tried it recommends it to the public. But
-some allowance must be made for the partiality of friends,
and it would be well to give it a trial before engaging in its
‘culture to any large extent. There would, however, cer-
tainly be no risk in sowing it upon those worn-out hill sides,
so many of which form an unsightly scar upon the face of
nature in Tennessee—the tokens of the past.
A proximate analysis made by the Department of Agri-
‘culture at Washington gives:

Per cent.
On caiceanisds cas case scescerees isis soos Sic ehe de xosecestwevceagcedekevosy ies never aebeetss 2.26
Wea eek a kde wahin Saccnetan cachiedies ensacesdvaddaceuiteieenes anes ta danns cobcaasedveute 61
UR AE visissaciaac daw eagesvacelassonsiva sRsecawteimassteeepeacuntine seeps sevesees Sussusesees 7.37
Gir and, "Dex tr ine cecpciissesc cuss saseesscosaceciareescna ces vaseenceteseximaaadacess 5.14
Cel tWlO86 eweacacecivevesexreenwraesnss aise oisenineiesagaveviaauaeiusesiss eearreecoescees 25.1
Amylaceous Cellulose.......+. esesease cesessees cesses catseseas seeseeee sense caoues 25.87
A Veali extractticss sccsacpeustiot nadvonsese teecvhsesliedsawsers iets seveyeeoeeaeieases 1D,DS
ATVB OI ee siseieugs waecevceresedagade ascedtacsiossssecheii seu cesetiew sadehxessliveruneas 13.18
ASH 2evssnds verineevs: “auiaueewencienaninveaeiadixies wisdaen maeseeinemeeeiersss 4.85

Analysis of the ash of the Johnson grass:

Per cent.
POUASSITIN 53 « sadtceeesestie cess secGavecsweeseresies suas Geccaascdvecoed esse cnet Sw enee ees 3.68
Potassium oxide

Calcium oxide......... 4
Magnesium oxide......
Sulphuric acid.............

Phosphoric acid..............
Silicic acid

RED CLOVER—(Trifolium pratense.)

This valuable forage
plant was first introduced
into England in 1645, dur--
ing the stormy times of
Charles I., and rapidly met
with favor throughcut the
kingdom. It properly be-
longs to the leguminous
family, which includes a
considerable number of
other forage plants that are
called artificial grasses, to
distinguish them from the
true or natural grasses
called graminee. The bo-
tanic name trifolium comes.
from two latin words, tres three, and folium, a leaf, and in
England it is often called trefoil. It may always be known
by having three leaves in a bunch, and the flowers in dense,
oblong globular heads.

There is no grass, natural or artificial, that is more useful
to the farmer or stock-grower than red clover. It has been
styled, with some show of reason, the corner-stone of agri-~

(39)

culture, and this not only on account of its vigorous vitality,
but because it adapts itself to a great variety of soils. It is
widely diffused, and abounds in every part of Europe, in
North America, and even in Siberia. It furnishes an im-
mense amount of grazing, yields an abundance of nutritious
hay, and is a profitable crop, considered with reference to
the seed alone. But beyond all these, it acts as a vigorous
ameliorator of the soil, increasing more than any other
forage plant the amount of available nitrogen, and so be-
comes an important agent in keeping up the productive
capacity of the soil, and increasing the yield of other crops.

a

SOILS ADAPTED TO ITS GROWTH.

Red clover is a biennial plaut, and under judicious tillage
may be made a perennial, and is specially adapted to argil-
laceous soils, but it will grow well upon sandy soils, when
a “catch” is secured, by the application of a top-dressing of
gypsum or barn-yard manure. I have seen it growing with
vigor upon the feldspathic soils of Johnson county, upon
the sandstone soils of the Cumberland mountain, and upon
the sandy loams of West Tennessee, but it finds a more con-
genial soil in the clavey lands of the valley of East Ten-
uessee, on the red soils of the Highland Rim, and on the
limestone loams of the Central Basin.

The clayey lands of West Tennessee have no superior for
the production of clover. It often grows upon these lands
from four to five fect in height, and forms a mat, when it
falls, of great density and thickness. As much as four tons
of clover hay have been taken from a single acre. Probably
‘three-fourths of the lands in Tennessee will grow clover re-
muneratively, and of the soils which will not, a large por-
tion is included in the old gullied fields that constitute the
shame and mark the thriftlessness of too many of the
farmers. It may be set down as an infallible rule in the
State of Tennessee that good farming and abundant clover-

ing go together.

(40 )
SOWING CLOVER.

Clover may be sown in the latitude of Tennessee upon
wheat, rye, or oat fields, or alone. Instances have been re-
ported to me where a splendid stand was obtained by sow-
ing after cultivators in the last working of corn in July,
This is unusual, however. So is fall sowing. The best
time to sow is from the first of January until the first of
April. If sown in January or February, the seed ought to
be sown upon snow. This is not only convenient in ena-
bling one to distribute the seed evenly over the land, but
the gradual melting of the snow, and the slight freezes, bury
the seed just deep enough to ensure rapid germination when
the warm days of, March come on. For the same reason,
if sown in March, the seed ought to be sown when the
ground is slightly crusted by a freeze. If the sowing is de-
ferred until too late for frosty nights, the land should be
well harrowed and the seed sown immediately after the har-
row. It will hasten germination and cause a larger propor-
tion of seed to grow, to harrow the land after the seed is
sown. With oats, the seeds should be sown after the last

harrowing or brushing, with a slight after-brushing to cover
them. -

A better stand of clover, with less seed, may always be
secured by sowing upon land prepared for clover alone. I
have often obtained an excellent catch upon “ galled”
places by breaking the land well, and sowing the seed with-
out any previous or after harrowing.

Upon good, fresh, rich soils, where clover has not pre-
viously grown, one bushel for eight acres will be sufficient.
If the soil is thin and unproductive, one bushel for six acres
ought to be sown. If the land has been regularly rotated

with clover, one-half the quantity of seed mentioned above
will suffice, sometimes much less.

The frequent failure to secure a good stand of clover ad-
monishes the farmers of the State to exercise more care in

(41 )

the seeding. When sown late in the spring many of the
seeds sprout, and are killed by dry weather. It would be
all the better if the clover seed could be buried a half-inch
(or even an inch on loose soils) beneath the surface after the
middle of March.

GROWTH AND MANURE.

Red clover rarely makes much growth the first season if
sown with grain. Should the weather be very seasonable
after harvest, and the land fertile, it will sometimes attain
the height of thirty inches and put out blooms, making an
excellent fall pasture. When sown alone it will always
blossom in August.

As soon as it begins to grow, in early spring, an applica-
tion of two bushels of gypsum or land plaster, upon
granitic or sandy soils, is absolutely necessary to get a good
growth.

Baron Liebig, after numerous experiments made with
gypsum upon clover, comes to the conclusion that the action
of gypsum is very complex; that it indeed promotes the
distribution of both magnesia and potash in the soil. He
thinks that gypsum exercises a chemical action upon the
soil, which extends to any depth, and that in consequence
of the chemical and mechanical modification of the earth,
particles of certain nutritive elements become accessible to
and available for the clover plaut, which were not so before.

Though having my mind constantly directed to this point,
I have rarely found an application of gypsum beneficial
upon clayey loams, but its effects are very apparent on
strong limestone soils, such as are found in the Central
Basin. Red clover has two growing seasons. It makes its
most vigorous growth from the Ist of April until the 15th
of June, beginning to bloom usually in the central parts of
the State about the 15th of May, and attaining its full in-
florescence about the lst of June. After this, unless de-
pastured by stock or cut for hay, the heads begin to dry up,

( 42 )

and stems and leaves begin to fall, forming a mat upon the
land. Sometimes this mat is so thick as to catch and con-
centrate the heats of summer to such a degree as to scald
the roots and destroy the clover. Usually it is best after
clover has attained its full bloom, either to cut it for hay or
pasture with stock until about the first of July. When the
stock is removed, or the clover hay cured and taken off, and
there is rain enough, a second crop will spring up from the
roots. This second crop is the most valuable for seed, the
seed maturing about the last of August, and sooner, if there
be copious rains. To make the most abundant yield of clo-
ver for grazing, it should be allowed to grow all it will, but
never let it make seed, always grazing it down when in full
bloom. When grazed down, take off the stock until it
blooms again. Several successive crops may thus be made
during the summer. The crop of August is unfit for graz-
ing, the large quantity of seed having the effect of salivat-
ing stock to such a degree as to cause them to lose flesh.

It is a fact, well attested by English writers, and by ob-
servant farmers of this country, that when clover has been
frequently sown upon the same land, it not only fails to pro-
duce a heavy crop, but fails to appear at all. The land is
then said to be “clover-sick.” The remedy for this is by
extending the number of crops in the scale of rotation, so
that clover will not come so often upon the same land. By
Liebig, clover-sick land is supposed to be caused by the roots
of clover impoverishing the subsoil.

Clover has no superior as a grazing plant. When in full
vigor and bloom, it will carry more cattle and sheep per
acre than blue grass, Herd’s grass, or orchard grass. After
it has been grazed to the earth, a few showery days with
warm suns will cause it to spring up into renewed vitality,
ready again to furnish its succulent herbage to domestic
animals. Though very nutritious and highly relished by
cattle, it often produces a dangerous swelling called boven,
from which many cows die. When first turned upon clover,

(48 )

cattle should only be allowed to graze for an hour or two,
and then be driven off for the remainder of the day, grad-
ually increasing the time of grazing, until they become less
voracious in their appetites, never permitting them to run
upon clover when wet. Clover made wet by a rain at mid-
day is more likely to produce hoven than when wet by dew.
This is because when wet by rain at midday, or after the
stalks and leaves are heated by the sun, when taken into the
stomach of a cow, this heat generates fermentation much
sooner than when the herbage is cool, though wet with the
morning dew. Cattle are more easily affécted by clover
than horses, because being ruminants, they take in the clover
rapidly, filling the stomach at once, without chewing.
Digestion is for the time checked, and a rapid fermentation
sets in. The remedy found most effective for hoven is to
stick a sharp pointed knife about six inches in front of the
hip, to the left side of the backbone, and far enough from
it to miss the spinal protuberances, and in the thinest part
of the flank. A cow should never be run when affected
with hoven, as this treatment only intensifies the pain with-
out affording relief.

Stock should never be turned upon clover until it blooms.
The practice of many of our farmers, to turn all the stock
upon a clover field early in April, is very destructive. The
crown of the clover is eaten out, causing it to perish. The
tread of heavy cattle has the same effect.

As a soiling crop red clover is excelled by no crop grown
within the State. The practice of soiling in thickly settled
communities is one much commended by agricultural
writers. An half-acre of clover will supply one cow
throughout the months of June, July and August, if cut off
and fed in a stall, while twice the amount in pasture, ac-
cording to some English experimenters, will barely subsist:
a cow during the same period, and this will depend, of
course, upon the luxuriance of the growth. Soiling (that
is cutting the grass and feeding it green) is a very desirable

( 44)

practice, near small towns, where many persons own smal]
lots, and desire to keep a milch cow. No other grass, per-
haps, will produce a larger flow of milk.

NUTRITIVE VALUE AND CONSTITUENT ELEMENTS OF
CLOVER.

The nutritive value of clover was long known by feeders
before chemical research demonstrated the same fact. It
contains, when cut in bloom, nearly four per cent. more
nitrogenous food than timothy, and four and a half per cent.
more than blue grass. According to Professors Wolff and
Knop, in its green state it contains 800 parts in 1,000 of
water, about 100 parts more than timothy, and 37 parts in
1,000 of albuminoids or flesh formers: When made into
hay, cut when in bloom, and well cured, red clover contains
134 parts in 1,000 of albuminoids, but cut when fully ripe
only 34 parts. The albuminoids contain about 16 per cent.
of nitrogen. Timothy hay has 9.7 per cent. of flesh-form-
ing matter, and therefore contains less nitrogen, in the pro-
portion of 15 to 21, than clover hay. Barley has 10 per
cent. of albuminoids, Indian corn 10.7, rye 11, oats 12,
clover 13.4 per cent., so that it appears clover hay will fur-
nish more muscle-producing or nitrogenous food than either
corn, rye, oats, or timothy, which gives strength to the state-
ments of many practical farmers, that a crop can be made
by feeding clover hay alone to the working animals, and
they will keep up under it. 3

Professor Way gives the following analysis of the red
clover when green:

Per cent.
Water ssscinssesseitouvissnssuase sesso wansnevanesmaenetesesvaensenens: ween 81.
AIDUMINGIDS) sessisnwieccncsssnsssessiesescesteseesiiesess tess aissteseceas 4.27
Batty Matter vevecsews. vecwcceed wer swaeecadvesecsete caster von¥dsiccvseascuens 69
Heat producing........... sscccecsesee seseecces cesses sneeee seseeeee ceeees 8.45
WoO0d¥ MDE... ssese cacssnsesesicessantanasarsecesisssaeteniseeseaocangaasiis 3.76

One hundred pounds dried at 212 F., gives the following:

( 45 )

Per cent.
Albuminoids or flesh-formers........00+ ss0000 deuwas guceaiteie weet; 22.55
Fatty matters.cscccassces ssesvwvves waveecenxtdasarcesscsssvasesenanasee 3.67
Heat-producers (starch, sugar, gum, et¢.)....c..c00.sccce sesseeees 44,47
WO0d§ FDRG i. ssencessciecessdccheysvevemeevveabuase Gueiss carzaneyeasaxs 19.75
Aisha ssn se adinsitsovensesceesnaniseene eeiwenta: avers aan 9.56

The proportion of fat in the various vegetable products is
given in the following table, taken from Prof. 8. W. John-
son’s “ How Crops Grow”: ©

Fat. Fat.

Meadow grass............. 0.8 per cent. Turnip .... cc creessesens 0.1 per cent.
Red Clover (green) 0.7 per cent. Wheat kernel............1.6 per cent.

Meadow hay...... 3.0 per cent. Oat kernel 1.6 per cent.
Clover hay... 3.2 per cent ..7.0 per cent.
Wheat straw 1.5 per cent ..3.0 per cent.
Oat straw... .20 per cent. 34. per cent.
‘Wheat bran......... ..1.5 per cent. ..34, per cent.

Potato, Irish............... 0.3 per cent.

It appears from this table that clover hay has not quite
one-half the fat of Indian corn, but having more albumin-
oids it has nearly three per cent. more nitrogenous food.
Both should be fed togethey, the clover to give muscle and
the corn to give fat. It also appears that the clover hay is
richer in fat than meadow hay.

EFFECTS OF CLOVER UPON SOILS—MANURE FOR.

Numerous facts have taught the farmers of every country
where agriculture has flourished, that in many cases the value
of the after crop depends upon the preceding crop. In other
words, a proper rotation is necessary antecedent to successful
farming. The cultivation of some crop with extensive root
ramifications will prepare the soil for the subsequent growth
of a cereal. But the farmer should not deceive himself.
Every crop takes away a part of the available plant- food,
and the field has not increased in fertility, but the plant-food
has been made more rigidly effective for the production of a
crop. “The physical and chemical condition of the fields
has been improved, but the chemical store has been re-
duced.” “All plants,” says Liebig, “without exception,

(46 )

exhaust the soil, each of them in its own way, of the condi-
tions for their reproduction.”

A field, then, which produces more kindly after rotation,
is not necessarily more fertile, but is in better physical con-
dition. It has already been mentioned, that the mechanical
effects of clover upon soils is not the least among its valua-
ble properties. The reaction rendered possible by the pen-
etration into the soil of the long tap roots, and the effect of
the dense shade upon the land have a tendency to increase
the productiveness, but may not add to the fertility of the
soil.

Guano is found, on elayey soils, to largely increase the
growth of clover. When used on a wheat field seeded to
clover in early spring, a “catch” of clover will be secured
on the thinnest spots, and grow luxuriantly. The greatest
benefits from an application of guano upon wheat are often
obtained in this way. A good stand of clover, however
secured, is the best possible preparation of land for a suc-
ceeding crop of wheat. And this arises, not only from the
available nitrogen which a clover crop supplies, but from
the deep and thorough subsoiling which is effected by the
deep, penetrating tap-roots of the clover. They often de-
scend to the depth of four feet in search of food, while its
broad leaves ‘absorb carbon from the atmosphere, chang-
ing it into solid matter, causing elements in the soil to as-
sume organic forms, rendering them more available as
food for other crops.” If the soil be robbed of its fertility,
the deficient elements must be added before clover will
“take.”

The best method of pasturing is to wait until about the
last of May, when the clover is in bloom, then turn on stock
and pasture during the months of June and July, alternating
every two weeks with other clover fields, if possible, and
turning off the stock the first of August, and allowing the
second crop to come forward for seed.

4

(47)
SAVING CLOVER HAY.

The precise period of mowing clover for hay is a question
about which there has been much discussion. All will agree
that it should be mowed at the time when the nutritive ele-
ments—those elements which give strength and produce
flesh—are at their maximum. Those who are in the habit
of feeding stock find that clover cut about the time of full
bloom, when a few of the seeds begin to dry up, and just as
the reproductive functions are being brought into play for
the maturing of seed, will, pound for pound, produce more
fat and muscle than that cut at any other time. The only
art in curing hay is to retain as many of the life-giving con-
stituents in it as possible, or to preserve it as near as practi-
cable in the same condition in which it is cut, with the water
only abstracted.

The plan generally adopted is to mow the clover in the
morning and let it he in the sun several hours until a wisp
taken up and twisted will show no exudation of moisture.
It is then thrown up into small cocks, say four feet in diam-
eter and four feet high. In these, unless there is appear-
ance of rain, it is allowed to remain for a day or two, when
it may be hauled to the barn and stored away without danger
of damage. Care should be taken not to let the dew fall
upon it as it lies scattered by the mower. The dew of one
single night will blacken the leaves and destroy the aroma
for which good clover hay is so much prized.

Anotber plan practiced is to mow it and let it lie just long
enough in the sun to wilt, and then wagon it to an open
house and lay it upon beams or tier-poles, where it can re-
ceive the free action of the air. After a few days it may be
packed down without any danger of fermenting. Cured in
this way, in the shade, it retains its green color, is fragrant,
and makes a most excellent feed. The only objection to
this plan is the great amount of room under. cover required
for curing, and the additional burthen of hauling while

green.

( 48 )

Another plan is to haul it up as soon as it wilts, using
about half a bushel of salt to the cured ton of hay. A layer
a foot or more in thickness may be laid down, over which
salt is scattered pretty freely, then another layer and salt,
continuing to repeat the operation until the space set apart
for hay is filled. A rapid fermentation will ensue, and the
hay will be cured by the heat of this fermentation, the salt
acting as a preventive against putrefaction. Instead of
salt, layers of wheat straw can be substituted. By using
straw the clover may be put up in the field. The quantity
_ of straw to be used in the rick or stack depends upon the
moisture in the clover—the greener the clover the thicker
should be the straw. The straw will act as an absorbent,
and during the process will itself be greatly increased in
value as food for stock, having imparted to it the flavor and
aroma of the clover plant. AIl the wheat straw on a farm
could be utilized in this way, and the amount of manure in
the farmer’s barn largely increased.

Still another method of curing clover hay is the one prac-
ticed in Ireland. The Irish Farmers’ Journal, in giving an
account of this process of curing clover hay, says:

“ The clover intended for hay is mown and left to lie in
the swath until 4 o’clock in the afternoon of the following
day to dry. Ofcourse these swaths are twelve or eighteen
inches thick. They are then raked together in small shocks
which are afterwards made into larger ones, such as would
require six or eight horses to draw. Two or more men are
kept upon the large ones tramping them down, so as to make
them more compact and induce a more speedy fermenta-
tion. Ifthe weather is warm, fermentation will begin in
a few hours, as will be known by the honey-like smell.
When a proper fermentation has begun, the cocks, on being
opened, willappear brownish and may be spread. After

drying it may be carried to the hay loft without any danger
of a second fermentation.” .

(49)

It should always be borne in mind that clover hay will
not shed rain. When stacked out in the field, it should
either be thatched or have a thick top-covering of wheat
straw or other hay. The tedder is thought by many to be
indispensable in saving good clover hay. Unquestionably
it is of great service, and the hay made by the use of the
tedder'in dry, hot weather, is superior to that made without ;
but good hay can be and is made by many farmers who
never saw atedder. Clover hay is more difficult to cure
than hay from any of the real grasses, and this arises from
the fact that it contains more water than other grasses in
the proportion of 8 to 7. For this reason also, it is more
difficult to keep, being more liable to heat in the mow. It
will not bear handling or transportation, and while it will
always be a favorite hay for home consumption, it will
never be valuable for market purposes. For horses good
grass hay is probably better than clover, because it is more
digestible, and is not so liable to produce colic. On the
other hand, clover is a superior hay for cattle, producing in
milk cows a fine flow of milk.

The following table, compiled from analyses made by
Wolff, Knop and Way, will exhibit the comparative value
of clover and grass hays:

: : o

3 | b 5 $

g | eS ee /ig]/ 8 | §

SUBSTANCE. £ as r SU 183 a 2

3 mA fa | 2's | SE S 3

S |S |al4 (oF | 6 | =
Red clover, in bloom...} 16.7; 77.1) 6.2) 13.4) 29.9) 35.8) 3.2
Red “ ~ ripe. «{ 16.7) 77.7) 5.6 9.4] 20.3) 48.0} 2.0
White “sss .{ 16.7] 74.8) 8.5) 149] 343) 25.6) 3.5
Alsike “ in bloo 16.7; 75.0; 8.3 15.3) 392) 30.5} 3.3
Alsike “ fipe.. «| 16.7] 78.3) 5.0) 102; 23.1) 45.0) 2.5
-Orchard grass »{ 143) 81.1) 46) 11.6) 40.7| 28.9} 2.7
Timothy ............. see 14.3) 81.2) 4.5 9.7; 488] 32.7] 3.0
Kentucky blue grass....] 14.3] 80.6) 5.1 89} 39.1] 326] 3.1

4

(50 )

SAVING CLOVER SFED.

It has often been a matter of surprise that Tennessee
farmers have not more generally saved their clover seed.
The amount of money yearly paid out for an article which
is now considered a prime necessity to good farming, is er-
roneous. Were the lands of Tennessee incapable of pro-
ducing clover seed, there would be reason for this expendi-
ture. In point of fact, however, no section of the Union
will produce, acre for acre, a larger quantity of clover seed.
Three bushels per acre have often been gathered, although
the usual average is about one and.4 half bushels.

As the first crop of clover, coming to maturity in June,
will not perfect its seed, it is necessary to take off the first
crop, either by feeding or by mowing for hay, and rely for
the seed upon the after crop. The quantity of seed of this
crop will depend much upon the weather. Should there
be much rain or heavy winds, the yield of seed will be
small, but when the weather has been fine and calm, and
the seed free from dock or other noxious seeds, the crop
will be found as remunerative as any other grown by the
farmer. A bushel of clover seed will weigh usually about
sixty-four pounds, though sixty pounds is the standard
bushel in market.

The second crop of clover should be allowed to stand
until the husks have become quite brown, and the seeds have
passed the milky state. It should then be mowed and per-
mitted to lie upon the ground until it is well cured. After
it is cured rake it up into swaths. Rain will rather benefit
than injure it, making it easier to separate the heads from
the haulm, which is done by passing through an ordinary
wheat separator. A clover huller attachment is adjusted
to the separator below the vibrator, which hulls the seeds,
and they are separated from the chaff by the fan, care being

taken to shut off as much air as possible by closing the slid-
ing doors.

(51 )

The crop of seed can be largely increased by mowing or
feeding off the first crop of clover about the first of June,
-and then top-dressing with stable manure. The earlier the
first crop is cut the larger will be the crop of seed. By
treating the clover fields in this way, as much as three bush-
els of seed have been obtained from an acre. Uplands will
yield more seed than bottom lands, but they should be en-
riched by a liberal application of manure. About the first
of September is the time to mow for seed, and the straw will
thresh all the better for being exposed to the weather for
‘three weeks. The threshing is usually done in the field,
though the haulm may be hauled up after being thoroughly
-dry, and stacked with a good straw covering, or else stored
-away under shelter on a good tight floor-until it suits the
-convenience of the farmer to thresh. Care should be taken
not to run over or tramp upon the clover after it is dried,
-as many seeds are thus shelled out and lost. The better
plan is to haul to the thresher just as soon as the straw is
in a proper condition to thresh. This will save the trouble
-and expense of stacking.

Some farmers prefer to sow in the chaff, believing that a
better stand of clover is thus secured. Usually about thirty
bushels in the chaff are considered equivalent to one of
cleaned seed. Of course this will depend greatly upon the
yield of seed, and experiments ought to be made to deter-
mine the relative amount to sow when in chaff.

CLOVER AS A PREPARATORY CROP FOR WHEAT.

No question at the present day pertaining to agriculture
is more deeply interesting to the farmers of Tennessee than
how to increase the yield of the wheat crop per acre, for
upon this depends the profits of this standard crop,. one
probably more generally grown in the State than any other.
It has long been noted that a soil well suited: to clover is
generally well adapted to wheat, but not until the painstaky
ing investigations of Dr. Voelcker, of England, was the

(52)

fact established that the clover plant, by increasing the
amount of available nitrogen in the surface soil, is the very
best forerunner for wheat, unlocking, as it were, the ele-
ments in the soil necessary to a full and perfect development
of the wheat crop.

Prof. Way has established the fact that the carbonate of
ammonia of rain-water and of manures are so absorbed and
so firmly fixed by the soil that no free ammonia can be pres-
ent in it. Neither pure nor carbonic acid water can extract
this fixed ammonia from the soil. It must be extracted by
the roots of plants. A plant, therefore, with extensive root
ramifications, such as clover, will extract a much larger
quantity than those plants with feebler roots. The clover
roots bring this ammonia or nitrogen to the surface, and on
their decay these nitrogenous matters are converted into ni-
trates in which the wheat plant finds a most congenial food. .
In addition to this, the leaves formed by clover contain a
large amount of nitrogenous matter, and these are dropped
upon the surface, increasing the amount of nitrogen availa-
ble for wheat or other crops.

ALSIKE CLOVER—( Trifolium hybridum.)

This species of clover was introduced into England from
Sweden, hence it is sometimes called Swedish clover. It
gets the name Alsike from the parish of Alsike, in the prov-
ince of Upland. It is a perrennial found wild throughout
many parts of Sweden, Norway and Finland.

Alsike clover, as compared with common red clover, has
a slenderer stalk, narrower leaf, and paler colored flowers
and foliage. The flower stalks are longer, and the blossoms
more fragrant and sweeter to the taste. When first open,
the blooms are but faintly tinged with pink, subsequently
they deepen into a pale red, and stand up. When the pe-

(53 )

riod of flowering passes the heads droop and turn brown.
The seed pods contain three or four seeds, which are kidney-
shaped, and from dark green to violet color, and consider-
-ably smaller than the seeds of red clover.

This clover does not make much growth the first year,
and attains full growth only in its third year. It yields
less than the red clover, and has but little or no aftermath.
It is hardier and sweeter than red clover, and being a pe-
rennial, is more lasting, and it makes a finer hay.

Wherever it has been tried, experience has taught that it
is best to seed it down with red clover, or some grass, prefer-
ably orchard grass, for the reasons that it does not occupy
the ground the first year, and is liable to fall and lodge
badly if sown alone. I have noticed that it is much fre-
-quented by bees. It does not stand the long dry summers
-of our latitude well, but seems to like cool, moist regions.

‘As compared with red clover, the hay is richer by two
per cent. in flesh formers—both cut in bloom. The analyses
of both, as given by Professors Wolff and Knop, show:
Red clover:

Flesh formers.......... cece ceecsesee ceceeeens eeeeeeee Consesees ceaees

Heat producing substances
Crude fibre....... .csscssescossnseee senses cnaenes coceeeees coneenons sneeones

-Alsike:
Flesh Ores... cocssvssasevssnwes svesesisecesscseces coasts tevsecesewectorees 15.3
Heat producing substances...........16 s+ je teeeecre seneenene cenesees 29.2
Crude fibre... 02... sccece ceecee ceteeececconcecnencosessaee seesee cosesesoo an 30.5

The great difference in the amount of crude fibre is no-
ticeable, and shows decidedly in favor of Alsike clover.

(54)
SAPLING RED CLOVER—(Trifolium erectum.)

This is precisely the same plant as the common red clover,.
and is used in the same manner and for the same purposes.
The only difference in it is, that the stems being stouter, it
is not liable to lodge, but stand erect, and so be in a better.
condition to mow, and admits the sun to its roots better.
As to which may be preferable is a mere matter of taste or-
prejudice. Either is good, the sapling clover being about.
two weeks later.

CRIMSON CLOVER—(Dvifolium incarnatum.)

This is an annual, presenting a beautiful crimson flower-
when in bloom. It is principally valuable as a green food,
though the hay is thought to be equal or superior to that
made of red clover, but being an annual it interferes more
with the operations of the farm, it being necessary to sow it
a8 a separate crop.

An analysis of the bay cut in bloom, as made by Wolff’
and Knop, shows:

Blesh: 1mm erst acc suites vaeveasnateves suevsteverd.a cose te seeess Rekaaaseae 12.2
Heating properties.............scccsscesess ceeten snseesses susssesea ceeees 30.1
Crude fibre......... ..e000 pangaer eid Lad a isilen Hs eheicradee ate 33.8
Patiscid ss sccipacdearcsvintisevvaseocn sued cduestseueiviveneen aos 3.0
Gh 52025 aive oe acana sannaieenes soesanen eet eat evav asl excl da nveiaiotss ee 7.2

It is said to be earlier than lucerne or the common red’
clover. It may be sown upon wheat or grain stubble in the
fall, the land being simply harrowed and the seed sown.

Few things, it is said, in the vegetable world, presents a
more beautiful sight than a field of crimson clover in full
bloom. It is not grown to any extent in this State, a few
bunches appearing sometimes in fields with other clover.
Its chief value is in its quick return. Sown in autumn it

(55 )

may be mown early the succeeding spring, and so meet any
scarcity of provender.

ALFALFA: LUCERNE—( Medicago Sativa.)

This is, beyond doubt, the oldest cultivated grass known,
having been introduced into Greece from Media 500 B. C.,
and the Romans, finding its qualities good, cultivated it ex-
tensively, and by them it was carried into France when
Cesar reduced Gaul. It is emphatically a child of the sun,
and revels in a heat that would destroy any other species of
clover. But cold and moisture are hurtful to it. On the
rich, sandy lands of the South it is invaluable, and will
grow luxuriantly, making enormous yields of hay. Its nu-
tritive constituents are almost identical with red clover, but
it has one property not possessed by the latter, and that is,
it is perennial. It does not stool as freely as red clover,
and therefore must be sown rather thicker. It will con-
tinue to furnish green pasturage later than red clover.

It does not grow well on any soil that has a hard pan,
nor on thin soils. To secure a stand, the ground must be
in a thorough state of tilth, well pulverized and mellow.
A want of attention to this requisite has caused many to be
disappointed in the result. But in well prepared, rich,
gravelly or sandy loam, it succeeds remarkably, sending
down its long tap-roots many feet into the subsoil, pumping
up moisture from below, and thus will thrive when all
other plants are drooping. In this respect it is far superior
to clover. For the latter, a suitable surface soil is of equal
importance with the subsoil, but for Lucerne a suitable sub-
soil is absolutely necessary, as the roots are not fibrous, only
rootlets shooting off from the main tap-root. This tap-root
grows to be as large asa carrot. This enormous quantity
of roots permeating the ground to the depth of several feet,

( 56 )

necessarily prepares the land for increased production, the
leguminous plants deriving the larger part ot their suste-
nance from the atmosphere, and storing it in the roots;
so that, as a fertilizer, it stands deservedly high. The
soil is not only fertilized to the amount of several tons per
acre, but it is mellowed from the mechanical displacement
of the soil and the admixture of decayed vegetable matter.
Asa preparation for wheat it is equal to clover, and for
corn better. Besides, a large amount of the leaves is neces-
sarily strewn on the ground, and they shade it effectually.

The seed of Lucerne is yellow, and heavy, when good.
If brown, it has received too much heat in the mow, and if
light colored, it indicates that it was saved too green. And
the same precautions are necessary to be observed in regard
to red clover. The time of sowing is the same with the
other species of clover, that is, spring time. It should be
sown in drills, and cultivated the first year, so as to keep
down the weeds. It is easily smothered.

It derives its name, Alfalfa, from the Chilians. It grows
spontaneously all over Chili, among the Andes, as well as
on the pampas of that country, and of Buenos Ayres. The
French and Spanish settlements of the Southern States ad-
here to it, and cultivate it in preference to all other forage
plants. It would be a good addition to the farms of West
Tennessee, especially in the sandy bottoms. It would also
thrive upon the alluvial bottoms of any part of the State
where the sun has fair play on the ground.

When properly managed, the number of cattle which can
be kept in good condition on an acre of Lucerne, during
the whole season, exceeds belief. It is no sooner mown
than it pushes out fresh shoots, and wonderful as the growth
of clover sometimes is, in a field that has been lately mown,
that of Lucerne is far more rapid. Lucerne will last for
many years, shooting its roots—tough and fibrous almost a
those of liquorice—downwards for nourishment, till they
are altogether out of reach of drought. In the dryest and

(57 )

most sultry weather, when every blade of grass droops for
want of moisture, Lucerne holds out its stem fresh and
green as in the genial spring.

Although so luxuriant in France, it will not flourish in
England for the want of sun. It has generally failed in the
Northern States for the same reason, superadded to the cold,
while in the South it is a fine, thrifty plant. It has been
fully tested in Georgia and Alabama, and has given univer-
sal satisfaction. Horses there, it is said, require no other
food when not constantly engaged in work. Five tons of
good hay have been made to the acre. It is estimated that
five horses may be supported during the entire year from
one acre of it. It is ready for the mower a month before
red clover, and springs up long before the usual pasture
grasses. In saving it for hay, care must be exercised, as
in red clover, not to expose the plant too long to the sun,
as it will shrivel and dry up the leaves, and they will be
lost. The time for cutting is when it is in full bloom, as in
red clover.

Occasionally it is attacked by an insect, when it begins
to turn yellow, then it should at once be cut, as it will
quickly dry up otherwise. Owing to the scarcity of seed,
and the small amount cultivated, it is quite expensive, but
the farmer can test it on a small quantity of land, and at
the same time secure seed for future sowing. The first year
it is apt to be troubled by the presence of weeds, but these
can be easily exterminated if the precaution is observed to
run the mower over it before weeds go to seed. After-
wards no fears need be entertained on that subject.

This plant is well adapted to the use of persons living in
small towns or villages, who have a small lot they wish to
devote to hay for a single horse or cow. No other kind of
clover or grass will equal it-in quantity, while the quality
is as good as the best.

On the whole, the farmers cannot do better than adopt
the cultivation of this grass. It has proved, with all who

(58 )

have tested it, worthy of all the extravagant encomiums
bestowed upon it.
An analysis shows the hay to contain :

Pleshi TOPMENG..c.<csesesecesavevesseaesacs Veecavevs weds dave seavedeservesses 14.4
Heating properties. ......... csecsese sessssees coseceses onsseaene engessees 22.5
Crude: fibre wiced iaictsesccaviaeussvavecvseasss Wii scargenskeveuveesveniese 40.0
WAG Socazis sve Wexeae cd dee sSie saves tu cue neasTeuunce demas avegencsiseesdee Sencueecy 2.5

It will be seen that in flesh-forming constituents it sur-~
passes red clover by one per cent.

SAINFOIN OR ESPARSETTE.—(Onobrychis sativa.)

Experiments have been made with this grass, and though
so valuable in France as to be called sacred, it has not
proved a success here. It requires two or three years to
arrive at maturity, and during that time bas to be watched
closely, or it will be choked up with weeds or grasses. It
does not yield as much hay as either red clover or lucerne,
but is of a very superior kind, and is much vaunted asa
good butter-making hay. It does not give cows the hoven,
however much they may eat of it. Its seeds are also said
to be superior to oats, and more nutritious, and are very
fine for fowls, inciting them to lay. It does best on lime-
stone soils, though succeeding well on gravelly or sandy
land, and will stand a large amount of heat, though not
much cold. It would probably suit the country further
south better than Tennessee, though I have seen it growing
in Stewart county, having been brought there by a Swiss
family. It would probably grow on all onr calcareous soils.

PASTURE GRASSES.

While there are over two hundred varieties of grasses
eultivated in England for the use of domestic animals, in
the occupied territory embraced within the United States
there are not more than twenty-five, although there is a
much greater diversity of soils, surface configuration, climate
and latitude. The grasses constituting our meadows are
nearly all derived from the eastern continent, where the
abundance of the rich pasture lands teem with a great va-
riety of nutritious herbage. All the cereals—oats, rye,
wheat and barley, are indigenous to the old world. Indian
eorn is the greatest and almost the only valuable cereal con-
tributed by the new world to the old. The great prairies
east and west of the Mississippi abound in a charming and
luxuriant vegetation, but the supply of food which they
afford for the herds grazing upon them, in comparison to
the overwhelming quantity of worthless herbage, is very
scanty. Exactly the reverse is the condition of the pastures
of the eastern hemisphere, where almost every plant that
springs from the surface of the earth is rich in nutritive
elements. The situation of Tennessee being midway be-
tween the East and the West, partakes of both sections.
We have in the State many thousands of acres of wild lands,
situated not only on the mountain plateau, but on the high-
lands of the river lands, called with us “ Barrens.” These
Barrens are covered with a dense growth of timber, and in
some sections, where they have not been burned off, with

(60 )

undergrowth of various kinds. Where this undergrowth
has been burned off by firing the leaves in the fall and
winter, the pastures are as fine as are seen anywhere, not
excepting the prairies. It is true there are many species of
grasses that are worthless, or that are at least of doubtful
value, yet enough of them exist there to make them invalu-
able to the stockgrower. In the fall of the year these
grasses become tall, will turn over and form a roof or cov-
ering to young grass that grows under them all the winter,
and stock will paw at it until, the covering removed, they
get to the young succulent shoots thus kept alive through-
out our short winters. A detailed description of these wild
grasses, while it might interest the student, would be out of
place in a work of this kind, intended to be entirely prac-
tical; for, however much they may be used in their indi-
genous situation, there is no probability of the farmer ever
getting them transferred to his fields. The grasses we here
treat of as pasture grasses, are alone those that will bear
sowing in new situations, and to this class we will strictly
adhere. Fora more detailed description of the others, I
refer the reader to the work sent out from this Bureau on
the “ Grasses of Tennessee.”
With this explanation we will describe the subjoined.

NIMBLE WILL.—(Muhlenbergia diffusa.)

It is hardly necessary to do more than mention this grass,
which forms, in many sections, the bulk of the pastures of
the woods. It does not grow in fields, but in woods, where,
in the fall, after rains have set in, it carpets the earth with
living green. Various opinions are entertained as to its
nutritive qualities. Some farmers contend that their stock
are fond of it, and, on a sufficient range, cattle, horses and

(61)

sheep will go into the winter sleek and fat from this vigor-
ous grass. Others regard it as wellnigh worthless.

Tt freely propagates itself in all woods where the cover-
ing of leaves is not so great as to exclude the rays of the
sun from the soil. Like other grasses, it does best on good
lands, and the rich, black, loamy woods in many parts of
the State are set with it.

It is said to be an excellent butter-making grass, and
gives a particularly fine flavor to this article of food. It has
never, to the knowledge of the writer, been sown, though,
as it produces seed in a limited quantity, there is no reason
why it should not be, if it is really a valuable grass.

BERMUDA GRASS.---SCUTCH GRASS.—(Cynodon dactylon.)

Bermuda grass is a native of the West Indies, and is the
principal grass of that torrid country. It has only lately
been brought into notice as a valuable pasture grass for this
State. In Louisiana, Texas and the South generally, it is,
and has been, the chief reliance for pasture for a long time,
and the immense herds of cattle on the southern prairies
subsist principally on this food. It revels on sandy soils,
and has been grown extensively on the sandy hills of Vir-
ginia and North and South Carolina. From the extreme
vitality of its long, rhizome roots, it is very difficult to erad-
icate when once it gets a good foothold. Occasionally the
traveler meets with patches of Bermuda grass in the cotton
fields of the South, and it is carefully avoided by the planter,
any disturbance giving a new start to its vigorous roots.
Some ditch around it, and others enclose it and let shrub-
bery do the work of destruction. It is used extensively on
the southern rivers to hold the levees and the embankments
of the roads. It is the only yard grass in that section. It
forms a sward so tough it is almost impossible for a plow to

(62)

pass through it. There is a saying in the South, “ that it
would take a team of six bull elephants to draw a thumb-
laneet through it.”

It will throw its runners over a rock six feet across, and
soon hide it from view; or, it will run down the sides of
the deepest gully and stop its washing.

The parks of the South, set with it, presenta very beau-
tiful appearance if kept mown, and its pale green color acts
as a great relief to the landscape when burning with the
summer suns of the South. Hogs thrive upon its succulent
roots, and horses and cattle upon its foliage. It has seed,
but is always propagated by dropping cuttings in a furrow
two or three feet apart, from the fact that the seed rarely
mature, so that practically it may be said to have none. It,
however, does not endure a shade, and the weeds must be
mown from it the first year.

In some of the worn and gullied fields of Tennessee, on
her mountain sides and on the sandy hills of many parts of
the State, the cultivation of this grass would be a grand
improvement, making the waste places to bloom, where now
only sterility reigns. During the winter it, unlike blue
grass, disappears from view, but with the warming influences
of the sun it springs up and affords a constant grazing
through the spring, summer and autumn months. The
farmers of the South, before the war, looked upon it asa
curse rather than a blessing, and used every endeavor to
destroy it. But a change of opinion has taken place in this
respect, and it is encouraged in its growth.

It would be a good grass to mix with blue grass, as, when
it disappears in the winter, the blue grass and white clover
will spring up to keep the ground ina constant state of
verdure. It grows luxuriantly on the top of Lookout
Mountain, having been set there many years ago. This
mountain is 2,200 feet high, and has, as a matter of course,
excessively cold winters ; so, ifit thrives there, no fear need
be entertained as to its capacity to ‘endure our climate.

(63 )

Cattle are very fond of it, and will leave clover to feed
upon Bermuda. It also has the capacity to withstand any
amount of heat and drought, and months that are so dry as
to check the growth of blue grass, will only make the Ber-
muda greener and more thrifty. The experiment of mix-
ing.the two grasses, spoken of above, has been tried with
eminent success.

It is also used in the South as meadow grass, but Ten-
nessee has so many other grasses of more value, that it
would not be profitable to employ this, other than as a pas-
ture grass.

Where it is indigenous, it has a great reputation asa
fertilizer, and many fields so worn out as to be worthless,
have been reclaimed by it. The labor of plowing it up is
considerable, but the many improved plows of the present
day would be easily dragged through it. There is a sacred
grass in India called the Daub, and it is venerated by the
inhabitants on account of its wonderful usefulness. This is
said to be precisely the same as the Bermuda, except the
changes made by the difference of climate and soil.

“ Bermuda grass well set, which affords the finest and
most nutritious pasturage I have ever seen, will keep
almost any number of sheep to the acre—three or four times
as many as blue grass.”

HAIRY MUSKIT--MEZQUITE--MESQUIT—(Bouleloua cur-
tipendula.)

Muskit grass has come into very general use in some parts
of Virginia, North Carolina, and, to some extent, in Ten-
nessee, and where used, has given much satisfaction. It is
the grass of the northern and western prairies, and is very
nutritious. In the absence of grasses better suited to this

( 64)

climate, the muskit might become a very popular grass, but
such is not the case. Great quantities of it are annually cut
and sold as prairie hay. It would be well for some enter-
prising farmer to experiment with it.

ANNUAL SPEAR GRASS--GOOSE GRASS—(Poa annua.)

This is one of the species of the valuable genus poa to
which blue grass belongs, and is a very common grass on
all our swards, and known as goose grass. It is so very
like blue-grass that, to a casual observer, it would be
taken for it. But the florets are not webbed, and in blue-
grass the roots are creeping, while this is tufled. It isa
valuable grazing grass and sows itself. It is a common pas-
ture grass of the Northern States, and is highly prized. It
flowers through the whole summer, unless dried up by a
drought, to which it easily yields. It forms the principle
grazing of the Unaka Mountains in Tennessee.

According to Prof. Way, this grass is less nutritious than
blue-grass when green, and more nutritious when dry.

WOOD MEADOW GRASS—(Poa nemoralis.)

This grass grows in moist, shady woods, is rank and .
luxuriant, and is, like the other poas, greatly relished by
stock. It will thrive well in thickets and barrens, and is
an early grass.’y Itfhas been treated of under the head of
meadow grasses.

( 65 )
BLUE-GRASS—(Poa pratensis.)

This is the king of pasture grasses
in the Central Basin of Tennessee,
and on soils suited to its growth it
is useless to attempt the cultivation
of any other kinds, except as auxil-
iary to this. Itis valuable both for
summer and winter pasturage, and
no farmer occupying soils suited to
its growth is justifiable in being
without it. It is easily started, and
the seeds are readily procured, and
once started, it is perennial. No
amount of pasturing is sufficient to
destroy it utterly, and, though eaten
until no appearance of it is seen on
the ground, with rest for a few days,
the earth is again carpeted with its
soft green foliage as luxuriantly as
ever. ‘“ Whoever has blue-grass has
the basis for all agricultural pros-

N perity, and that man, if he has not
the finest horses, cattle and sheep, has no one to blame but
himself. Others in other circumstances may do well, he
can hardly help doing well if he will try.”

Its parentage is claimed by many States, and it is prob-
ably indigenous to some of them, though some authors say
it was introduced from Europe. Let that be as it may, it
grows readily in all parts of the United States north of lati-
tude 40°, and lower down on suitable soils. It flowers in
earliest summer, and gives a rich pasturage, except in the
driest months, all the year. It varies in size in different
localities, according to soil and climate. From the unex-
ampled success its cultivation has met with in Kentucky, it
has acquired the name of Kentucky blue-grass. The June

5

( 66)

or wire grass of the North is very much like it in general
appearance, but the seed stalk is flattened, and for this reason
the botanical name poa compressa is given. The seeds are
not so fuzzy as those of the Kentucky blue-grass.

In all the middle portions of the United States it forms
the principlal constituent of the turf. In some sections it
has been used as a hay, and from the analysis hereunto ap-
pended, it is full of all the constituents of nutrition. But it
is not a success as a meadow grass, its chief excellence being
exhibited as a pasture grass. It endures the frosts of win-
ter better than any other grass we have, and if allowed to
grow rank during the fall months, it will turn over and
hide beneath its covering the most luxuriant of winter crop-
pings. Many farmers pass their stock through the entire
winter on it alone, feeding only when the ground is covered
with snow.

Asa lawn grass it stands pre-eminent among all others,
its rich Paris green foliage, its uniform growth and its con-
stant verdure making it beautiful both summer and winter.

A farm well set in blue-grass will yield at least ten dol-
lars per acre in grazing, and yet men who have farms with
all the constituents necessary to produce the best of grass
will persistently wear them out in cultivation from year to
year, with less net receipts by far than the yield of a pasture.

In the work on Wheat Culture, issued from this office, it
has been shown that a large proportion of Middle and East
Tennessee abounds in limestone rocks, in fact, it underlies
the Basin of Middle Tennessee and forms most of the founda-
tions of the Eastern mountains. The blue-grass of Ken-
tucky is made from soil produced by precisely the same
strata of rocks seen here. Any farmer having land show-
ing an outcrop of limestone with a grayish colored subsoil,
may be assured he has the necessary soil. These rocks are
looked upon as a curse, yet, without their presence, we could
not have the magnificent parks of blue-grass seen around.

Blue-grass lands do not exist everywhere in the United

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States, and that should increase their value. They will be
in demand, and that soon. The wild grasses that now are
such an attraction to immigrants, on the table-lands of Ten-
nessee, will ultimately be exhausted by the increase in pop-
ulation, while the demand for food and every variety of
domestic animals will be proportionably augmented accord-
ing to the increase of the population. Then every acre of
land that will produce blue-grass will be in active demand,
and will be devoted to stock raising, for which it is so well
adapted, and sheep and cattle will then fleck every hillside.
The fame of the Kentucky blue- grass is so great that the
majority of people suppose Tennessee cannot produce it so
well, and they demand practical evidence of the fact. We
have that very evidence here spread out before our eyes in
the magnificent pastures of those who have adopted the
proper management. Kentucky has famous pastures, be-
cause, in the outset of her cultivation of the blue-grass, a
system of management was adopted that proved a success.
That system has been thoroughly tested both in Kentucky
and in some counties in Tennessee, and no one has made a
failure who has attempted it. Those who have put them-
selves to the trouble of learning that system, and putting it
in practice, have made as good grass as can be made in
Kentucky or elsewhere. As in other crops, the quantity
and quality of grass are in exact proportion to the care and
management bestowed upon it, and the sod is as good, the
blades as wide and long as can be seen anywhere, but this all
depends on the skill and attention of the farmer. Some
will sow a lot and then put in cattle, horses, sheep and hogs
to keep it eaten to the ground throughout the year. Under
such treatment the grass disappears, and such farmers con-
clude their soils are not adapted to grass. Let the grass get
a vigorous start, protect it from stock for the first year,
and fertilize it with stable manure, or some of the super-
phosphates, and be sure not to over-crowd the pasture with
stock. This is the true secret of having good pastures.

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Dr. F. H. Gordon, of Smith county, spent years in study~ ..

ing the habits of blue-grass, and finally succeeded in giving
the best instructions for securing a stand:

‘Some seventy years ago,” he says, writing in 1871, “two.
young men named Cunningham came from the south branch
of the Potomac, in Virginia, to Strode’s creek, in Bourbon
county, Kentucky. They had studied and practiced the
blue-grass system on the Potomac. They jointly purchased
two hundred acres of land on Strode’s creek, and sowed the
whole tract in timothy and blue-grass. In a few years their.
whole tract was covered with a luxuriant coat of grass.
They had brought with them the seed, on a pack horse, all
the way from Virginia. Their farm soon attracted the at-
tention of their neighbors, who began to visit and learn how
to manage grass. In 1835, I too went to see the Cunning-
hams and many other farmers in the blue-grass region, in
order to learn the system. I devoted many weeks to the
study of the system—going with the best farmers over their
farms and seeing their management, asking many questions.
and writing down their answers. Then, the Cunninghams,
like many others, had grown to be wealthy on the profits
of the blue-grass. One of them, Robert, then had two
thousand acres in blue-grass and Isaac had three thousand.
Nearly all the farmers I visited owed the luxury of their
blue-grass to the direct instruction of the Cunninghams.
To me it was a feast to travel over and view the fine sod of
grass on the first two hundred acres which had caused the

whole blue-grass region to become so beautiful, prosperous
and wealthy.

While learning the blue-grass system, I saw in every ©

neighborhood that those who had studied the system closest,
had the best pastures invariably. You can see in all that
region of blue-grass some farms where all the lots look like
some.of ours in Tennessee, which are gnawed all the year
round by calves, sheep and geese. This is because the
owner does not think enough about its management. He

(69 )

‘does all the work and incurs all the expense necessary to
make the richest pastures, and then wastes it all by bad and
theughtless management. But there are some farmers in
almost every county in Tennessee who well understand the
Kentucky system. Those who intend to sow grass may
learn the system from them. What a scene of comfort,
beauty, luxury and wealth, will this whole Middle Tennes-
‘see present, when it shall be covered with the richest blue-
grass! Such will be the future of this fine country.”

“ Blue-grass will always pay a good profit. Every acre
set in it will pay its taxes and a good profit besides. We
now till too much land. We ought to till less and make
more grass. Let not an acre be idle. There is our true
interest. Cotton, tobacco, rice, hemp and sugar need la-
borers, but grass does not. If we sow our lands in grass we
can do without so much labor. The indisposition of farmers
to take advantage of experience is shown in the following
ease, which is in point:

“T know a rocky lot of about six acres which I myself
‘sowed in 1835. During last year (1870) it afforded a profit
to the present owner of full ten dollars per acre. The
‘owner has no grass on the balance of his land, and does not
intend to have any. He has lived during his whole life in
sight of rich pastures of blue-grass, and knows that his
whole tract will produce as good grass as those pastures, yet
he will not sow grass. The reader will say that this farmer,
with his six rocky acres of blue-grass, is a singular man.
But he is not very singular, because hundreds of farmers
here know just as well the value of blue-grass as he does,
and yet they do not sow it.

It is generally conceded that the lands most productive
of blue grass are the calcareous soils. Lime is a natural
stimulant to it, and it flourishes best where natural supplies
of this salt are found. Go into a pasture that has an occa-
sional out-cropping of limestone, and the sprigs of grass
surrounding the rocks will be found more luxuriant than

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anywhere else. Our lower silurian formation then, where-.
ever found, may be safely sown in this grass. The Basin of
Middle Tennessee, and the valleys of East Tennessee, are
all well suited for this grass, and I have seen some good
sods in Carroll county, West Tenneesee. It also grows
upon many places amongst the hills of the rivers, though
not so luxuriantly as in the black loams of the silurian and
devonian formations. Lime, though a great stimulant to.
its growth, is not an essential ingredient in the soil. Blue
grass will always grow well under walnut and locust trees.

We have in Middle and East Tennessee the same charac-
ter of soil that exists in the blue grass country of Kentucky,
and, owing to our milder climate, can produce a better
winter pasturage than can be produced in the colder climate
of Kentucky. Little land exists in Tennessee but what will
produce this grass profitably.

Select the lot to be sown, and clean off all brush, leaves,
and briars. If it cannot be done with a stalk-rake, use
hand rakes, as the seed must come in contact with the soil.
Seed sown on a bed of leaves will soon germinate, but the
rootlets, being unable to burrow in the soil, will quickly
parch up and die. If the land is thickly covered with trees,
it will not thrive well, therefore it is necessary the timber
should be thinned out. Leave the tallest trees that are
really the more valuable, taking off the low, bushy kinds
that make too much shade. It is an admitted fact that blue
grass does better in partial shade than where there is none..
Tt does not endure a drought as well as some other grasses,
and, consequently, some degree of shade is essential to pro-
tect it from the scorching rays of midsummer.

So many seasons have been recommended as the proper
time of sowing, that it may be suid each one, under favor-
able circumstances, is a good time. One Kentucky farmer
says: “Any time in the winter, when snow is on the ground,
sow broadcast from three to four quarts of seed to the acre.
With the spring the seeds germinate, and are very fine and

(71)

delicate in the sprouts. ‘No stock should be allowed for the
first year, nor until the grass seeds in June for the first time
the second year. The best plan is to turn on the stock
when the seeds ripen in June. Graze off the grass, then
allow the fall growth, and graze all winter, taking care
never to feed the grass closely at any time.”

Another authority says: “Follow nature and obey her
dictates. The seeds ripen in June, and are scattered by the
winds and rains as soon as ripe, therefore, sow the seeds as
soon as they can be gathered.”

This plan might be a proper one in a colder or moister
climate than ours, but here it would result in the grass
being often dried up by the droughts that are almost in-
variable in the latter part of summer.

Many sow, as stated in the above quotation, on winter
snows, and that is a very good plan, but care should be ob-
served to have the ground free from leaves before the snow
falls.

There are others who sow in the latter part of February
or first of March, and this sometimes does as well as any,
provided time is given for the grass to get sufficient hold to
resist the withering effects of the summer’s drought. The
main care to be taken is to get the grass"large enough to
live through freezing or dry weather. It will resist the
effects of frost better than heat, however, and taking this
into consideration, the most approved time of sowing is in |
the latter part of August or first of September. If sown
at this time the autumnal rains will germinate the seed, and
besides, at this season there is comparatively little trash on
the ground, the leaves having not yet fallen. The ground
being prepared, the seeds are sowa broadcast, at the rate of
one bushel per acre, and the sower should be followed with
a harrow, or, if the ground is very loose, with a stiff brush.
This will give them a sufficient covering. It is a fact,
demonstrated by actual experiment, as shown in one of the
tables herein contained, that grass seeds will vegetate best at

(72)

a depth of one quarter of an inch. It may be supposed
that, with no more covering than will be given by a harrow
or brush, a great many seeds will be uncovered. This is
very true, but in one pound of blue grass seeds (clean seed)
there are 3,888,000 seeds. By a computation every square
inch of surface contains from ten to twelve seeds. With
this amount on the surface, one scarcely need fear a stand,
when, if one or two take root, there will be in a year an
excessively close turf.

There can be but little difference of opinion in regard to
the treading of stock after sowing. All writers and farmers
agree, that for one year, at least, it should be kept from all
stock. After that there is some difference.

Dr. Gordon, who, as before stated, paid more attention to
it than any one else in the State, adopted a plan of manage-
ment that has been repeatedly tested, with uniform success.
It was this: \

He sowed, either in the autumn or spring months, indis-
criminately, as suited his convenience. He usually sowed
with rye, wheat, or barley, if sowed in an open field, but if
in a woods lot, he sowed with rye, or after a crop of millet.
At any rate, the soil must be well cleaned off and broken
up, as well as thé nature of the land permits, then, after the
grain is sown, the land is harrowed, and if possible, rolled.
After this the grass seeds were sown and brushed lightly.
Immediately afterward, all the cattle, horses, and sheep
were turned in that could be secured. If there was not
enough on his place he borrowed his neighbor’s stock, and
let them run on it until the ground was well packed all
over the surface, and then, and not until then, were they
removed. If after millet (and that is greatly recommended,
as it destroys more effectively than anything else all weeds)
harrow about the first of September, thoroughly, sow the
seed, brush as before, and then turn on the stock. If it is
desired to sow in the spring, in the latter part of February
or early in March, if not practicable sooner, harrow the

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grain field, the ground having been well prepared in the fall
sowing, sow the seed and then turn stock on the wheat, rye,
or barley, as the case may be. Oat land may be sown in
the same way. The treading of the stock packs in the seeds
and prevents the grass from drying up in the summer heats,
or freezing out in frosts. Dr. Gordon considered an open,
loose, porous surface to be unfavorable to the safety of the
young grass, but if packed as directed, the grass will quickly
spring up, get a firm hold, and the loose condition of the
subsoil will favor the transmission of the roots to a good
depth.

The after treatment is simple, and that is to allow no
stock on during the first year, but as soon as the seed stalks
begin to shoot up the next year, pasture it so closely that it
‘cannot go to seed.

Dr. Gordon differs in this respect from other authors,
who allow it to seed one time for purposes stated below.
He would not let it seed at all. His great success in this
branch of agriculture will, in every place where he is
known, give weight to his authority.

Others say no stock should go on it for at least two years,
or at least until after the first seeding, which will take place
in June of the second year. Some of the best blue grass
lots in Middle Tennessee have been started by following
either of the above plans. Of one thing there cannot be a
doubt, and that is, the ground should not be well broken
up. On the surface it should be as firmly packed as possible
to secure a perfect stand, and form a perfect turf. When
the surface is too loose, the grass easily dries up, and is much
easier frozen out, the seeds not going into a germinating
depth. Under favorable weather, seed sown in the spring
on a crop of oats will do as well as fall sowing. What is
meant by favorable weather is that no unusual dry weather
supervenes. But there is always the risk of meeting with
unfavorable weather in spring sowing, and on that account
we would recommend sowing in autumn. But it is better

(74)

the sowing should take place as early in the fall as the
weather will permit, or, indeed, the latter part of summer,
if there is « proper degree of moisture in the soil. Some.
farmers sow a limited amount of seed daily, and over the
same surface sprinkle shelled corn, then turn on their hogs.
They root in search of the corn, and thus plant the seed,
doing the work of plow and harrow. This, to say the least,
is a slovenly plav, and though possibly securing a good
stand, the ground is so roughened it can never make a beau-.
tiful pasture.

If the land is loose as some soils are, it will answer a very
good purpose to scratch up the surface well with a sharp
toothed harrow, and this is especially the case where the
roots of undergrowth exist 10 a great extent.

AFTER TREATMENT.

Of one fact there cannot be a doubt, and in this lies the
whole secret of having remunerative pastures of blue grass,
and that is, do not pasture it to death. It is true, it will
stand almost unlimited grazing, but there is a point beyond
which it will cease to be profitable, and that limit should
never be passed. The better plan is to have the lots divided,
and allow the stock on one until it is cropped down, and
then, when no longer any pickings can be taken from it, do
not allow the stock to continue to tread it, simply to have
them on a grass lot. It will not only do the stock no good,
but, by constant tramping, the grass is unable to throw up
any foliage, and in time ® will die, for the roots must draw
some nourishment from the atmosphere, or they will perish.
Allow the grass to recuperate by changing the stock from
one pasture to another, and never over. stock it. Grass. that
will keep ten oxen in growing order will fatten five oxen
quickly. Stock of all kinds are constant feeders, and there
should always be forage enough to enable them to get plenty
to eat without the labor of hunting for it.

There is much variety of opinion on the amount of stock

(75) °

that ought to be put on an acre. This arises from the dif-
ference in the capacity of the land, some soils, being rich,
dry, and porous, will stand much heavier grazing than others.
It is safer to err on the safe side, and it is better to put in
too few than too many. If stock are fattened quickly, they
are more remunerative than when fattened slowly. Then,
when one lot is sold out, they can be replaced by others.
Ordinarily, two acres of good grass are requisite for one
three-year-old ox, and what will fatten one ox will fatten
ten head of sheep.

Blue grass should be allowed to go to seed once or twice,
or until the ground is well set or turfed over, and then
never more. It isa grass that propagates itself by its creep-
ing roots or rhizomes, and it is the disposition of all plants
and animals to lose vitality in the process of reproduction.

Though perennial, its vitality may be greatly lowered by
the effort of reproduction, so that it may lie dormant for
some time afterward, before starting again its vigorous
growth. Stock should be kept out at seeding time, or be-
fore, in fact, so as not to eat down the seed stalks.

It sometimes happens that dry weather sets in during the
summer months, and the grass becomes so dry it will burn.
Still stock will greedily eat it. The grass having dried full
of nourishing juices, it is equal to the best of hay, and
stock will still fatten upon it unless the dried grass has been
drenched with rains.

The fall growth of some lots should be kept untouched
by stock, and in this way a finé winter pasturage will be
secured. The grass will get high enough to fall over and
protect the surface foliage, and stock will keep up their flesh
op it during the winter without feed. When snows fall,
cattle will require to be fed, but horses, mules, and sheep
will paw off the snow, unless it is too deep, and get at the
grass. It is the first deciduous plant that puts forth its
leaves in the spring. Good fat lambs can be sent into the
market earlier than from any other grass. It makes milk

(76 )

rich in butter, and gives the latter a fine golden color, with-
out changing its taste, or, like clover, imparting its peculiar
flavor to it.

The following is an analysis of this grass, as compared
with some other well known grasses: (Way.)

FIRST. DRIED AT A TEMPERATURE OF 212°.

ls wg : 28! pg

Aa) PR |3°s'B! oc ;

100 Parts of SA5/ 88 |S3| 88 | a
Ss aI oS s : isa 8 I Be <q

iar: aa

Blue grass give Sed souis uh eeahentepacensceas 10.85] 2.63) 43.06) 38.02} 5.94

Timothy ... ssn Soa baie Saundee avajeesiees 11.86] 3.55) 53.35) 26.46} 5.28

Orchard grass. Sicaes auateas skeen veonensieeness 18.53) 3.14) 44.32] 33.70] 5.81

Clo veriess ax siciasiecorevie tures ect steatewes 22.55) 3.67} 44.47| 19.75) 9.56

White clover... = 18.76] 4.38) 40.04| 26.53; 10.29

Sweet scented vernal... 10.431 3.411 43.48! 36.36! 6.36

SECOND. AS TAKEN FROM THE FIELD IN BLOSSOM.

a ao a
we! ¢ | a e|
. ‘ S |G-si) SS (2's) oe
Without Drying, 100 Parts of s |28°3| 3 £18 53) $s
S Ef) 23 mes se
a aa
Blue grass give.......cscseseeseeeeee| 67.14] 3.41) 0.86] 14.15] 12.49
Orchard grass......... se eeeniese 70.00) 4,06} 0.94) 13.30] 10.11
Timothy sessessseaseceesseeeeeee{ O7-21| 4.86] 1.50] 22.85) 11.32
Red clover: csnsjeussseeraeranceeeseagersis 81.01} 4.27) 0.69] 8.45) 3.76
White clover....... | 79.71) 3.80) 0.89} 814) 5.38
Sweet scented vernal............000esee0s 80.35! 2.05] 0.67! 8.54! 7.15

There is, in all pastures, a number of bare spots that seem
to resist the efforts of blue grass to sod. By mixing other
seeds with the blue grass, these spots can be made to pro-
duce as well as other places. Ina natural meadow, by care-
ful counting, several species are often found growing inti-
mately on every inch of earth. On a good natural pasture
in one square foot of sod, there have been counted 1,000
plants, consisting of twenty distinct species. This is nature’s
own arrangement, and may be safely copied. In such a

(77)

pasture not an inch of surface is unoccupied. It may be
thought an inch or two here and there makes but little dif-
ference in the space occupied. . But every blade of grass is
of some importance, and it is astonishing the aggregate of
these barren places.

Now, once more, let it be urged on the farmers of Ten-
nessee to look into this matter of pastures, and provide
themselves with this highly important adjunct to every farm.
No home is complete without pastures, and yet there are
many who will depend either upon the fortuitous wild
grasses for grazing, or feed their stock from the crib all
through the year. With a rich blue grass lot, no stock
need be fed, except while at work, and, indeed, it is some-
times the case that in dry, scarce years, crops have been
made with horses and mules that had no other provender
than a blue grass lot.

SHEEP’S FESCUE—(Festuca ovina—Perennial.)

The fescue grasses are very popular in New England, and
grow well in Tennessee, having been introduced in some lo-
ealities. They are perennial, and grow in tufts, and from
their profuse foliage they form excellent pasturage for cattle,
and especially for sheep, hence the name of one variety.
Mixed with other grasses the sheep’s fescue would be a
good addition to our native grasses. It would be especially
useful on dry hill-sides, or sandy, old fields, where blue
grass will not thrive well. It has long leaves, and they are
much sought for by cattle. It has been grown extensively
in East Tennessee, and is grown in some localities in David-
son county, without much success. The Hon. Staunton Gould
says this grass forms the great bulk of the sheep pastures of
of the Highlands of Scotland, where it is the favorite food

(78 )

the sheep, and where the shepherds be-
lieve it to be more nutritious for flocks
than any other. Gmelin says the Tartars
choose to encamp during the summer
where this grass is most abundant, be-
cause they believe it to be the most
wholesome for all cattle, but especially for
sheep. Linneus asserts that sheep have
no relish for hills and heaths without it.
It grows in dry sandy soils, where all
other vegetation parches up. The roots
are long, turf short and dense, making
it well suited for lawns. It retains
its verdure during the most extended
droughts. It will not bear maturing, for
then it is dispossessed by other grasses.
Its great value is for pasturage upon
sandy soils. It will suit the Cumber-
land Table-land. The Woburn experi-
ments showed that, cut at the time of
flowering, the product of one acre was
5,445 pounds, which gave 212 pounds of
nutritive matter. The same number of
pounds was obtained, cut when the seeds were ripe, but
there were only 127 pounds of nutritive matter. The after-
math yielded 3,403 pounds of hay, having 66 pounds of
nutritive matter. From this it appears that there is a dif-
ference between the results obtained by chemists and prac-
tical feeders as to its nutritive properties.

(79 )

MEADOW FESCUE—RANDALL GRASS--EVERGREEN
GRASS—(Festuca pratensis.)

This grass has received some attention
in different parts of the State, and has
met with a warm reception from those
testing it. It ripens its seed long before
any other grass, and, consequently, af-
fords a very early nip to cattle. It has
been raised under various names, in
Virginia, as “ Randall Grass,” in North
Carolina as “ Evergreen Grass.” In the
mountain lands of Virginia, a writer
says: “ The variety of forage best adapted
to sheep-grazing on the mountain lands
is the “ Randall,” a tall, coarse grass,
growing freely on the rocky soil to a
height of six feet, remaining green and
affording fine herbage all the winter.”

Mr. James Taylor, writing to the Ag-
ricultural Bureau from North Carolina,
says:

“The evergreen grass is very good for
pasturing through the fall and winter.
I have no knowledge of its origin. It
will do best when sown on dry land, and
is well adapted to sheep. It grows well
on rocky soil, to the height of four or five feet when ripe,
continuing green in the spring, and affording fine herbage
throughout the winter. Tt is best to sow in the spring with
oats. A peck of well cleaned seed is enough for an acre, or
a bushel in the chaff. It ripens about the first of June, or
a little before rye harvest, and is cut with scythe and cradle

as we cut rye.

( 80)
TALL FESCUE GRASS—(Fesiuca «latior.)

This is a variety of the same, naturalized from Europe,
and suited to a rich loam, such as is found in the Central
Basin. The Woburn experiments show it to yield more
nutricious matter per acre, when cut in flower, than any
other grass, cut either in flower or seed. The number of
pounds obtained was 51,046, which weighed, when dry,
17,866 pounds, loss in drying, 33,180 pounds and furnished
3,988 pounds of nutritive extract.

There are several other fescue grasses, as the Spiked
Fescue, (F. loleacea), Hard Fescue, (#. duriuscula), and the
Nodding Fescue, (Ff. uéans), all indigenous to this country.
The last two are good hay grasses, as well as the Meadow
Fescue. The Hard Fescue was analyzed by Way and found
to contain water, 69.33 ; flesh-formers, 3.70; fat, 1.02; heat-
producers, 12.46 ; woody fibre, 11.83; ash, 1.66. The Wo-
burn experiments gave as the produce of one acre, 18,376
pounds, cut in flower ; loss in drying, 10,116 pounds; nutri-
tive matter, 1,004 pounds. Cut in seed, the produce
weighed 19,075 pounds, loss in drying, 10,481 pounds, leay-
ing nutritive extract, 446 pounds. It grows well on a
sandy loam. The seeds weigh ten pounds to the bushel.

TALL MEADOW OAT GRASS—(Arrhenatherum avenaceum.)

This grass is very popular in France, from whence it was
introduced, and is there known by the name of “ Ray
Grass.”

Tt will grow well on any land that produces clover. Its
limit is about 1,500 feet above the sea. It grows quickly
and forms a very excellent grass for early pasturage, prob-
ably earlier than any other. It is mown down for hay, and
after cutting, it throws up a perfect mat of aftermath, that
will yield an extremely rich pasture. It was only intro-

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duced into Tennessee a few years ago, and it has received
extravagant praises, as is usual with new in troductions.

It succeeds well in West Tennessee, and will probably
suit that locality better than any
other grass, except Herd’s grass.
It would form a good grass to
mix with others, such as timo-
thy, Herd’s grass, clover or blue
grass.

The analysis of the hay by
Way, isas follows: Flesh-form-
ers, 12.95; fatty matters, 3.19.
heat-producing principles, 38.03 :
woody fibre, 34.24 ; mineral mat-
ters, 11.59.

This shows it to rank as a nu-
tritious grass, among the best of
the meadow grasses, and almost
equal to any of the pasture grass-
es, though it is said cattle and
sheep do not like to be confined
to it alone. The produce from
an acre from Mr. Sinclair’s ex-
periments at Woburn, was 17,015
pounds; loss in drying, 11,635
pounds; nutritive matter, 664
pounds. Cut when the seeds
were ripe the weight was 16,335 pounds; loss in drying,
10,617 pounds; nutritive matter 255 pounds. Weight of
aftermath, 13,612 pounds; nutritive matter of which was
265 pounds.

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SWEET-SCENTED VERNAL GRASS—(Anthoxanthum odo-
ratum.)

This grass was introduced from Europe,
and possesses rather poor qualities as a
pasture grass, as neither sheep nor cattle
relish it. It is early, however, and hardy.
It is one of the first as well as one of the
last grasses that appear. Its nutritive
qualities are said to exist to a much larger
extent in the fall than in the spring, and
greater when cut at maturity than in
bloom. It has a mixture of benzoic acid
among its constituents, which imparts to
it a highly aromatic character, and this
is so strong that other grasses with which
y it may be mixed are affected by it. It
is not in general use in Tennessee, but
would probably add to the value of pas-
tures if sown with other grasses. Cows
running on it are, by some, said to give
arich milk and highly flavored butter,
but Mr. Gould thinks this is an error.
It may be known by rubbing its green
leaves in the fingers, to which it yields its scent. On cer-
tain soils favorable to its growth, it will root out almost
every other kind and take complete possession. Its seeds
have a spiral awn, and when taken in the hand, affected by
its moisture, the awus will uncoil, and the seeds will appear
to move as insects. There are six or seven pounds in a
bushel, and nine hundred and twenty-three thousand two
hundred in a pound. Its analysis, according to Way, ranks
it, when dry, a little higher than blue grass, as follows
Flesh-formers, 10.43; fatty matters, 3.41; and heat-produ-
cing principles, 43.48. Blue grass gives, flesh- formers
10.35 ; fat, 2.63; heat- producers, 43.06.

The best est of all grasses is their effects upon animals

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If animals thrive and fatten upon any grass, and that grass
is perennial, hardy and durable, it isa good pasture grass;
otherwise not, whatever individual experiments in the lab-
xatory may indicate. We know that stock of all kinds eat
blue grass voraciously and thrive upon it; we know, also,
‘that they do not like the anthozanthum. Both are alike
hardy and durable. Therefore the blue grass, upon suitable
soils, is to be preferred, whatever chemical research may
determine.

WHITE CLOVER—( Trifolium repens.)

White clover has been lauded to the skies by some, and
by others depreciated as a vile weed. It is beyond question,
next to blue grass, one of our most valuable grazing plants.
Its analysis shows it to be equal to red clover in most re-
spects, and superior as a fat producing plant.

It is to the pasture what red clover is to the meadow,
and is a suitable food not only for cattle and horses, but for
hogs. They thrive amazingly on it. After the first flower-
ing it salivates horses, but has no such
effect upon cattle or sheep. Asa hon-
ey-producing flower, the white clover
is not surpassed by any plant, the
florets, some years, being almost full
of syrup.

It varies very much in different
years, sometimes almost disappearing,
y then again, another year, being thick
in every pasture. So much is this the
Bee case, that we have what are called
“white clover years.” This is due to the presence or ab-
sence of rain. When there isa wet spring white clover
appears in great luxuriance everywhere, and in dry weather
it ouly shows itself in abundance on moist lands.

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It is indigenous to both Europe and the United States,
and, though growing everywhere here, it has to be sown on
the Northern pastures. Here it comes spontaneously, al-
most taking every other grass, and sometimes destroying
other grasses. It is an invaluable accompaniment of blue
_grass, especially triumphant where the blue grass is pastured
too heavily.

The comparative value of white and red clover, cut in |

bloom, may be seen by the following analyses by Prof.

ipa ae a F | 3 |
a Fs a3 8 os a
£/4il2 | 2 | 3 | 3
= eS mo | &
Red Clover............ 81.01 4.27 69 8.45 | 3.76 182
White Clover......... 79.71 3.80 89 8.14 6.38 2.08

JAPAN CLOVER OR KING GRASS—(Lespedeza striata.)

It has been but a few ‘years since this ‘plant has been
brought to notice in this country, though its existence was.
mentioned as early as 1784 by Thunberg, a German chem-
ist, who saw it growing in Japan. About the year 1849 it
was noticed in the vicinity of Charleston, 8. C., the seeds.
having been brought probably from Japan or China in tea
boxes. A short while afterwards it was discovered at a dis-
tance of forty miles from Charleston, and still later near
Macon, Ga.

Within the last six years it has developed itself in many
of the counties of this State, especially in Henderson and
Warren, where it is covering all old fields, and in many
instances rooting out broom grass and other grasses, show-
ing itself well worthy of the name given it by Mr. Pendle-
ton, of king grass.

so satiate 2

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It,seems especially adapted to the Southern States, not
flourishing above 36°, growing with great luxuriance on the

poorest soils and retaining vitality in its roots in the. sever-
est droughts. It is said to be a fine plant for grazing, and
being perennial in warm climates, needs no re-sowing and
‘but little attention. On soils unfit for anything else it
furnishes good pasture and supplies a heavy green crop for
turning under and improving the land. It cannot stand
severe cold, and in high latitudes cannot be depended on as
-a good pasture grass, although it comes up and supplies an
abundant forage for a few months. It should be sown in
-January or February in the Southern States, and about one
bushel of seed to ten acres is required to secure a good stand:
the first year. It is said to be an excellent renovator of old
fields, and to bring them up to a high degree of fertility in
an incredibly short space of time.

Mr. E. M. Pendleton, of Georgia, speaking of it, says:

“T am willing to concede to it several things that do not
apply to any other plant we have ever grown in this lati-
tude :

1. “Tt grows on poor land with more luxuriance than any
-other grass or weed I have ever seen; and as it has a small.
leaf, rather contravenes the general idea of vegetable physi-.
ologists, that large leaved plants feed mostly on the atmos-
phere. I suppose, however, that this deficiency is counter-
acted to a large extent by the number of leaves, for they;
-are legion.

2. “It has great powers of endurance, so far as the roots
are concerned ; but the branches and leaves will parch and
die out under a burning sun very soon, especially where it
grows sparsely. During a wet summer it luxuriates where-
ever propegated on poor hill-sides as well as meadow lands.
It loves, however, rainy seasons on thirsty lands, and I fear
will not prove to be all we desire in such localities. It,
however, reminds us of an anecdote of Mr. Dickson, when
he was showing some gentlemen his farm during the pre-

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valence of a severe drought. As they passed through a
cornfield in which some of the stalks were actually dying-
for lack of moisture, one of them ‘called his attention to.
several in that condition. “Yes,” said he, I perceive the
fact—but it dies game.” And so of the Japan clover, it
dies from severe drought, but rallies again as soon as the
rain sets in.

3. “It is a good pasturage for stock, and I think would
make good hay, if eut and cured. This I intend to test the
present season. But I do not believe that our stock like it-
as well as the native grasses, and doubt whether it is as nu-
tritious as the Bermuda. As cattle love variety, however,
this may subserve a good purpose in that way. My opinion,
however, is, from not very close observation in the matter,
that they would soon tire out on it exclusively.

4. “Tt furnishes a large supply of vegetable matter to the
soil, and I believe will prove to be the best humus making
plant we have at the South, where so much is needed from
our clean cotton culture. As it is said to be difficult to.
gather the seed in large quantities, I intend to plow up the
surface where it has seeded, and rake up the grass and top
soil, and sow this dirt over my oat and wheat fields, and
especially on the poor places. My opinion is that a most
luxuriant growth of this clover will follow, which can be
turned under in the fall while green, and thus furnish not.
only humus but nitrogen to the soil.

5. “ Another rare quality of this plant is indicated in the
name I have given it—king grass—in the fact that it abso-
Jutely roots out and destroys every living plant in its wide~
spread path. Not even old Bermuda, which has so long
held undisputed sway over his circumscribed fields, can
resist its encroaches. I have a bottom long since given up-
to the Bermuda. Recently I passed through it and found
that the Lespedeza had almost completely throttled it, though
like Mr. Dickson’s corn, it died game, as here and there,
peering above its enemy, could be seen an isolated sprig of

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Bermuda, which, as it cannot stand shade, will have to yield
entirely before the close of another season. I have but
little doubt that any pest like coco or Bermuda could be
rooted out by this king grass in a few years in any locali-
ty, and would recommend it to be sown on such fields if for
no other purpose. I intend to give it a fair trial myself on
one or two similar localities.”

In like manner the Hon. H. W. Ravenel, of South Caro-
lina, regards it with great favor, and thinks its timely ap-
pearance will be ultimately a source of great wealth to the
people of the Southern States. Many places that were re-
garded as worthless before its appearance, are now made
profitable as a pasture, with the aid of this grass.

Mr. Samuel McKamsey, of Warren county, says this
clover made its appearrnce in that locality in 1870. It is
fast covering the whole country. It supplies much grazing
from the first of August until frost. It is short, but very
hardy. Sheep are very fond of it, and cattle will eat it. It
is killing out the broomsedge wherever itappears. It grows
exceedingly well on red clay, and with a little care covers
red hillsides that are much too common all over the State.
If it will do this and destroy the broom grass, it should be
cultivated. It is not goud for meadow and is only valuable
for pasture.

The Hon. M. T. Polk considers it almost worthless for
grazing, having made many experiments with it. His
opinion is entitled to great weight.

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MANAGEMENT OF MEADOWS

AND

CONCERNING MANURES.

Meadows exist in various sections of the State to a lim-
ited extent, and it being the object of this work to foster
this branch of agriculture the best plans for encouraging
and treating them will be discussed. The subject requires
no argument to encourage it, as every right-thinking man
will see at a glance the great importance of growing more
hay. It is, in the observation of every one, that vast amounts
of baled hay are brought by rail and river from those

tates -already embarked in the cultivation of grasses.
While we have the best climate in the United States for
this purpose, as already stated, we have a soil unparalleled
for fertility, and well suited to almost all varieties of grass-
es described, and, besides, being on the border of the cotton
States, we have a market at our doors for our surplus.

If we do this our country will assume such a charming
appearance that it will delight the eye of every passenger
who travels through it on the many lines of rajlroads, be-
sides repaying the owners all the care bestowed on it. Our
citizens are not so much to blame for this backwardness in
the cultivation of the grasses as would appear at first sight.

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The routine established before the war was hard to break
up, but they are looking around for some more profitable
method of farming. To establish meadows is the part
of wisdom. Just how to do this we propose to tell here as
fully as our space will permit. We shall consider:

Ist. The preparation of meadow lands.

2nd. Selection of suitable seeds for sowing and method of
mixing.

3rd. Times of sowing and the best methods of securing
stands.

4th. Cutting, curing and storing the hay.

5th. Improvement of meadows.

6th. Manures and manner of their application.

PREPARATION OF MEADOW LANDS.

This is of the utmost importance when we reflect that
any want of attention to all the details necessary to insure
success involves a considerable loss, not only in money and
labor, but also in the length of time required to undo and
correct the error. God sows the pastures to our hands, but
man must sow the meadows. A man may think he is pur-
suing the most judicious course possible, but he may be in
error, and an honest mistake does not free the farmer from
loss. He must inform himself correctly on the character
of the land to be sown, and then, with every facility at his
command, acquaint himself with the grasses best adapted
to its requirements.

In the first place, though many varieties of grass will
grow well on moist land, it is not to be understood that
they will thrive best on wet lands. When the water stands
on the surface all the year, the character of the hay is nearly
worthless, being full of moisture and with but little nutri-
tive principles in it. Consequently it is very important
to have soils properly drained, if they require it. It will
largely increase the quantity and greatly improve the
quality of the crop. With the soil full of moisture it be-

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comes sour and, though full of fertility, it is unavailable to
the plant. With wet soil, it is impossible to put the land
in a proper state of tilth. So all things point to the neces-
sity of drainage. ,

It may be proper to state that every piece of ground on
which water will stand two hours after a rain, will be bene-
fitted by a system of drainage. This seems to the South-
erner to be such a stupendous undertaking that nearly
every one is discouraged from making the effort. When it
is supposed that draining can only be effected by ditching
in every direction, and laying great stretches of pipes, the
undertaking does seem indeed to be very costly.

The method of pipe-laying is the best, and as our farmers
see the good effects of a cheaper method, they will gradu-
ally, and by slow degrees, comé to practice the more snb-
stantial methods. A Northern land owner does not hesi-
tate to spend fifty or seventy-five dollars on a single acre,
when he can bring into cultivation a choice piece of bottom.
But the Hollanders surpass every other people on earth in
this particular. Nearly every foot of land they own has
been reclaimed from the sea by a system of dykes, levees
and ditches. Their lands being lower than the water-
courses that run through them, their only resource is to lift
the waters that are collected in the ditches by means of
steam pumps. This is done, it is true, at the expense of
the public, but the farmers pay an annual tax to keep it up,
or they would soon be flooded by the accumulating waters
that penetrate the soil from every side.

There are many methods of draining land, but we will
confine ourselves to the method of doing it as effectually as
the Dutch, but at such an expense that even a renter can
afford it, for the increase of one year’s crop. A German
gardener of New York leased ten acres of land that proved
to be boggy, and the first three years his crops, in spite of
all the attention he could give them, barely paid rent and
supported him. He was advised to try draining, and al-

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though but seven years were left of his lease, he did it at
a cost of $500. The result fully justified the expense, for
in the remaining seven years he made, over and above all
expenses, money. enough to pay $12,000 for the farm he had
drained. No land can produce well without the aid of heat
and proper aeration. If the soil is full of water it will be
impervious to the air, and the water will also counteract
the effects of the sun’s rays, and the ground will be cold
and lifeless. Without the influence of heat and air, neves-
sary chemical changes in the constituents of the soil cannot
take place, consequently the roots fail to find the nourish-
ment they are seeking—they fail to penetrate the soil to a
sufficient depth, and instead of a rich subsoil, there will only
be surface soil to support vegetation. That soon becomes
exhausted, and the land appears worn out. Draining opens
up a mine of fertilizers below, the roots run quickly down
to it, and there is no question that the crops are greatly
increased. There is much land in our State that would be
greatly improved by draining. The soils that will be im-
proved can be ascertained, during the wet season, by digging
a hole in the fields and watching the height to which the
water rises. In many ‘places it will remain almost on a
level nearly all winter; in others showing itself one, two or
three feet below it. And this, too, on rolling Jands that are
supposed to be dry enough. Not only are the wet lands
made dryer, but the dry lands made wetter. This is effected
by the soil becoming porous, so as to better admit the mois-
ture of rains and dews. It is made warmer, and conse-
quently frosts will have less effect, there being less moisture
to freeze on the surface. And besides, by being warmer
the crops come on earlier.

Our northern farmers practice almost exclusively tile
draining. This is a costly mode, and if it were the only
way our farmers would be frightened at once from the effort.
But so thoroughly is this plan practiced, that it is no longer
an experiment. Some counties in Ohio have spent the pub-

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lie funds in digging and draining the mains, so that farmers
can lay their drains into them. Wood county, Ohio, in:
1867, spent in one year $500,000 in digging mains. One
drain was dug thirty miles long, and six feet deep, while
the districts dug four hundred miles more.

The Agricultural College of Michigan appointed a com-
mittee to investigate the etfects of draining. They bought
twenty-five acres of swampy land, covered with bog- grass,
rushes, flags and other worthless vegetation. They laid
about 800 yards of tiles at an expense of $480, and sowed it
in grass. At the first entting the crop was sold for $1,570,
leaving a clear profit, the first year, over all expenses, of
$548.70, and the second year they cleared $975. This
was on land that, before draining, produced absolutely
nothing. .

But a drain can be made in a much cheaper manner than
by tiles. Should there be plenty of surface rock near, lay
one on the bottom of the ditch, one on each side of the bot-
tom rock, and cover with a fourth. Or, instead of using
four rocks, a very good ditch can be made by tilting two flat
rocks to each other so that a transverse section will form a
A shaped tunnel, and if there is a‘firm bed to the ditch it
will last an indefinite length of time, the water carrying off
the loose crumbs of clay.

Still another plan is to use, instead of the rocks, poles of
any kind of wood, so they are straight. Lay two poles,
say four or five inches in diameter, parallel to each other,
leaving a space of six inches between them, and then lay.
another pole on the centre space so that the edges will rest:
on the other two, leaving an open space five or six inches
in diameter. Then throw stubble, straw, weeds, leaves or
cornstalks over the poles, and indeed over the rocks also,
and there will be a good ditch without the outlay of any
money. Of course the loose dirt will be thrown over either
the rocks or logs. Timber under ground in this way will
last a long time.

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But there is still another plan, in case the soil has any
descent, and there are few lands in Tennessee without it,
and that is by means of a subsoil plow. Let a stout subsoil
plow follow in the furrow of a turning plow, both drawn by
stout teams, and send the subsoiler at least two feet deep.
Let the furrows run up and down the hill so as to give a
regular descent to the water, and the hard pan broken up
by the subsoil will carry off all superfluous water after rains
in a very short time. This process is so effective that it is
pursued in some sections to the exclusion, entirely, of reg-
ular draining. It will have to be repeated at intervals of
three or four years, and there will be but little disturbance
to the sod, as the subsoiler has only an iron bar for a helve,
which raises the surface so slightly it can easily be pressed
back with a roller.

From all the testimony to be gathered on this subject, it
is pretty apparent that the cost of draining a meadow will
be paid the first year by the increased production of the crop.
The after-crops will be profits to the farmer.

After what has been said in regard to almost every kind
of grass, it is almost needless to impress on the mind of the
farmer the necessity of thoroughly pulverizing the soil.
Let it be well and deeply broken up, and then with the
harrow, drag and roller continue to work it until it is
smooth and not aclod appears on the surface. The roots of
grasses are exceedingly delicate and cannot penetrate the
hard, dry lumps of soil, but will exhaust their energies in
‘going around or under them. Besides, in exactly the same
proportion as the clods exist, are the nourishing elements
locked up from the use of the grass. Another reason:
when clods exist in great numbers, the ground will be rough
and the seed will not get into the soil, or will get in too
deep to germinate. Thus seeds are lost and the stand im-
paired.

It is needless to say the soil must be fertile, for nothing
will thrive well on poor soil. If it is not rich it must be

(94)

made so. Should it be desired to sow a field that has been
greatly exhausted, a plan pursued in England is com-
mended. The fall previous to sowing, the field is put in
turnips. During the winter, by means of hurdles, a flock
of sheep is confined to a portion of the field, and they are
not allowed to leave until every vestige of the turnips is
exhausted. By this time the ground will be black with
their droppings. In this manner the whole field, acre by
acre, is gone over and the ground has a fine covering of ma-
nure. We will suppose this consumes the winter. In the
spring break up, or to break up just as svon as the sheep
are removed is better, and sow with peas. When this crop
is in full bearing let on both hogs and sheep, and it will
amply repay all its preparation by the manner in which the
stock will thrive, and they will again bestow on it a cover-
ing of fine manure. Now the ground is well manured and
fully capable of giving, in return for the care bestowed, a
bountiful crop the first year. Of course it must be again
broken and pulverized as before mentioned. This not only
pays better than letting it lie in fallow, but it keeps down
weeds. When ground is fallowed, there will be generally
an interval 6f neglect, and the weeds, ever watchful fora
chance, will spring up, mature their seeds and sow them, to
the trouble and vexation of the farmer afterward.

SELECTION OF SUITABLE SEEDS AND BEST METHOD OF
MIXING THEM.

Whatever the character of the soil to be converted into
a meadow, a suitable grass will be found in our list. There
are grasses for rocky land, sandy land, bottom land, upland,
or calcareous land, and we cannot do better than to refer:
the reader to the large list from which to select, as the kind
of land to which they are adapted is clearly shown in each
descriptive article.

It is well known to every farmer that some grasses will

not thrive on certain characters of soil. What grasses te

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sow must be left to the judgment of the farmer, as only an
extended experience will be able to show under every cir-
cumstance the peculiarities of the land to be sown. Under
certain conditions, too, it may be preferable to put the land
down in clover, whatever kind of soil it may be; especially
is this the case where the land, from long cultivation, is not
in good heart. It must be remembered that, if a field has,
by long-continued cultivation, without rotation, been so
reduced in fertility that it will not produce remunerative
crops, it will not produce any kind of grass in paying quan-
tities, until some of its vitality has been restored. If a
farmer fattens stock from the produce of his own farm, it
follows that whatever goes to produce bone, muscle, and
blood, is so much substance taken from the soil, and restitu-
tion is demaifded.

When the earth is covered with grasses, and they are
plowed under, and converted into vegetable mould, not
only does the land receive what has been taken’ from it,
but there is added, a vast amount of substances extracted
from the atmosphere, such as carbon, ammonia, nitrogen
and oxygen, and in that way the land is constantly im-
proved. It isin this way that nature renews herself, and
a piece of land left to her care, will, after the lapse of a few
years, regain its fertility. But the necessities of man are
such he cannot await this slow process, and therefore, it is
that he must, to bring about the same result sooner, resort
to the expedient of plowing in green crops. Various kinds
of green manuring crops are used for this purpose. In the
selection of a crop to plow under, one thing should be kept
prominently in view, and that is, select such crops as derive
their nourishment in great part from the air. It has been
demonstrated by many experiments that the legumins do
this more effectually than any other class. Among these
none are so effectual as the different kinds of clover. They
not only enrich the land by the great mass of foliage and
stems, but also, by their mechanical displacement of the soil,

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loosen and pulverize it. Next to the clovers are peas.
‘They, it is true, do not have the same extensive system of
roots, but, if possible, they grow and exist more from at-
mospheric influences than any other plant.

After the selection’ of the kinds of grass to be sown, the
next consideration is to select good seed. How often has it
occurred to every farmer to see the result of all his toil and
expense culminate in failure for want of good seed! It does
not always occur to the sower that his seeds are defective
through age, or through mixing noxious seeds with the
grass seeds. The high price that seeds command is a great
temptation to the dishonest dealer. Sometimes it happens
that good seeds are kept until they have lost their power of
germinating. It is betterto save seed from the farm if pos-
sible. It involves but little care to do so, and ia an actual
saving to the farmer, and then he knows what he is sowing.
Should it be necessary, however, to buy seeds, always delay
a few days to test them. This is easily done by placiug a
certain ascertained number on a wet cloth folded several
times to retain moisture, and covering them over with a
single thickness of the same. Keep the cloth damp a few
days and the good ones will swell up and sprout, while the
defective ones will be covered over with mould. Count the
sprouts, and, by an easy computation, one can then ascertain
the proportion of good seeds. Then sow in the proportion
and there will be no difficulty in securing a stand. The
wisdom of this precaution may be known when it is stated
that nearly all the grass seeds are worthless at the end of
three years, only a small proportion of them germinating.
Even clover seeds, that will keep their vitality when in the
ground and covered up, will lose this vitality in four or five
years, if exposed to the atmosphere. The millets are
scarcely worth sowing after the second year.

No pasture, however luxuriant, is found to consist of one
grass alone. In all meadows sown alone, there will be
found naked spots, and these seem to depend upon some

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incompatibility of the soil, at that point, with the grass
sown. These spots would be occupied possibly by other
species if sown, and thus the whole surface would he coy-
ered. Some grasses are disposed to turf the ground, while
others form tussocks, therefore it is best to mix, if sowing a
tussock grass, a grass that will turf well. Some grasses
have a heavy undergrowth of surface foliage, while others
have this sparingly. These two peculiarities would be done
away with if the two were combined.

It is not, however, proper to combine the pasture grasses
with the meadow grasses. Asa rule the former have creep-
ing roots and are more vigorous than the latter, and they
would soon overpower them and destroy the meadow. This,
of course, is spoken in reference to the perennial pasture
grasses.

Another condition of mixing is the number to be com-
bined. As a rule, it is beyond question that a meadow
sown with a variety of seeds will do better and make more
hay than when one kind is used. It is no easy matter to
explain why, but nature does it, and she rarely errs in her
primitive growth.

A custom prevails among the grass farmers of the North
and East to mix a great number together—some having
as many as a dozen different kinds on one meadow. In
this way those vacant spote we have spoken of will be filled
up with selected seeds instead of seeds of an inferior or
noxious sort. The ground will be covered, and it is better
to select the best varieties. The more especially is this the
case when it is expected, as most farmers will do, to pas-
ture to some extent the meadow, or when it is wished to
train it as a meadow a few years and ultimately let it pass
into a grazing lot. It is quite a common custom in this
State to mix clover and orchard grass, or clover and Herd’s
grass, or clover and timothy, and sometimes timothy and
Herd’s grass are mixed, and this is about the extent of mix-
ing done. : ‘

7

(98 )

In the great meadows of the Northwestern and New
England States where grass culture has been practiced for
years, it has been demonstrated often that the admixture of
several varieties increases many fold the yield of grass, even
if not wanted for pasturage. It secures an early stand, and
if the ground fails to suit one specis another will ficurish,
and thus all vacant spots are covered. These spots of even
an inch or two may seem insignificant, but when they are
multiplied all over a large field they will materially affect
the yield. The crop is made up of single stalks, and every
stem is of importance in the aggregation.

It should be kept in mind in the selection of seeds to put
those together that will blossom at the same time, unless it
is intended for a pasture, in which case the reverse should
be considered, for then it is best to so arrange it as to have
a succession of ripening crops, and the stock can be sup-
plied throughout the year with such grasses as will be
young, tender and succulent.

Some require or are improved by the tramping of stock.

left to themselves they have a tendency to tuft or spring
out of the soil until their roots are exposed, when they fall
a prey to the sun or to the freezes. These tufts or tussocks,
as they are also called, will leave at least half the ground
bare, and thus, also, much of the hay is lost. But if tramped
by stock the grass is pressed back into the soil and a turf is
kept up that covers the whole surface.

Some of the grasses, however, as timothy, do not require
and will not bear grazing for various reasons. These grasses
ought not to be mixed with those that are benefitted by
timothy, and should such be disposed to tuft, the use of a
heavy roller is the only remedy, and the vacant spaces can
easily be reset by sowing seeds of the same or other varieties
on them, and then giving them a light coat of manure.

It may be assumed that in nearly all meadows or pastures
clover should be a constituent. It is an easy matter to se-
cure a stand of it. The clover will, in the course of two or

(99)

three years, disappear from the meadow, leaving the grass
in possession of the ground. But it has not left without a
blessing, for it has reached up into the air with its long
arms and drawn down great stores of ammonia, nitrogen,
carbonic acid and other valuable elements that grass requires,
and has pushed them down into the soil; while on the
‘other hand it has pumped up immense quantities of potash
and other salts that are, in their natural state, insoluble, and
not available to the grasses, and when it dies it bequeaths
these valuable manures to its successors. Nor is this all.
Its long roots permeate the ground to a prodigious depth
for so humble a plant, and when the roots decay the soil is
so honey-combed that rains penetrate to the subsoil easily
and the grass roots follow to a much greater depth than they
could otherwise attain. And while all these services are
being rendered, the clover is giving to its owner large yields
of the best of hay.

Such a mixture should be made in the sowings as if one
species fail another will take hold. Nor is it proper to sow
the same quantities on the different soils of the State. On
rich bottoms there will'be a necessity for using a free hand,
while on the sandy uplands we must withold the quantity.
It may be wished to pasture alternate years, or after the
lapse of a few years altogether. All these reasons will
modify the quantity of seed to be sown. If a very early
crop is wanted, such should be selected as come in early, or
if a succession of crops be desired, it will be an easy matter
to take from our list those that will ripen, or rather blossom
one after another to the latest, thus enabling the farmer to
save all his hay in good time. This custom prevails to
some extent in Ireland, to sow the same quantity of seed to
an aére of each kind as though no other sorts were to be
sown, and enough of each kind to fully seed the land. :

On a visit to the Unaka Mountains, last September, in
company with some members of the Association for the Ad-
vancement of Science, we saw some grasses growing in great

( 100 )

luxuriance on the “ Balds” of that.range and on the top of
the Roan Mountain that we had never seen elsewhere, but..
Prof. Chickering, of Washington City, recognized them as

similar to those seen on Mt. Washington and in Canada.

There were poa annua, the spear grass of Maine,. but com- .
mon on low lands in the State; agrostis perennans, or thin

grass, a plant peculiar to marshy places; phleum alpinum,

carex juncea, a rush looking sedge, or rather a grass-like

sedge; aira flexuosa, or wood hair grass, an ornamental

grass of the Northern latitudes; danthonia compressa, or-

wild oat grass, and trisetwm molle, or downy persoon. Be-

sides these were many others not determined by any of the

botanists in the company. These grasses afford an immense.

pasturage during the summer to vast herds of cattle that are

driven by the citizens for miles around to summer on them. -
Gen. Wilder, who ownsa large section of land there, informed

us the grass, when enclosed from the stock, grew to the

height of four feet. Very many varieties existed, all grow-

ing promiscuously together. This goes far to show the

great difference of the development of the species in different.:
localities, for at lower altitudes, with the exception of the

carex juncea, these grasses grow quite low.

TIMES AND MANNER OF SOWING.

‘Up to 1810 the almost invariable rule among all farmers..,
was to sow grass seeds in the spring of the year on crops of
grain. Since that time the practice has changed to a great
extent, and while some still adhere to spring sowing, the
great majority of farmers sow in the early fall. Some few
sow grass alone, but the most of them sow with some kind
of grain. The former is most decidedly the best, and should
in every possible case be practiced. There,are many who,
contend it is much better to sow alone, as the half crop that
will be harvested the next year is fully equivalent to the.
value of the grain crop, while if the two are sown together,

(101 )

they both work injuriously on each other. The stand ot
grass is injured, and the yield of grain is diminished. With
all that, the general custom is to sow on grain fields, and
wait until the second year for hay. But one thing is very
essential, let it be sown with whatever it may, it must be in
the ground long enough before frosts to take a deep root, or
much of it will be destroyed by cold. Clover must, how-
-ever, in either case, be reserved until spring, as, when
young, it is very sensitive to the effects of cold unless it is
sown in August. Itis the custom of some farmers to sow
-elover and other grass seeds mixed, in the last plowing of
late corn. Should that course be decided on the corn must
be late, and plowed on the level principle, and the clover
sown after the last plowing. Some crops have succeeded ad-
mirably put in on this plan. But the better plan will be to
prepare the ground well, as already stated, and sow the seed,
if alone, from the | 5th of September to the 15th of October ;
if with ‘a grain crop, as soon as it can be put in safely.
‘Wheat is sown, as a general practice, too late to insure a
stand of grass that will resist the winter, and it is therefore
better to sow with rye or barley. Let the time of sowing
be when it may, the farmer must watch for a season, other-
wise the moisture brought up by plowing will be sufficient
to germinate the seeds, but not to make them live, and even
if the moisture is not enough to make them germinate, there
may be enough to sprout them, and they will still be de-
stroyed.

If it is the intention to sow on a stubble, it is better, as
soon as possible after harvest, to prepare the land and sow
in some of the August seasons, and if sown then, the clover
sowing may not be deferred, but sown with the other seeds,
-as they will have ample time then to root enough to with-
stand the cold of winter. Timothy or Herd’s grass sown in
September or October alone, will always make a good “anp
the next summer.

As compared with spring sowing, we may safely prefer

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fall. Both heat and cold are injurious to young grass plants,
but of the two, cold is much less injurious than the
droughts of summer. It was the experience of the writer,
on one occasion, to sow a large meadow. He began about
the 1st of September and sowed en until rains stopped him,
and again in the middle of October, and finished early in
March. On the September sowing there was a magnificent
stand that stood over the ground with a solid turf. On the
October crop the stand was fair, but much was destroyed
during the winter, and the weeds were very troublesome
the next year. On the March sowing the stand promised
as well as the September crop, but the droughts of summer
destroyed it completely.

But there will always be a difference of opinion on this
subject, and this difference mainly arises from the difference
in the character of soils. Some soils are better sown in the
spring, while others secure better results by fall sowing—
and in either case the successful farmer will advocate his
plan. But in either case, as Gen. Harding truthfully says,
a man will fail sometimes, let him sow as he will.

A few words are only necessary in regard to the manner
of sowing. In the first place, the ground should be thor-
oughly prepared, and a season on hand, and if rain has
fallen since the ground was put in order and packed the
surface, run a sharp toothed harrow over it to break up the
crust, then sow the seed and roll it in. A light harrowing.
will also do on clayey soils. If its surface is too rocky,
stumpy or sloping, to admit a roller, the next best thing is
to brush it with a light full brush. If the surface is
perfectly smooth before the seeds are sown a light brushing
does very well, but if it is not, a roller is preferable, as it
will not cover so deeply as a brush. Remember that all
seeds covered two inches deep will not germinate. If sown
with grain, smooth the ground over with a brush after the
grain is sown, and let a hand follow immediately behind and
east the seed into the brush. Never use a heavy thio

108)

brush, but if the limbs are full of twigs it will not matter
as to weight. Then it will not cover too deeply.

It may be necessary, and generally is, to roll the land in
the spring, especially if the meadow is a stiff clay soil, as
the frosts of winter will usually heave up most of the soil,
thereby carrying up roots and earth, and unless it is packed
in again the succeeding droughts will surely destroy the
grass. All these directions are not to be taken as applying
to every locality, or situation, for as difference of soil and
climate affects the results, so only can experience, controlled
by reason, govern the complete details of this, or any other
species of planting.

CUTTING, CURING AND STORING HAY.

There has been, and still is more differences of opinion
among hay farmers, as to the proper time of cutting, than
upon any other point connected with hay. There are dif-
ferent times for the different varieties, but as a rule there
should be but one way. The time of flowering is, unques-
tionably, the general indication for the harvest to, begin.
At this time the saccharine juices that go to the formation
and development of the seed, are stored in the stalk and
leaves, and if saved then, they will lose only their watery
constituents, and the grass will be as palatable and succu-
lent as when standing, and will be eaten clean by all kinds
of stock.

Still, some wait until the pollen falls and the seeds are in
the milk, and those practicing this plan contend that the hay
will not scour the horses so badly. But there is another
reason why some defer the cutting to so late a date, and that
is, it will not lose so much water, and consequently will be
heavier and so bring more money.

A good authority says, “I cut in the blossom when the
hay is designed for milch cows, or for fattening beeves, be-
cause in that state it makes more beef, and induces the cows
- to give more milk ; but if for work stock, horses or oxen, I

(104)

cut six days later, or thereabouts, because it does not scour
or loosen the animal so much as when cut in the blossom.”
In either case, however, in an extensive crop, if the har-
vesting begins at the blossoming period, it will be six days
before it is finished.

The gama grass and possibly the Incerne should be cut as
often as it is high enough to run the mower through them,
as they become very hard, stiff and woody if they grow
too rank, whereas, they are, if cut in time, very sweet and
nutritious.

There is also much difference of opinion in regard to the
proper time for cutting clover. Some will take a stalk and
tie a knot in it, andif much sap exudes from it, they will
leave it until it will barely show moisture. Others will cut
when the field is about half in blossom, while still -others
will defer it until about half the heads are brown and the
seed are ina milky state. But the mass of testimony is in
favor of cutting clover when a few brown heads show them-
selves over the field.

It is a well known fact that just before the formation of
the seed there is a larger per cent. vf sugar, starch and glu-
ten in the stalk than at any other time. When the grass
first springs up it is filled almost entirely with water, as any
one can satisfy himself by chewing a stem in its different pe-
riods of growth. As the plant grows and matures, the wa-
ter gradually becomes impregnated with these substances,
and at its blossoming period these elements exist in their
greatest quantity—in fact nature is now storing up material
from which to form the seed, and these stores are held ready
in the stalk, to effect that purpose. These elements are all
soluble in waver, and consequently, are easily dissolved by
the juices of the stomach. But if these principles are al-
lowed to go to seed, they leave the stalk, and at once the
plant starts on its downward course, becoming more and
more woody, until finally decay sets in, and the hay is then

(105

worthless; {because the woody fibre is insoluble in the
stomach.

Prof. Kirkland draws the following conclusions from
many careful observations as regards timothy :

1. “ That timothy is a perennial plant, which renews it-
self by an annual formation of bulbs,” or perhaps, more
cerrectly speaking, tubers, in which the vitality of the
plant is concentrated during the winter. These form in
whatever locality the plant is selected, without reference to
dryness or moisture. From these proceed the stalks that
support the heads and leaves, and from the same source
spread out the numerous fibres forming the true roots.

2. “To insure a perfect development of tubers a certain
amount of nutrition must be assimilated in the leaves and
returned to the base of the plant, through the stalk.

3. “ As soon as the process of nutrition is completed, it
becomes manifest by a state of desiccation or dryness, al-
ways commencing at a point directly above either the first
or second joint of the stem near the crown of the tubers.
From this point the desiccation gradually progresses up-
ward, and the last portion of the stalk yielding its fresh-
ness is that adjoining the head. Coincident with the be-
ginning of this process, is the full development of the seeds,
and with its progress they mature. Its earliest appearance
is evidence that both the tubers and seeds have received
their requisite supplies of nutrition, and that neither the
stalk nor the leaves are longer necessary to aid them in
completing their maturity. A similar process occurs in the
onion just above the bulb, indicating a maturity of that
organ.

4. “If the stalk be cut from the tubers before this evi-
dence of maturity appears, the necessary supplies of nutri-
tion will be arrested, their proper growth will cease, and an
effort will be made to repair the injury by sending out small
lateral tubers, from which weak, unhealthy stalks will pro-
ceed at the expense of the original tubers. All will ulti-

(106 )

mately perish, either by the drought of autumn or the cold
of winter.

5. “The tubers, together with one or two of the lower
joints of the stalk, remain fresh and green during the win-
ter, if left to take their natural course; but if, by any means,
this green portion be severed, at any season of the year, the
result is the death of the plant.”

From these five propositions the following conclusions
are drawn :

1. “The timothy grass cannot, under any circumstances,
be adapted for pasture, as the close nipping of horses and
sheep is fatal to the tubers, which are also extensively de-
stroyed by swine, if allowed to run in the pasture.

2. “That the proper time for mowing timothy is at any
time after the process of desiccatiun has commenced on the
stalk, as noted in the third proposition. It is not very es-
sential whether it is performed a week earlier or later, pro-
vided it be postponed till that evidence of maturity has be-
come manifested.

3. “All attempts at close shaving the sward should be
avoided while using the scythe, and in gauging the mowing
machines care should be taken to run them so high that

they will not cut the timothy below the second joint above
the tuber.”

CUTTING.

Perhaps no invention of agricultural machinery—and
their name is legion—has afforded more positive benefit to
the farmer than the introduction of the mowing machine.
Before its invention no farmer could, with certainty and suc-
cess, secure a large amount of hay. It ripens in the hottest
of the weather, and at a time when the labor of the coun-
try is, as a general thing, all actively employed; so if a man
did get enough, it was at an exorbitant price, fearfully re-
ducing his profits. Then the grass, if of one crop, all needs

(107)

~

cutting at once, so it would be impracticable to save it all
in prime condition.

Another improvement is the horse rake. The first one
used was the horizontal rake, that running under the swath
heaped it up until the teeth were full, when by a slight lift
of the handles it turned over, leaving the hay in windrows.
This it did very well, and still does well, but another has
come into very general use that is a little more extensive,
but gives the driver a seat on it, and certainly gathers up
the grass cleaner than the other.

The Tedder is another machine that is used extensively
in the Northern States, where the weather is more uncertain
than here, and the hay dries much slower than beneath the
Southern sun. It is seldom used in Tennessee, and is but
seldom necessary.

CURING.

This is a point upon which there is as much difference of
opinion, perhaps, as on any other point connected with har-
vesting. Some prefer to let it get dry on the ground, just
as it is left by the mower, while others cure it in the wind-
row, and still others cure it in the cock. This refers to the
true grasses, for almost every one who makes hay of the
clovers pursues one plan, which will be spoken of directly.
This difference in the plans of curing results chiefly from
the great difference there is in the curing quality of the va-
rious grasses. Timothy cures much easier and quicker than
Herd’s grass, while the coarser grasses, such as Gama, Egyp-
tian and others, require still longer time than Herd’s grass.
Formerly, it was the universal custom to allow it to lie until
it was almost dry before raking, but that custom is fast giv-
ing place to a more rapid method. Now, with many of our
best farmers, it is deemed sufficient to allow it to remain on
the ground after cutting a time only long enough for it to
become wilted, and then with a rake it is put into windrows.
Hands follow immediately with hand rakes, or pitchforks,

( 108 )

and throw it up into cocks. Some do not even cock it, but,
if the weather is favorable, allow it to remain in the wind-
row for a day, or the second evening after cutting, and then
gather it up in wagons and carry to the rick or barn. But
probably the surest plan is to put it into cocks the evening
after it is cut in the morning, and allow it to remain in this
state for two or three days, according as the promise of good
weather may be, then throw open the cocks and spread the
hay before hauling up. It can be easily determined at this
stage whether or not it is sufficiently cured. If, when ex-
amined, the cocks have become heated, by opening them
out the heat that has been generated will readily become
dissipated, and there is not much likelihood of its becoming
again heated. One fact is well ascertained, and that is, the
sooner it goes into the rick or barn after cutting, without
spoiling, the better will be the hay, and the more will it be
relished by stock.

Some farmers adopt the plan of arresting its disposition
to heat by sprinkling salt upon it as it is stored. This is a
good plan, and increases the fondness of stock for it if too
much is pot applied. One hand should apply the salt as it
is thrown in, at the rate of about two quarts to the two-
horse wagon load.

Should the farmer not wish to sell his hay, and is scarce
of a supply, he can increase the quantity of provender by
mixing, as it is put into the heap, a third or even a half of
straw, or inferior hay, that has been left over, and in the
curing process which takes place the juices of the new hay
will penetrate and sweeten the straw, greatly improving its
character, without deteriorating its own quality.

A most excellent farmer says he waits until the dew is off,
then starts his mower, and in the evening about four o’clock
starts the rake, and has hands following with forks, and by
the time the dew is falling has it all in cocks. The next
morning, after the dews dry up, he opens and throws out

(109 )

the cocks, and immediately after dinner begins to haul to
the barn.

When it is intended to let it remain in the cocks for sev-
eral days, great care should be exercised in properly form-
ing the hay into cocks in view of wet weather. Cocks in-
differently made would be, if possible, worse than if spread
out, for the water would penetrate them all through, and
the hay would in a short time mould or rot. In the first
place, they should be made large, not less than one hundred
pounds in each at any time. Then make them as sharp at
the top as possible, so as to be stout and secure against
winds. Make the sides nearly perpendicular, and lastly,
comb them down well from top to bottom with a pitchfork,
so as to throw as many stems as possible parallel with one
another, thatching it well in order the better to shed the
water. But even with the most careful management all the
outer layer and some of the interior will be destroyed by
long continued rains.

Cut clover when the dew is off, let it wilt, and rake it
into windrows. Allow it to remain in this state until the
dew is off the next morning, and begin at once to haul and
place in the barn, sprinkling salt in smal] quantities over
every layer. In this way the entire crop will be exposed
only about twenty-four hours, which is amply sufficient for
it. It will heat and go through a heavy sweat, but this will
not injure it, and it will look as fresh and almost as green
when cured as when standing. The salt is essential to its
proper preservation.

Should the farmer have a quantity of good clean wheat,
oat, or vye straw, it is a very good practice, and a safe one,
to throw a layer of it between each load of clover. It will
permit the passage of the air, and the aroma of the clover
will penetrate the straw, each in this manner benefitting the
other, so that both will be eaten with a relish by cattle.

(110 )
TROUBLESOME PLANTS TO MEADOWS.

There are several plants exceedingly troublesome to the
meadows in Tennessee. Among them isthe white top (Zri-
geron Philadephicum) or fleabane. This is a perennial, and
sometimes infests meadows to such an extent as to render
them worthless. Meadows troubled with them should be
mown several years in succession when the white top begins
to blossom. Broom grass (Andropogon scoparius) is also
very pestiferous, destroying meadows after four or five years
unless closely watched, and the broom grass cut up by the
roots every spring. The trumpet creeper (Bignonia radi-
cans) infests meadows in rich bottom lands, and when cut
off by the mower forms hard knots, which will arrest the
action of the sickle. This vine should be dug up “root and
branch.” White clover and blue grass are both great ene-
mies to the meadow, and when they prevail to any extent it
is best to use the meadow as a pasture, and sow another
meadow somewhere else.

A top dressing of superphosphate or of stable manure
every fall, after a crop of hay is taken off, will also do much
to keep down noxious weeds and grasses. The farmer should
always bear in mind that meadows require to be regularly
fed. It is too much to expect that they will grow heavy
crops of hay year after year without exhausting the ele-
ments in the soil which go to make hay. These elements
must be supplied. Restitution must be made if the farmer
expects to have luxuriant and profitable meadows. The
best rule to adopt is, never to take off a crop of hay with-
out making a liberal application of manure.

A WORD ABOUT MANURES.

The people of the South have much to learn in regard to
the successful management of meadow lands. Many farm-
ers seem to think it possible to take large crops of hay from
the same land year after year without adding any fertilizers.

(111)

This is a grand mistake. One had just as well expect to
check on his bank account day after day without making
additions to his deposits, as to check on the soil for large
crops without properly feeding the land which grows them.

The question we ought to consider is, how to manage
meadows after they-are properly s.wn and a stand of grass
secured, so as not only to keep up their fertility, but to in-
crease their power of production.

This question is so well understood by English farmers
that they seldom take a crop of hay from a piece of land
without making a large and expensive application of ma-
nure. If the hay is cut several times a year it is a heavy
draft upon the soil, and some restitution must be made to
the soil or it will soon cease to meet the expectations of the
husbandman. The English farmer, enlightened by experi-
ence, in order to strengthen the land and stimulate the grass
roots to renewed exertion, will draw out upon the meadow
various kinds of manure to supply whatever wants he may
deem the land requires.

There are not many kinds of manure in reach of a Ten-
nessee farmer, unless he takes the forethought to provide
them. But if he does take this in mind, and watches closely
for everything that will contribute to this end, he will be
surprised himself at the result in a very short time. Be-
sides those elements that are at the command of every care-
ful farmer, there is another class of manures called “ artifi-
cial,” and these can be procured at any place by a sufficient
outlay. But they are costly, and it requires a scientific ac-
quaintance with their properties before the ordinary farmer
will have the courage to invest in them. In other words,
he must be able to see why and how his money will be re-
turned with interest.

Tn order to properly understand the requirements of plants,
it ig essential the action of the different manures should be
known, together with an approximate knowledge of the con-
stituents of the soil. Soils are the result of the degrada-

(112')

tion, or breaking down, from various causes, of rocks.
Through the great convulsions of nature this triturated dust
is mingled together, so that every species of rock formation
is represented in every handful of clay. Were this not the
case, we would have over limestone rocks a great “mass of
unproductive pulverized carbonate of lime; or over granite,
we would see nothing but the sparkling atoms of quartz and
mica, and over each stratum there would be the constituents
of that rock, and hence no vegetation would charm the eye
or delight the heart, to say nothing of our digestive wants.
Through the agency of perfectly natural causes (water prin-
cipally), the soils have been intimately mingled. By this
wise provision vegetation in every spot in the world finds
some elements necessary to its existence. But it sometimes
happens that there is a deficiency of some of the elements,
and again that there is asurplus. In the great alluvial
swamps decayed vegetable matters exist to such an extent
that some cereals do not thrive well, and on the other hand,
on the steep mountain sides, by the action of washing rains,
this matter has been carried off. Again, in many sections,
the fertile matters have been exhausted, or so nearly so, that
the products of the soil cease to be remunerative. It is the
province of scientific agriculture to point out these deficien-
cies and direct the remedy.

The soil originally consisted simply of the debris of the —
rocks or clay. It is composed of the elements of the rocks,
together with an intimate admixture of some mineral sub-
stances. In limited patches the soil partakes of the charac-
ter of the formations underneath. Thus, in iron districts,
the soil in places shows the presence, in considerable quan-
tities, of iron, making the earth red or brown. In sand-
stone countries the clay has a quantity of sand overlying it,
and among the primitive rocks scales of mica glisten on
every side. The weight of a cubic foot of thoroughly dried
soil averages as follows:

Pounds.
Siliceous sand......
Calcarcdtis sand sssccsssecsccsvesasvoss cossotes sessed avseresveae
Sandy Clays ccscinssstccsstsasadaas Geseioearnacenotveuensccseade ee
TORMV CLAY: cnc cestecsteivescnicrvnns ssueeslaccssessvctivacessaueestyseusv
MOUEE Clay eosin sss. suscieccs cov asvarsdeusche dass ap scuseisescodeeassadeasieenies

Blaty: marl vies s ssa oceans sunsesiss ensedaantiiessaseeleascatousmicsaesrvesopwne
Fertile: mol dicsccascncasnessiawesnas vonaysravernctenes sencavapeerscatetness
Common arable soil..... 1.1... cc. ccecee cee cee eee ene sen ene cen sne see nee eee

Chemists, from the earliest times, have been struck with
the great proportion of insoluble to soluble substances in
the soil. These insoluble substances will resist the action
of acid and alkali in any quantities short of destroying
vegetation. Analysts have striven by the aid of weak
solutions of acids and alkalies to effect this, and though the
science is by no means perfect, they have succeeded in ren-
dering much inert matter, that has hitherto cumbered the
land, into plant food. In an average of many kinds of soil
the proportions are, of

irocluble wa lieris duis inguinal 89.305 *
Soluble matters.........cs00 cesses seeeee sotisebatvsideacs seluvaua eden: eves 2.047
Phosphate, carbon, and sulphate lime....... ccs sseece esseeeee 3.160

Thus it is seen that of the great mass of soil, ranging
from a few inches to many hundred feet thick, only a very
small per cent. is available to vegetation. Further, chemical
analysis has also developed the fact that all animal tissues
are composed of these identical elements of the soil. Truly
and literally we are made of dust. But the animal king-
dom doves not derive its sustenance directly from the soil—
that would be impossible. Our digestive organs are not
constructed for,that purpose, and could not assimilate such
food, though in the great famine of Germany, in the 18th
century, the starving millions did essay it only to die in tor-
ture. Nature has provided an intermediate agent, vegeta-
tion, whose organs are nicely adapted to this purpose. They
send down into the soil their sensitive feelers, and pick up
such stray bits of food as men or beasts require. They

store it away in their granaries until it is called for, and:
8

+

(114)

these kind friends are thus the purveyors to animal life.
Not only is man thus directly fed by these natural agents,
but, to keep up a constant unceasing supply, a large propor-
tion is sent back to the soil in a form to invigorate man’s
food. This refunded capital is variously called humin,
ulmin, geine. Ulmin, or ulmie acid, is the first formed;
humin is formed from ulmin by the absorption of oxygen ;
geine, or geic acid, from humin by the further absorption of
oxygen.

We will describe all these changes, however, under the
general term of geine. Under some form geine is essential
to agriculture. It is the result of decaying vegetable
matter, or, in other words, it is the active principle of mould,
and is the direct result of putrefaction. It is carbon, oxy-
gen, and hydrogen. It has a powerful affinity for nitrogen,
one of the constituents of the atmosphere, and whenever it
comes in contact, the hydrogen of the geine unites with the
nitfogen of the air, and ammonia is the result. It also ab-
sorbs water freely, and this is why bottom lands, full of
geine, fail to suffer from drought. The geine attracts
moisture from the air, and keeps the plant alive. These
salts, humin,.ulmin, and geine, were formerly called extract
of mould. They are, for the most part, soluble in water.
For the sake of brevity, we will embrace all these salts, as
well as crenic and apocrenic acids, convertible with the
salts, under the general term mould. So far as nourishment
is derived from the soil, this substance is the food of plants.
It has been deposited over the clay by the general decay of
vegetation, through many ages, and according to the amount
deposited depends the value of the land.

Why it is that plants live and grow, or how they grow is"
a mystery no philosopher has ever been able to explain.
God gives the vital principle, and so long as that continues
the plant is able to resist an opposing power, which is
chemistry. When life ceases, chemistry then asserts its
power, and decay begins, which leads to fermentation, and

2

(115 )

after this process is ended, putrefaction takes charge, which
soon resolves the body into its original elements; and they
are then ready to aid in the construction of another living
body. Thus nothing is ever lost. It may change its loca
tion ; the plant that grew at the head of a mountain torrent
may ultimately enter into the composition of a sugar cane
in the delta of the Mississippi, but it is still in the universe,
‘silently performing its duties. .

Many things contain salts available to the agriculturist.
Lime, ashes, plaster of Paris (sulphate of lime), saltpetre,
‘common salt, phosphate of lime, bone dust, coal ashes, hair,
hoofs, horns, copperas, and many others. Some of these
substances have to be used sparingly, such as salt or cop-
peras, but all are beneficial to growing plants.

These substances act chemically, and free a great many
inert matters. Growing plants absorb vast quantities of
carbonic acid through their leaves, and carrying it down,
throw it into the soil, where it acts upon silica and allumina,
freeing salts for their growth.

Wood and coal ashes are very rich in the salts, and furnish
one of the cheapest and best additions that can be made to
land. Coal ashes are not so rich in the various salts, but.
contain enough to merit a better fate than is generally
awarded them.

The composition of wood ashes is a follows:

Two hundred parts of wood ashes contain

Car bonii@iaed seies ives secdecese coewe eves csnssecaceascessecescessinecesssee
Sulphuric acid.......

Phosphoric acid

Muriatic acid. ........4 secsssees sssccsene seeececes caccecescceseones coseeeeee
Tot Osc ss cess vonse av cesethe avacsd aasedsesanasseededevicvodsssecsciaossos ree
Magnesia ...sseseececces corse enesee erence encase cosees cuseee ensues seeennees
Potash and 80da......secce cecnseaee ceececnes seeses everes seaees cuseesaas 67.96
SO eas da cecteecev tee sacleas eects seleeueisecdseeeetssseccnee sesveasenareessves 5.22
ORIdOCIONS. cs,5 sccstecwsrssievessaccevsesensspeeesesmineetsacen saests cove . 00
Oxide Manganese....cccceeccssssees cresseees conseseee vecernser eneeeeee . 1.10
Water scccssiesccensessocoosindes casts teoven seston vectos baci sess eecees sesssseee LE

200.00

(116 )

_Of this 27.14 parts are soluble at once in water, and
leached ashes are deprived of it, and the balance, 172.86:
parts, are insoluble, but act slowly on the soil, freeing
various substances in the process of time. Coal ashes con-
tain these same ingredients in a much less degree, or if soil
is entirely deprived of its vegetable mould, it is identicak
almost with coal ashes. Each hundred pounds contain eight
that are at once valuable to the farmer, and another portion
has a prospective value. Coal ashes are worth a good deal
simply as a mechanical loosener of the soil. Mixed with it,
in even small proportions, it renders the soil friable and
easily worked.

Having now explained that there is a principle called
mould or geine, and that this principle is necessary to fer-
tility, and, also, that this principle, to be in an available-
form, must be reacted on by salts, it remains to inquire the
best form in which these elements are united. Practically,
every farmer in the country will at once answer stable
manure. And, as is generally the case, practice has long
found out what science seeks a reason for. A careful
analysis of cow manure, which is generally accepted as the
unit of value, shows that cow dung consists, not to go into
an ultimate analysis, of

Per cent.
W ater’ vesvex svassniadenedscidaesestcaxteneds icasendeaavi acaecetesbaeseetens 83.60
Saltes sscscccsccevesvaciicarewebex coevvoaseveia eres edecaiivnesteneeeseunsesse 0.95
GeGIRG ccerdces sec iseiwasissiowavecies deed accu saconituedadiasiveneauvencdasedecases 15.45

This seems to be a small proportion of valuable matter,
only one-sixth of the whole amount. But'let us see what a
careful farmer can do by saving for a year. In an experi-
ment, conducted carefully and published a few years ago,
an average cow was selected, and everything she ate or
drank was carefully weighed, as well as all the voidings of
dung. This experiment lasted seven days, and from a cal-
culation, this cow would have made in one year 4,800 pounds

(117 )

geine, 71 pounds bone dust, 37 pounds plaster, 37 pounds
lime, 25 pounds common salt, 15 pounds sulphate potash.
‘This, carefully saved, furnishes salts of lime equal to fout
and a half bushels of corn daily, or 1,6623 annually. Not
only is this amount saved, but in addition the nitrogen that
is in it, by chemical affinity, creates a large amount of am-
monia, that is fixed and amounts in a year to 677 pounds.
‘To the nitrogen is due much of the excellence of this stim-
ulant, and without the animal matter, or nitrogen, it would
be nothing more than decayed wood and salts. It is a com-
mon idea that the activity of stable manure is due entirely
to the animal excrements. It is due rather to the happy
-combination of ammonia, geine, and salts, such as no chemist
‘can manufacture from the food of the cow. Were this pos«
‘sible, a pile of rotted hay and turnips would supply all
these united elements. But effort has demonstrated that it
‘cannot be done. Nor does the food of a cow affect, but
little, the elements of dung. A cow fed on rich nitrogenous
food, such as corn or oats, wil] give some more nitrogen in
the dung, and form more ammonia, but the salts and geine
will be but little changed.

Horse dung is much richer in manures than cow dung;
but horse dung very quickly ferments, and, by fermenta~
tion, it will lose one-third its value in one month. It is,
therefore, very necessary to remove, as often as possible, the
horse dung from the stable, and place it in the compost
heap with the cattle dung, or with alternate layers of soil,
and sprinkled with lime or plaster. These salts will catch
and fix the escaping ammonia, and prevent much loss.
After horse dung has fermented, if alone, it is of far less
value than cow dung, but before it ferments it is much more
valuable. When that process is completed fully, nine-tenths
of its value, according to our best writers, is lost. These
are statements based, not only on experience ‘and observa+
tion, but also on absolute chemical analyses. How much it
détands the farmer in hand then to observe a systematic sav-

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ing and storing of these treasures of agricultural wealtht
A compost heap, under a good shelter, is to the uninformed
a heap reeking with filth, repulsive to the eye and offensive
to the olfactories. But to the scientific farmer it is a bed of
power. In it are contained the yellow grain and the lus-
cious fruit; over it hovers the spirit of the rose and the.
lily, and sweet odors are stored in it, to. make the fragrant
piok and the delicious heliotrope. Let every consideration.
of economy and enterprise stimulate the- farmer, then, to.
save every waste of the farm. The Chinese are so sensible
of the importance of manure, in a country teeming with an
over population, where the soil is tasked to its utmost to
carry its population, they even save the parings of their-
finger and toe nails to add to its fertility. The farmer has
a wonderful bank to draw upon for this purpose. Cattle.
and horse dung and urine, the scrapings of the barn-yard
after every rain, straw, stalks, leaves of the forest, drifts on
the banks of streams, all contribute their share in the
general enrichment of the farm. And any one would be
surprised at the amount accumulated for the spring scattering,
if systematically carried on for one year. It requires but a
little time, too, if a regular time be given to it. Regularity
and system are the great watchwords of improvement.
Millions of dollars are annually wasted by burning straw
and stalks, which, if carried to the stables and barn yard,
would act as solvents, to catch this daily waste. If the
ashes, resulting from the burning straw, were as good
manure as the straw itself, then burning would not be waste-
fal. But a large amount of valuable matter goes into the
air as gases, besides much is blown away by the winds. A
Mr. Lawes, of England, determined this matter of burning
manure in an experiment that was both fair and positive.
He took 28 tons of yard manure, and divided it; 14 tons.
were reduced by fire, leaving 32 cwt. of ashes. He then
scattered the 14 tons of manure left on one acre of land,
and the 32 cwt. of ashes on another acre of land, and left

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another acre without any application. He cultivated them
all well and alike.

The manured acre made 22 bushels of wheat, the ashed
acre, made 16 bushels, and the unmanured acre made 16
bushels. This proves that the more nitrogen manure con-
tains in combination with the salts, the more value it has.

Night soil, or the excrement of human beings, is, next to
chicken manure, the richest and most stimulating of all
manures. Then comes that of fattening hogs and sheep,
horses and cows. But, as before stated, the disposition to
waste is so great, that the “cold” manures, as that of cows,
sheep, and hogs, are more available to the farmer than the
more active ones of man and horse. ”

Two much care cannot be exercised in preserving the ex-
crements of men and animals. Every pound of ammonia
that is lost or evaporates represents the amount required for
a bushel of corn; and every pound of the urine of a horse
or man will furnish sufficient ammonia for a pound of
wheat; and two and a half pounds of the urine of man will
furnish the phosphoric acid and more than half of the
potash required for a pound of wheat.

It then remains for us to make the application of these
remarks, and every right-thinking man will see at once the
importance of gathering up and saving. It is money in his
pocket. One man will burn a few bushels of soil, and set-
ting it near the privy, will throw, every day, a few hands-
ful on the pile of excrement, and in a few months he will
fill his barrels with the most valuable poudrette, that an-
other man will go to the city and pay a large price for.
One man will set a few barrels of ashes in a convenient
place, and cause the house-cleaner to empty the urine of the
night into them. In a few months he will have his ashes
thoroughly saturated with salts and organic matter the most
valuable.

In England, farmers do not consider it any hardship to
dig cisterns, in which to save all the liquid excrements of

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the cows and horses, and with a water cart, spread it over
their pastures and meadows.

Many object to the use of human excrement, on account
of its offensiveness. This can be easily prevented, and at
the same time by an agent that is a valuable addition to the
manure heap. The sulphate of iron (copperas), is a power-
ful deodorizer, and a few cents worth added to the night soil
deprive it of any offensive smell for a length of time suffi-
ciently long to remove it.

A great many bones are wasted on every farm that make
valuable manure, and are easily prepared for use. Leta
barrel be devoted to bones, and whenever a bone is thrown
into it, cover it up with unleached ashes. Let the barrel
stand in the weather, and in a few months the bones will be
so friable they may be easily broken and converted into an
unadulterated bone dust, better than can be bought in any
of the agricultural stores. Or, if he cannot wait this slow
process, they are easily burned and crushed.

In making soap, much fine phosphate of lime is thrown
out in the shape of half eaten bones, and in spent lye.
Soap suds are also a fine addition to the manure or compost
heap. In these are found, not only the alkalies of soda and
potash, but also much nitrogenous matter in the shape of
grease. All these assist in enriching our heap.

No farm yard is without the best guano. It is true, the
guano of the shops is from sea birds, whose food is fish, but
the guano of the chicken house is exceedingly valuable and
well worth saving. Mixing it with soil or ashes and sow-
ing over a garden plat, rather thinly, for it is very rich,
its effects are seen to the row. However, the dung of fowls
and especially of pigeons is best applied in the form of
solution. It is not so apt to burn up the plant in this
manner. One part of manure to ten parts of water will
make a fine wash for vines, or for fruit trees it is unex-
celled. Another addition to the heap is skins, carrion
either of animals or fowls, scales of fishes, hair, hoofs, and

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in fact every kind of animal substance that may come with-
in reach that is worthless. Instead ‘of dragging off dead
horses or cows, as an attraction for buzzards and dogs, cut
them up and let them add to the manure heap. In this
way a valuable addition will be made.

Among the richest of all manures, not excepting animal
matters even, is soot. It is not only rich in salts, but in
geine. It is said there are as much salts in 100 lbs. of soot,
as there are in one ton of cow dung. Nothing is better for
vegetables, than an application of water with soot dissolved
in it. Besides, bugs are not fond of it, and it drives them
away. Throw all the soot of the chimneys, by all means,
on the heap. :

Sheep dung is one of our finest manures, and what is
better, the animals do the spreading themselves. A worn-
out meadow or pasture if given to sheep, and they are kept
in it any length of time, will be restored to its pristine fer-
tility. It is said that 1000 sheep run on a piece of ground
one year will make the'soil capable of yielding grain enough,
over and above the capacity of the soil without the sheep
manure, to support 1035 sheep an entire year. Unless the
sheep are nightly folded, however, the manure cannot be
gathered. It it can be collected, put on the pile, by all
means.

We have now enumerated the principal sources whence a
farmer can draw his supplies without drawing upon his
pocket. Many kinds, under our system of farming, are
unavailable to the farmer. I mean the liquids. Without
floors to the stables and pig-pens, the urine, which is the
richest of manures, so far as salts are concerned, is wasted.
But he can save his own, and the excrements of one man,
properly saved for one year, will well manure’ one acre of
land. Why let these rivers of wealth flow away from the
farm? He prefers going to the shops and buying worse
than he can prepare on his farm.

There are many artificial manures forsale. Plasters from

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Kentucky and Virginia; phosphate of lime from South Car-
olina; bone dust from the large cities, and many other mix-
tures and compounds. But scarcely a farmer but what has
at his command a manure, rich in every respect and with
the addition of a cheap alkali, equal in chemical properties
to cow dung: I mean the scrapings of ponds, and the mud
of rivers and creeks. West Tennessee has an area containing
pure muck, the balance of the State has no such advantage ;
but next to muck, and nearly as valuable, is pond and river
mud. By the addition of two pounds of sal soda or potash,
such as is used for washing purposes, to 100 lbs. of muck,
the mass becomes, as near as possible, cow dung. So here
we have an almost inexhaustible supply of cow dung,
without its smell or offensiveness. The green sand beds
in West Tennessee also will supply fertilizers in unlimited
quantities.

Here then, the provident farmer has all that is requisite
to enrich his grounds before seeding to grass. It is need-
less to say that clover, as a preceding crop to land that is
about to enter the long and tedious travail of meadow, is
absolutely requisite. But after it is started, the farmer need
not think, for one moment, that grass adds to its fertility.
It does not, but on the other hand detracts just what the
farmer cuts off; and if he is a wise farmer, he will put it
back in a shape to increase his drafts on it.

When a meadow or pasture becomes packed, from too
much pasturage, it will be well enough to run a sub-soil
through it occasionally. This loosens the under sod, and
the narrow helve does not tear up the turf. Of course the
land has been, if required, well drained. In addition to
this, for the renovation of such lands, the application of ma-
nure is indispensable. It should be applied immediately
after a cutting, as it will stimulate the roots, made weak by
being deprived of their foliage, to renewed growth, and pre-
vent much of it from dying. Of course it must be done by
top dressing, and by far the most efficacious plan is to apply

(123 )

it in the liquid form. It may be done by diluting the ma-
nure with from five to ten parts of water, and using a cart,
such as is used for sprinkling streets. Another, and the
most common way, is to drive through the meadow with a
load of good compost; such as we have described, and with
two hands in the rear of the wagon with shovels, it can be
scattered broadcast as fast as the team will walk.

Pastures treated to a top-dressing after every cutting,
could, like the English pastures, instead of three acres to the
ox, feed three oxen to one acre, and the meadows would not
yield a scanty ton tothe acre, but we could continue to cut
until stopped by cold weather. An English tenant will pay
ten pounds ($50) rent per acre for meadows, and get always
two, frequently three, crops per year, yielding from three to
five tons per acre. We could do this also by following the
same system of farming, and that is, to run the manure
wagon constantly.

DHOURO CORN, DURRA OR DOURA, INDIAN MIL-
Li T—(Sorghum vulgare.)

_In the West Indies, it it is called guinea corn, in Arabia,
dhouro, in India, jovaree, and in China, nagara. In some
countries it is cultivated as a forage plant, the stems con-
taining a large proportion of saccharine matter, and when dry
affording a fine hay, though rough. The nutritive quality
of the seeds nearly equals that of wheat. From its resem-
blance to Indian corn, in the south of Europe, it is called
small maize. On rich land it grows from eight to twelve
feet high, and it produces more bushels of seed than any
other known cereal to the acre.

There are several varieties of this cereal, being sports from
the original. Chocolate corn, Tennessee rice, chicken corn,
are some of its synonyms. It is a native of Central Asia,

(124)

and is cultivated extensively in Asia, Africa, West Indies,
Brazil, and in the southern part of the United States. It
will grow to perfection from Pennsylvania to Florida. There
are two varieties usually cultivated, the “white” and the
“red,” both good, but the red produces a great many more
seeds—some say as many as four times the quantity of the
other. The red matures earlier, too; the white, being in
higher latitudes, is often caught by frosts. The latter, how-
ever, is preferable when intended for food. A. failure ‘of
this crop in Arabia and Africa, would be as great a calami-
ty as that of corn in the United States. The meal is white
and makes delicious breakfast cakes, and is said to be much
better than corn meal.

Its yield varies according to the soil on which it is sown.
On rich sandy loam or alluvial bottoms, it will make from
100 to 150 bushels per acre, but unlike the other cereals,
except buckwheat, it will grow well on soil however poor.
On rocky clayey land, that will scarcely sprout foxtail, I
have seen the most luxuriant crops. It will continue to
grow until frost, and after the first head matures it throws
out succors from other joints, and makes smaller heads.
This is expedited by going over it and culling out as fast. as
it ripens. Stock of all kinds are fond of it, and will
greedily eat it. It is almost equal to Indian corn for fatten-
ing food for hogs.

The ground is plowed as well as possible, and then
thrown into low ridges, or even better, no ridges atall ; the
seeds are then drilled three feet a part, with a seed drill.
If sown by hand, the rows are made with a bull-tongue
plow and covered with aharrow. A peck of seeds is enough
for an acre, unless they are weevil eaten, when more should
be used. They should be covered very lightly, not more
than an inch and a half deep. When they come up they
should be thinned out by chopping across the row, leaving
the plants eighteen inches apart, then one or two good
plowings are all the crop requires. There need be no fear

(125 )

of weeds or grass after it once starts out to grow, as its
enormous foliage, and thickly clustering suckers choke out
everything else on the ground. It grows very rapidly, and
will soon be ready for havesting. There are various ways
for doing this, according to the fancy of the farmer. Some
cut off the seed heads as they ripen, and turn stock on the
stalks, which will eat them up quite clean. Others will
cut the stalks just before frost, stacking them and feeding
them as hay through the winter ; and these stalks will keep
better than any otlfr of the pithy grasses, not scouring like
Indian corn or sugar cane. Still others wait until the
largest quantity of seeds is ripe, and then cut, and house
seeds, stalks and all together. Ifthe fodder is pulled it
makes excellent feed, in fact every part of the plant makes
good feed for some animals. Care should be exercise to
protect it from fowls, as they are so fond of the seeds that,
frequently, whole fields are stripped.

It is often planted in the missing places of corn, and it
does far better than a replant of corn, as one stalk will throw
out numerous suckers, making several large heads and ripen-
ing with the corn. Drought has but little effect in retard-
ing its growth. It retains its dark green color and luxuri-
ant foliage when other plants are shriveled up by the heat.

In the South it is sown thickly in drills, and cut for soil-
ing stock, and if not allowed to flower, it will bear cutting
until frost comes. Many sow it broadcast for hay. Pre-
pare the ground well and sow one bushel of seed to the acre,
harrowing it in. It makes an enormous yield of hay, but,
from the succulent character of the stalks, it is difficult to
cure, unless a good “spell” can be caught. However, if
the farmer has a drove of mules or steers to fatten, he can
cut a load or two at a time, throwing it into a rack, which
can be replenished as required, and the hay will remain
green on the ground until frost, so that there is no danger
of its being lost by becoming too ripe.

In Germany the seeds are deprived of the chaff and used

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as rice, and sells for the same price. In Asia and Africa it
is made into a meal and eaten either in gruel, cakes or bread,
It can be sown at any time from the first. of April (a light
frost not injuring it) until the first of July.

If fed on the ground the stalks will remain in the way of
the planter for a year at least, but if plowed under in the
fall like broom corn, they will rot by spring, and if lime is
sown on them before plowing under, it will greatly expe-
dite the process, and the soil will improve every year.

Taking into consideration the fact thaf it will yield more
seed, fodder and stalks on a greater variety of soils, with
less labor, in any kind of season, and return more litter to
the land than any other cereal, and being a good food for
man and beast, it may be justly considered one of the most
valuable of the cereals. And with these facts it is most sur
prising that it is raised to the small extent it is.

About twenty-five or thirty years ago it could be seen on
the plantation of almost every farmer in the State. It gave
very general satisfaction, and yet it went out as suddenly as
it came into popularity. This was due to the cry that it im-
poverished the land. This verdict was accepted without
question, and its culture abandoned; but it is manifest, from
subsequent experiments, that it detracts as little from the
fertility of the soil as any other cereal—much less than
some.

If the stalks are left and only the grain and fodder re-
moved, and the former fed on the field and plowed in as be-
fore stated, the soil will not be greatly injured. It will not
kill cattle like clover, and no care is necessary but to salt
and water them. One would be surprised how quickly cat-
tle will fatten on the bare stalks, and besides they will leave
the ground covered ankle deep with manured stalks.

With all these facts before us, and our own experience in
its cultivation, we most heartily commend its use to the citi-
zens of Tennessee. There is no character of soil, from the
rich alluvial bottoms of the Mississippi to the sterile moun-

(127)

tain lands of East Tennessee, but will make good crops of
dhouro corn, and we would like to see it on every farm. |

The following analysis of the green fodder and green
clover will show their comparative values:

Red clover in blossom :

Albuminoids.........
Carbohydrate........ eeteer ce
Crude fibre iscsssccaicuessasevestacarcecesaconsmnacan sad canis soscseeadovetece

It has more heating properties and more fat producing
principles than red clover, but is not so rich in flesh formers.

PEA—(Pisum Sativum.)

The pea is a native of Southern Europe, and its cultiva-
tion extends into every State. The varieties are very great,
and while some are cultivated extensively for table use,
other kinds are raised for stock,and for manurial purposes.
Our garden pea was cultivated by the Greeks and Romans.
Peas were found in the ancient Swiss lake dwellings. They
were introduced into England in the time of Henry VIII,
and is there stilla standard crop. They are sown or drilled
in, and are sometimes even sown with, oats, the two being
harvested and fed together. Sheep and hogs are very fond
of them, and especially are the vines prized as a sheep fod-

(128 )

der. Analysis shows that peas contain, ash, 2.5; albumin-
oids or fiesh formers, 22.4; carbohydrates or heaters, 52.3;
crude fibre, 9.2; fat, 2.5; water, 14.3. The composition
shows them to be very nutritious, and animals fatten rapidly
when fed with them liberally. ‘The pea haulm, when dry,
gives, by analysis, water, 14.3; ash, 4; albuminoids, 6.5;
carbohydrates, 35.2; crude fibre, 40; fat, 2. This shows
the haulm to -be three times as valuable for feeding purposes
as wheat straw, and a little more valuable as a feed than
barley straw mixed with clover, and one-third better than
common fodder.

The cow or field pea of the Southern States is more like
a bean than a pea, and is supposed to bea species of dolichos
belonging to the pulse family whose species is undetermined.
Be this as it may, its value as a farm crop has long been
known. The ease with which it is cultivated, and its great
value asa forage plant and as a fertilizer, have given it a
prominent place in Southern agriculture. It belongs to the
leguminous or pulse family, and is known as a pea, and for
that reason it will be treated of under that head.

The letter below, from the Hon. H. M. Polk, of Harde-
man county, is so thorough and’ exhaustive that nothing
more need be said on the subject, only remarking that no
soil in this State is so poor that it will not grow peas.

Bortvar, Harpeman County TEnn.,
July 2, 1878.
Commissioner J. B. Killebrew:

T will not stop to demonstrate what is manifest to all that
the South, from her sparse population, her wide-spread
plantations, her adaptation to and her predilection for the
cultivation of certain of our great Southern staples, is not
at this time and may never be in a condition to keep up her
arable lands by animal manures alone, and that her only
alternative is in green crops turned under for renovating -
and increasing the productive capacity of her soil.

(129 )

In estimating the relative manurial values of green crops
to bring up the productive eapacity of our soil=, we meas-
ure by the amount of crop produced in the shortest time,
the elements upon which these crops feed, their capacity for
returning plant food to the earth, and especially by their
leaving more or less of those elements in the soil which are
necessary to the production of the succeeding crop. Nor
do we omit to estimate their several capscities for sending
their roots deeply into the soil, thereby bringing up and de-
positing near the surface the aliment for plants which would
otherwise remain below the reach of the roots of many of
our most valuable cereals. For the accomplishment of these
purposes no vegetable equals the Southern field pea and red
clover. In them we find the answer to that momentous
question, how and through what means can we, in the short-
est space of time, bring our lands up to their highest pro-
ductive capacities to meet our own and the varied wants of
society. When we reflect that all progress, civilization, re-
finement, culture, prosperity and happiness of society hang
suspended upon the scale which measures out the feeding
capacity of the earth, we begin to appreciate those vegetable
productions promotive of this desired end. The -trefoils
and legumes then begin to loom up in their grand possibili-
ties; and the clover and the field pea assume an importance
not dreamed of before. Without them, on the one hand we
must descend to meager harvests, perishing stock, fast ap-
proaching sterility, hard times and general discontert. On
the other, by their powerful aid we ascend up to plentiful
harvests, fat stock, with the multiplied advantages resulting
there!rom, good living, money in the purse, prosperity and
contentment. Can the pea and clover accomplish all this?
Worked in proper rotation with other crops they most as-
suredly can. In the heathen,-but appreciative past, when
gratitude was manifested by the erection of temples, and by
solemn worship to those deities from whom temporal bless-
ings were thought to flow, the pea and clover of the pres-

9

( 130)

ent day have been entwined with the wheat and fruit; crown-
ing the brow of beneficent Ceres./: Now, these mainsprings
of successful agriculture in our favored':land are ‘but’ half
appreciated, and are-thrust aside by the impatient ‘tiller of
the.soil for some other crop supposed to bring in more ims
mediate money profits, but-which, in its continued drafts
upon the fertility of the soil, must end in the a ag
well as the ruin of its possessor: - pe oh
- Ina previvuus letter to you I'stated some of the advantages
which the field pea possessed: even over ‘its ae fellow‘ lag
borer, red clover, as a fertilizer. < tomo
1. The pea will thrive upon Jand too poor to grow clover.’
| 2. That it will produce’ a heavy and rich. crop'to be ret
inened to the soil in a shorter pene Shan any vegetable
fertilizer known. é heap
3. That two crops can - produced on the'same groun®
in one year; whereas it requires two years for clover to give’
a hay crop and good aftermath for turning under. In this’
time four crops of peas can be made. une i
4. That the pea feeds but lightly upon;'and’ Hence leaves’
largely in the soil, those particular elements necessary to #
succeeding grain crop, and the pea lay, in its decay, : puts
back largely into the soil those very elements required for'
a vigorous growth of the cereals. J
5. There is no crop which is its ‘equal for leaving the ae
in the very best condition for a succeeding wheat ' crop. 9"
6. It is the only crop raised in the South so rapid in its!
growth and perfection as to be made an intervening manu!
rial crop between grain cut in the spring and grain sowed!
in the fall upon the same ground. And ‘this atone makes’
the pea invaluable to Suuthern agriculture. ° . ‘i
7. In our particular latitude it flourishes: gta wit
clover, and with two such renovators of the soil (aside from
their value as food crops), no portion of the earth is equally’
blessed. North of ‘us’ the: pea does ‘not’ aumeeed South, the
clover fails ;

(4811)

hotachts adaptability to. other cropspproducing;.in ithe space
between our corn rows both a proyisign and.a fertilizing
‘erop,. with positive benefit.to the growing-corn., 95); 2:94
3-9. The aid it gives,in producing) cheap-beef, pork, milk
and. butter... W.ithout.the-pea ‘pork could. not ;be,produced,
cheaply where it costs sojmuch toimake corm. yors)i) esto0ve
i .10.;A doubled eapagity for wintering, stock,,and with thiay
a doubly enlarged manure heapoiiy .voriwit digsot rieve ai
gl. The large. pkintations of. the South can, only be rer
stored, by.igreen crops turned. under, united. to, a judicious
system of.rotation looking to (feeding the soil... This. must.
be aided by all the manure manufactured on the plantationd
h 12.:The large addition made,ito humus, ‘upon which /the
talth, as well. as capacity of the soil. for retaining jmoisturej
so greatly. depends. ro dons snott tomb vileupo worst
3/AS| for the: cultivation ofthe pea,. one’ ican,;seancely! ga
amiss. y/ When:two crops.are intended for renovating, breaki
the: land, sow -broadcast,.and harrow in ; or drill in: rows
three feet apart, and plow. out when'a.few inches high.t
When: the pods begin to ripen, if the crop.isiinterided for
mdnurial purposes, plow. under with;:large. two horse! plow,
with a well.sharpened rolling coulter attached, or with chain;
passing from double. tree to beam.of the plow to hold the
vines dawn. for facilitating ¢overing.’ A roller passed over
the vines before plowing under will assist the)-opdrationg
Caustic; lime should be sown upon the; vines before plowing
under to promote decay, and neutralize the large amount-ofi
vegetable acid covered. into the soil. Sgleet the pea which:
runs least. >i Lhe vines are-easiest:; covered ,intoithe soil.
They: dre the black buneh pea, and the:speckle or whippoor+!
will peas ciclimone: ©} ) teq 8 te pit eaitey i zlao dust
’ When platited in-corn asa food. crop,the bunch, pea ripensi
sgonest ; ‘but the Carolina: cow pea, thei clay pea, or the: biack)
stock pea are preferable, as they do not readily. rot. from:
wet. weather, and. will .remaif. sound: most of ‘the winter.
For early feeding of ‘stock, plant whippoorwill pea iby iteelé

( 132 ):

in separate enclosure from corn, where stock can be turned
upon whenever desired.

Peas are often sowed upon the stubble after small grain ig
harvested. Flush up the ground, and sow either broadcast.
or drill in furrow opened with shovel plow, covering with
scooter furrow on each side. Block off or run over lightly
with harrow and board attached. Again, they are drilled.
in every fourth furrow, when turning over the stubble, the
succeeding furrow covering the peas. When either of these
last modes of planting is adopted, the peas sheuld receive
one good plowing out when they are from four to six inches:
high. 3

When planted in corn (the corn should have been drilled
in rows five feet apart), they should be step-dropped ina
furrow equally distant from each corn row, and covered
with scooter, with harrow or with block. This should be
last of May or in the first ten days of June. The only work:
they receive: when planted in corn, is a shovel or sweep:
furrow run around them when the corn is being “ laid by,”
unless there is much grass, when it becomes necessary to
give them a light hoeing. The crop might be said to be
made almost without work when planted with corn; in fact
it-is often so made by those planters who sow peas broad-
cast in their corn, and cover them with the last plowing
given the corn.

There ix much diversity of opinion as to the proper treat-
ment of the vines in curing them for winter hay. And as
much has been written upon the subject, the writer feels
some diffidence in giving his own views. Suffice it to say,
the great end to be attained is to cure the vines to the ex-
tent only of getting rid of a part of the succulent moisture
in the vine, without burning up the leaves. When exposed
to too much heat, the leaves fall very readily from the stems,
and are lost. :

When put up too green and too compactly, they heat, and
when fermentation of the juices in the vines and unripe

(133)

pods occurs, the hay is seriously damaged,.if not completely
spoiled. Mildewed hay of any kind is but poor food for
stock, and when eaten is only taken from necessity to ward
off starvation. Some planters house their pea hay in open
sheds, or loosely in barns, with rails so fixed as to prevent
‘compacting. Others stack in the open air around poles,
having limbs from two to four feet long, to keep the mass
‘of vines open to the air, and cover the top with grass.

There is diversity of opinion as to the proper manner of
curing and preserving this hay, but there is none as to: the
‘value of this rich food for all stock, and especially for the
milch cow in increasing the quantity and quality of her
amilk.

In attempting to renovate our soils by the aid of vegeta-
ble fertilizers, we should not confine ourselves to one, but
should utilize all which are suitable to our soil and climate.
‘The writer bas some sixty or seventy acres in clover, and
in much of this grassesare sown. Orchard grass and Herd’s
grass thrive well with us, whilst blue grass and timothy
find a congenial home in the lime lands of. Middle Tennes-
see. In no part of the State does clover grow so well as in
West Tennessee.

In considering the great advantages of the field pea to
the agricultural interests of our people, I do not wish to be
understood as disparaging other vegetable renovators of the
suil. ‘The field pea certainly possesses many advantages,
such as its adaptability to almost any soil, and to many
crops grown with it at the same time, and with positive
benefit to the crop grown with it on the same ground.
Each row of corn should be flanked by a row of peas.
Every spot of ground in the field too poor for corn can and
will produce peas. There is nothing better to be sowed in
old plowed up broomsedge fields, and there, whilst the land
is being fertilized, one of the best provision crops for stock,
and the best of hay for milk cows in winter, is produced.
And a:still further advantage possessed by this valuable

(484)

Wguineris its unéqhalsdedpadity for, andsits unapproachablp
meritas an dntervering crop, (being: both a rendvating ind
bifood crop), between biallegraimcor root erop!in the spritig
and a grain erop inithe fall.-: Do ‘you ask moreiof. any Ve-
getuble renovdtor? «It's more’ valuable than thet Eagligh
tutnip ferop; and: this;crop,! by those: enlightened and emi
aently:practi¢al’ farmersyis ‘estimated ammually ‘at: millionk.
of pounds sterlingyo! It isidoubfful if England could tidelit
‘over the next two ydars; ifdeprived ‘of her turnipicrop!T It
is{ the foundation of ‘her'stock‘and' manure’ production: fn.
contrasting the Southern‘field! péa with the English turnip.
‘erdép}‘we begin to perceive jits limmensetvalue to'southera
agriculture, and realize that too often, in reaching aftetlthe
socalled: money erops,'we have neglected the ibest fertilizers.
{as well as food crop), ever given to the-agrieultural:world,
.91In considering the present impoverished condition! of the-
lands of the South, we are forced to ‘confess it is the work
of itillage—of injudicidus, ruinous’ tillage. | Where" hug
bahdry: predominates over tillage, there is! but little Jeaking-
out! of the elements of fertility'in a-soil; ‘and there is nd-est
timating how long they will remain to supply: the food
necessary to a vigorous plant growth. The'grasses,‘includ-
ing: clover'and peas; are the grand elements for preserving
and iaigmenting these jelements in the soil. Hence‘we seb
all ‘countries: where husbandry: prevails’ grow rich in boil,
particularly it the tilled portion of the land is under a judi-
cious systém of rotation. : Now; tillage, or, the simple culti+
vation: of land, puts: nothing- of any value in it, but-is, of
itself, a necessary evil; evil because of exposing the soil td
2 scorching’sun, often reducing it! toa mass of lifeless clodé,
and ‘exposing’ it toan exhausting leaching process, “hich
talies/out its very life blood. »:( The: eledner and long continued
the culture, the more the injury:to:the land from the destrae
tion iefiits humus, and from the gréatest of. all desteuctives,
leaching; The injury: is: augmented as the land ‘is: rolling
and broken. fenhce-cotton and 'tobkeco (the first of :whi¢h

‘(135 )

4g| not. an, exhauster.of land) per se); have brought ruin to
the best acres of the South, whilst small: grain and: the
grasses ‘have .husbanded and jihcredased: the natural fertility
fii the lands of, our Northern neighbors.. Lands in which
these too great staples are grown should be level lands, and
in the case of tobacco should -receive, (outside ithe aid of
rotation), a generous manuring.» But if. I have given the
frue reason for the rapid: decline of the productive capacity
of the soil of the South.as-contrasted with that of the North-+
ern States, let me take you one step further and show you
¢hat.in the rich region of: country lying northwest of ‘the
Qhio river, we find a:very great difference in: the material
prosperity of, the farmers there. A portion of them are
prosperous, while others are experiencing all the evils re-
‘sulting from the. comprehensive term hard times. It is not
difficult to learn the cause.. The grain-maker, whose whole
energies have heen devoted. to-extracting the fertility. of his
soil, for many. consecutive years,in magnificent harvests,
finds his crops growing less and less each year, while the
gtock-raiser is prosperous, having grown rich while making
his land rich. ers” r TETIE) BOTY t nt ban oemdeecnite
-1, ime has here demonstrated a great truth which agricul-
‘turists should not ignore. Let our southern: farmers: profit
by its inevitable teaching. Let us determine to improve
our destructive farming ; give our Jands.a chance to grow
hetter | instead of depreciating’ yearly; build up the waste
places ; infuse new, life into our southern land, beautiful
still. in her decline, and endeared the more as we see her
slowly sinking under the drain mercilessly kept open by her
own children, in the, veins through.which her priceless life-
blood flows. ayd preted) Jashunds oF denods on arost
Since writing the above, I have accidentally found an old
‘document upon “ Southern Agricultural Exhaustion asid its
- Remedy,” from the able, pen. of the late Judge Ruffin, of
Virginia. ;; Although, this; article was not | written. specially
pon the;.merits of the ifield pea asa renovator. of worn

( 136 )

lands, yet it shows its great value to the agriculture of the
South so much more forcibly than anything I can say in
advocating its claims, that I take the liberty of quoting the
following paragraphs entire, and with them will close my
letter, already too long:

“ At the risk of uttering what may be degmed trite or
superfluous to many, I beg leave to state concisely the fun-
damental laws, as I conceive them to be, of supply and
exhaustion of fertilizing matters to soils and aliment to
plants.

“All vegetable growth is supported, for a small part, by
the alimentary principles in the soil, (or by what we under-
stand as its fertility), and partly, and for much the larger
portion, by matters supplied, either directly or indirectly,
from the atmosphere. More than nine-tenths, usually, of
the substance of every plant is composed of the same four
elements, three of which—oxygen, nitrogen and carbon—
compose the whole atmosphere ; the fourth—hydrogen—is
one of the constituent parts of water; and, also, as a part
of the dissolved water, hydrogen is always present in the
atmosphere, and in a great quantity. Thus, all these prin-
cipal elements of plants are superabundant, and always sur-.
rounding every growing plant; and from the atmosphere
(or through the water in the soil), very much the larger
portion of these joint supplies is furnished to plants; and
so it is of each particular element, except nitrogen, much
the smallest ingredient, and yet the richest and most impor-
tant of all organic manuring substances, and of all plants.
This, for the greater part, if not for all of its small share
in plants, it seems, is not generally derived, even partially,
from the air, though so abundant therein, but from the soil,
or irom organic manures given to the soil.

* But, though bountiful nature has offered these chief. .
alimentary principles and ingredients of vegetable growth
in as inexhaustible profusion as the atmosphere itself which
they compose, still, their availability and beneficial use for

(187 )

plants are limited in some measure to man’s labors and care
to secure their benefits. Thus, for illustration, suppose the
natural supplies of food for plants furnished by the atmos-
phere to be three-fourths of all received, and that one-fourth
only of the growth of any crop.is derived from the soil and
its fertility, still, a strict proportion between the amount of
supplies from these two different sources does not the less
exist. Imf the cultivator’s land at one time, from its natural
or acquired fertility, affords to the growing crop alimentary
principles of value to be designated as five, there will be
added thereto other alimentary parts, equal to fifteen in
value from the atmosphere. The crop will be made up of,
and will contain, the whole of twenty parts, of which five
only were derived from and served to reduce by so much,
the fertility of the soil. These proportions are stated merely
for illustration, and, of course, are inaccurate; but the the-
ory or priaciple is correct, and the law of fertilization and
exhaustion thence deduced is as certainly sound. Then,
upon these premises, there is taken from the land, for the
support of the crop, but one-fourth of the aliment derived
from all sources for that purpose. And, if no other causes
of destruction of fertility were in operation, one green or
manuring crop (wholly given to the land, and wholly used
as manure), would supply to the field as much alimentary
or fertilizing matter as would be drawn thence by three
other crops removed for consumption or sale. But in prac-
tice there are usually at work important agencies for de-
struction of fertility, besides the mere supply of aliment to
growing crops. Such agencies are the washing off of solu-
ble parts, and even the soil itself, by heavy rains; the has-
tening of the decomposition and waste of organic matter, by
frequent tillage processes and changes of exposure; and
ploughing or other’ working of land when too wet, either
from rain or want of drainage. Also, a cover of weeds left
to rot on the surface, or any crop ploughed under, green or
dry, as manure, is subject to more or less waste of its ali-

(488 )

mentary principles. jn the course of the ensuing; Heenmpasiy : 7
tion... Pherefore, it.is pearer the:facts that two years’, crops.
or culture, for market,or removal, would require oné year’s
growth of some manuring crop to replace, and to! maintain
undiminished, or, increasing the productive: power of, the fidldh.
‘Phe poorest, and also the cheapest, of..such manuring-crops.
will be ,the natural or “ volunteer.”, growth of. weeds,on
Jands left cultivated, and not grazed; and the best of ial
will pe, furnished, in the whole product of a broadcast sown
and entire crop of your own most. fertilizing and. valuable
field peas. , oy ep eantaamils ‘toile otetadd bebbes
ao Thus, of each manuring crop, (as of. all others), or of
the fertilizing matter thus cae to the land, the hasan
manuring, and the eee has apd fifteen ‘parts:
If, then, the cultivator, by still more increasing, his’ own
contributions, will give ten parts of alimentary matter to
the land and crop, there will be added thereto from the at,
mosphere in the same three:fuld proportion, or thirty parts,
and the whole new productive power will be equal to forty.
And if. the svil is fitted by its natural constitution, or the
artificial change. induced by calcareous or other applications,
to fix and retain this double supply of organic matter, the
land will not only be: made, but will remain of as mueh
increased fertility, under the subsequent: like course of re-
ceiving, one year’s product. for manure for every two other
crops. removed. But, on the other hand, if more exhausting
gulture had been allowed, instead _ of, either increased or
maintained production, or if. the crops. take away more or-
ganic, matter than nature’s three-fold contributions. ; will
replace, then a downward progress must begin, and. will
proceed, whether slowly or quickly, to extreme poverty of
the land, its profitless cultivation, and final. abandonment,
in this,, the more usual case, the cultivator’s contributions
of aliment (obtained from the soil), are reduced frum. the
former value, designated ,as five, first to four, and. next sndy

(i 439))

sassively to three, two,iand,, finally less than one; and na-
ture, keeps equal, pace in, reduging her, proportional, supplies
OM, filteen.. first to. twelve, iand so on to nine-and six, and
ssithan.three parts. , Sythe, strongest inducement is offered
dovenrigh, rather than. exhaust the soil;, for whatever amount
jof fertility the cultivator, shall, bestow, or whatever abstrac-
Signifram a previous rate of supply he shall make, either
the-gaim ox the loss, will be tripled in the account, of supplies
from, the atmosphere furnished or withheld by nature. fy; 4.
“Tn another and more. practical .point.of view, the Joss
incarred, by exhausting may. be,plainly.exbibited. Accord-
ang. toimy views, soils, supposed. to.be properly constituted
28.to, mineral. ingredients do not demand, for the maintain-
ang and ,increasing, of, their, rate of, production, more than
Sba.resting, or the, growth jof two years in every five, mainly
sto pe.left, on, the land as.manure.,,,; .;; euOnre OTOUL YTB
oi These are the proportions.of the five-field rotation, now
xtensively used on the ,most.,improving: parts of Virginia.
d.qne, of these two years, the field is,grazed,.so that, parts

pf its.growth of grass are consumed, instead of all remaining
oa, the field for ; manure, To meet the same, demands, the
more;Southern planter might, leave his field to be covered
/ its; growth of weeds (or natural grasses), one year, (and
#lso,to be.grazed), and a broadcast crop of pea vines to be
ploughed under in another, for every three crops of. grain
and jeotton, But the..ready answer, to this, (and,.I..have
heard it many times), is, “‘ What! lose two crops in every
fixe years? _I cannot afford to, lose even one.”.,., It may be
‘thatthe, planter is so. diligent and careful in collecting ma-
derials for prepared manure that. he can extend a thin and
poor application, and in the drills only, over nearly half. his
gotton fields and, perhaps, he, persuades, himself that. this
application will obyiate the necessity for rest and. manuring
srops: to, tbe land. yi edffeued ei oo oenoa te vi isl oa
“The result will not fulfill, his, expectation, But even if

oui!

it could, the manuring thus given directly by. the labor.of

(140)

the planter is more costly than if he would allow time and
‘opportunity for nature to help to manure for him; whether
alone, or still better if aided by preparing for and sowing
‘the native pea, to the production of which your climate is
so eminently favorable. All the accumulations of leaves
raked from the poor pine forest, with the slight additional
value which may be derived from the otherwise profitless
maintenance of poor cattle, will supply less of food to plants,
and at greater cost, than would be furnished by an unmixed
growth of peas, all left to serve as manure.

“The native or Southern pea, (as it ought to be called),
‘of such general and extensive culture in this and other
Southern States, is the most valuable for manuring crops,
and also offers peculiar and great advantages as a rotation
crop. The seeds (in common with other p:as and beans),
are more nutritious, as food for man and beast, than any of
the cereal grains. The other parts of the plant furnish the
best and most palatable provender for beasts. They may
be so well made in your climate, asa secondary growth
under corn, that it is never allowed to bea primary crop, or
to have entire possession of the land. It will grow well
broadcast, and either in ‘that way, or still better if tilled;
and is cf an admirable and cleansing growth. It is even
‘better than clover as a preparing and manuring crop for
wheat. In one or other of the various modes in which the
pea-crop may be produced, it may be made to suit well in a
rotation with any other crops. Though for a long time I
had believed in some of the great advantages of the pea-
crop, and had even commenced its cultivation as a manur-
ing crop, and on a large scale, it was not until I afterwards
saw the culture, growth, and uses in South Carolina, that I
learned to estimate its value properly, and perhaps more
fully than is done by any who, in this State, avail themselves
so largely of some of its benefits. Since, I have made this
crop a most important member of my rotation, its culture,
as a manuring crop has now become general in my neigh-

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borhood, and is rapidly extending to more distant places.,
If all the advantages offered by this crop were fully appre-
ciated and availed of, the possession of this plant in your
climate would be one of the greatest agricultural blessings.
of this and the more Southern States. For my individual
share of this benefit, stinted as it is by our colder climate,
I estimate it as adding, at least, one thousand bushels of
wheat annually to my crop.”
I can add nothing to what is said above.

I am, Colonel, very respectfully, yours, ete.
H. M. Pox.
Bolivar, Hardeman county, Tennessee.

CHINESE SUGAR CORN—(Sorghum nigrum.)

In 1854 some insignifi-
cant packages of seeds were
sent from the then patent
office, bearing this inscrip-
tion:

“SUGAR MILLET.
(Sorgho Sucre.)

(Good for fodder, green or dry,
and for making sugar.”)

Who could have foreseen,
from these few characters,
that a plant was then being
added to this country more
important than any since the
discovery of America and
the discovery, to Europeans,
of Indian corn?

Intae midst of the great
success of the New World
in agricultural products, the

(445 )

Old World sent’ this béo8 6 her offspings “ad a’ tdleen oF
good will. Wt owen qoty «uli vd berstto -oustenvbe edd Ie I

Within a: year’ or two ‘sugar “has ‘been ‘made from [ft OP
good quality, and during’ a recent ‘visit to the AgrichltataP
Départrhent at Washington; I saw' spécitnens of sugar imho
ufactured from a new variety’ as ‘excellent in flavor and dole
asthe best New Orleatis sugar: 'I-distributed ‘some ofthe
seeds of this new variety, and ‘Ti confidently: predict’ that
Tennessee will, in ten yéars;’ make sugar enough’ for Her
own corisumption at a cost less than five cents‘per pound.

Mod fob
“0-9 aysrorye anctobtsll sevilol

In the fall of 1853 Dr. Jay Browne was sent by the De-
partment of Agriculture to Europe t to gather seeds for di a
tribution from the « office. "He saw a small patch’ ‘of sorgin um
at Verrieres, 1 near Paris, and being struck with. its resem-
blance to corn thought it would be an:accession to-our forage
crops, and possibly might be’ used as*a sugar plant. f

Four years before, M. de Montigny had sent the’ seed
from the north of China to the- Geographical Suciety of
Paris, in a package of ihany different kinds of seeds. they
were planted, and but one single sorghum seed ‘ germinated.
The product of this plant was distributed, and the next year,
80 great was the demand, a ‘gardener’ of Packs sold his enting
crop to Vilmoriu, Audrieux & Co., of Paris, for a ‘rand a
seed. Through them it Was sent over the whole of Eur
and America, for it was on-their farm Mr. Browne’ aw
growing. «egy iunle 5 tadt re y
®'In 1850 Mr. Leonard Wray, of the East Indies, a practi-
cal sugar planter, on a vist:to Kaffir- land, found the imphee,
another speciés of sugareatle, growing around the hits of
the natives; which they cultivated for its chewing qualities.
On examination, he discovered its rich saccharine character,
and ‘was: batistied of its valhe. He therefore brought it, with
him to England and had it planted there, as well as in
France and Belgium. >i He memorialized the French min-

(143)
jster:of war, and also: Mr. Buébaitsin, Who! was: whintster in
England at that time.’ He afterwards' cultivated it in ‘thie
West Indies, Brazil, the Mauritius,’ Australia; Tutkey,
Eyept and in ‘this country, (i en!) ssl) soon! ji rane
dThe Kaffirs cultivated sixteen varieties that differed ‘in
thei.amount of saceharine ' principle, as well ‘as ‘inthe: tithe
required to matures!) In 1856 Mr. Wray exhibited | sugar,
molasses, alcohol, plants’ and seeds of the imphee at the
Paris Exposition, and not only obtained a silver medal, bat
a grant of twenty-five hundred acres of land in Algiers
was ‘made him by the French government, that’ he might
prosecute his researches.’! During this same year,’ Orange
Judd, of New York, distributed 25,000 packages of seed
to his subscribers, spreading them’ ‘throughout the countty,
In 1857;'Mr.; Wray brought to the United ' ‘States ‘the seeds
of several varieties of imphee.’’ So then, when Mr. Browne
obtained the seeds it was really in its’ fnitial athle ‘of cu: itivas
tion ine France. It had: been grown in China from ‘time
immemorial, but with: the ‘exclusiveness of that people,
its very existence had been jealously guarded from ‘the
world. 219dt0 pis OGR9 S} firs ay 0% BMOION &, a4

‘The same; or a similar(‘plant, had! been’ cultivated int
Europe at different periods during the dark ages, but the
want of intercourse, and’ the oppressive feudal system of
that lay had repressed any advancement in science and arts,
as well as in agriculture. ALTA AY

The elder Pliny, in the first century, describes a plant
under the name of millitum quod ¢: ex India in Ttalium, invectum, ,
nigro colors, (a millet of ‘dark color brought from ndia to
Italy).” Millium means thousands, and refers to the umber,
of seed on a plant. Fuchius describes, in ‘1512, a plant,
cultivated in Belgium called sorghi. In 1552 , Fragus says,
in a work on botany, a panicum, plinii.jwas cultivated in
Germany, and accurately describes this plant.. In 1591
Gosner names this same plant! sorghum.’ Tu rials? 4595,
in his commentaries on Dioscorides, Matthioli calls it indi-

(144 )

cum millium, or Indian millet. Gerard, an English writer,
in 1597, describes this and other varieties of sorghum as
dhouro corn, broom corn and chocolate corn.

Thus it is seen that this plant, however new to us, was
culivated in England, Belgium and Italy in the sixteenth
century, and that it was known to Pliny in the first century.
Its usues were described as so various that it is supposed all
the varieties of sorghum were confounded by these different
authors. It was recommended as fodder for stock, food for
poultry and hogs, and for a syrup; while the-Italians called
it melica from its resemblance to honey. It was described
as having seeds, various in color, from rufous to black, from
white to yellow and red, and they were said to make an excel-
lent bread. The ised had a pinkish tinge, being colored:
by the husks, which could not be entirely separated from
the seed. Through the caravans of the Syrian desert, sor-
ghum was carried from Asia to Africa, and there, under the
changes of climate, soil ard moisture, new varieties origi-
nated, and we have the imphee canes.

Linneus calls it holcus saccharatum, and the dhouro corn
he calls holeus sorghum. But Persoon, and others since,
have separated the two, and applied to the sugar cane the
general name serghum, and its specific name nigrum from
the color of its seeds. These plants are all called sorghum
in the East Indies.

VARIETIES.

There are many varieties of cane, and while the descrip-
tion at the head of the article will give the generic char-
acters, it will not the specific differences of the various

kinds. But it is not necessary to give the botanic descrip-
tion of each variety.

1st Race—Evsoreuum.

True Chinese Sugar Cane, (already described).

( 145 )
2d. Race—ImMPHEE..

1. Preecocia, (early Sorgo). 2. Ooui-se-a-na, (Otaheitan).
3. White Imphee, (Nee-a-ga-na.) 4. Black Imphee, (Nig-
errima). 5. Red Imphee, (Cerasina, cherry red) Shla-
goo va. 6, Liberia, (Liberian).

In Tennessee the nomenclature is shortened by all heing
ealled “ red”? or “black,” and “ Chinese” or “African.”

Sorghum, submitted to a pressure of ten tons, will yield
about 60 per cent. of juice, leaving 40 per cent. of woody
fibre, gum, juices, ete. Of this 60 per cent. about 10 per
cent. is sugar, both cane and grape,-or, if not reduced to
sugar, it will make about 25 per cent. of syrup, or 15 per
cent. of the expressed juice. |

However, in faet, this amount varies very much, accord-
ing to the soil on which it is raised. On-rich bottom land,
where the cane grows to be very tall and large, there is.
more water and Jess sugar in the juice, while on poor, sandy,.
dry land the proportion is much greater. In some speci-
mens of syrup, when boiled down thick and allowed to stand,
crystals of sugar will form all through it. These crystals.
are in the form of a modified rhombic prism. But in the
generality of specimens, from the presence of an acid, the
cane sugar is converted into glucose and no manipulation is.
sufficient to cause it to erystalize. A few years ago, at one
of the expositions held in the city of Nashville, a jar ot this
sugar was on exhibition, and there is a fair specimen now in
the cabinet of this Bureau, and, as before stated, some excel-
lent specimens at Washington. Should an early and cheap.
means be devised to secure rapid crystalization the result
will be to bring down the price of sugar. Molasses, which
sold at one dollar per gallon, was brought, by the introdue-
tion of sorghum syrup, down to twenty five and thirty cents.
There is so little difference between this grape and cane
sugar, that it is to be hoped some process may yet be in-
vented by which the syrup can be crystalized at will. The

10

(146)

constituents are the same, only having one equivalent more
of hydrogen and oxygen than carbon. It is undoubtedly
due to the presence of some acid, as cane sugar can be con-
verted into glucose by the addition of acids, or by passing a
stream of air through the boiling syrup. In this inventive
age the mind of man has only to be turned to this subject
and it will be done.

The Imphee cane, as a rule, produces more crystals in
the syrup than the Chinese, consequently the latter is more
universally cultivated, being better suited to making syrup.
Besides, the African or Imphee cane grows much taller and
is easily blown down by high winds, making a tangled
mass in the field very difficult to harvest.

CULTIVATION AND HARVESTING.

Sorghum will grow and thrive, like dhouro, on the poor-
est soils. When the earth is parched up by drought it
maintains its fresh, green color, and continues to grow.
However, it will thrive better on rich Jand, and, though the
juice may have more water, it will make far more syrup.
The roots of sorghum penetrate the soil farther than any
other cereal, and consequently deep plowing is absolutely
requisite for a full crop. Not only should the plow, but the
subsviler should also be applied. Ou good land it grows to
a height of fifteen or eighteen feet, on poor, badly prepared
land it stops at five or six feet. Because it will grow on
poorer land than other plants is no evidence that pvor land
is better for it. Therefore let the land be in good heat and
the increased quantity of syrup will well repay the-labor.
On gravelly or sandy subsoils, the roots will go four or five
feet deep, and on this kind of land, if rich, it will make far
more syrup and of a better quality.

It should be planted in drills three feet apart, and in four
or five days the young tender stalks will come up, looking
very much like grass. But it will soon begin to grow rap-
idly, and outstrip grass or weeds. When three or four

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inches high it should be chopped and thinned out, and but
little more work need be done to it. Two plowings are all
it should receive, as the roots penetrate the ground so
thickly the plant would receive more injury than benefit if
plowed after it is three or four feet high. Besides, by that
time the ground is so shaded by lateral branches and suckers
the weeds will effect no material injury.

Much difference of opinion existed at first, and still ex-
ists, as to the best time of cutting. Sume assert when the
-geeds are in the milky state, others whea they are fully ma-
tured, is the most favorable time. A slight degree of frost
does not injure it, and this opinion has caused the loss of
many a crop, for, with our usual procrastiuation, this belief
is allowed to influence many to let it stand until a severe
frost comes, when the cane is rendered worthless. When-
-ever it freezes, fermentation ensues, and it will not make
syrup at all, or if it dues it is black and has a disagreeable
odor. But repeated experiments have demonstrated the
fact that early cut cane makes the best and cleanest molasses.
Still if the farmer has a large crop, he will have an oppor-
tunity of testing it in all stages, for it will take a long time
to express the juice of a large crop and boil it down.

When the seeds are in the milky state, let the stripping
and boiling begin. It is not our purpose to go into a
lengthy detail of syrup making, it being rather our province
to treat of sorghum as a cattle food than otherwise, and we
will only give a general description. Besides, since the in-
vention of cane mills and evaporators, there is hardly a
man in the Slate who is not thoroughly conversant with the
process. One thing every one should bear in mind and that
is, do not be too particular to press every particle of juice
from the stalk. ‘The first pressure well applied will get,
generally speaking, all the saccharine principles, the second
pressure only sending out gums, cellulose and some color-
ing matters. The syrup would be clearer and sweeter i! the
outer rind of the stalk could be stripped off and only the

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pith submitted to pressure. Let the juice be strained in a
blanket, and boiled as rapidly as possible in a shallow pan,
This is all that is requisite. Some use the continuous,
some the interrupted pans. The former are becoming more
generally used, that is, pans that receive the raw juice at.
one side and discharge the molasses at the other. Some:
times it happens that the syrup when boiled to a sufficient
consistency does crystalize without any known cause. When
it is discovered to do so, the farmer might take advantage
of this accident and very easily make his own sugar. And
to test its capacity to form erystals a small quantity at va-
rious times of evaporating might be boiled to a point lower
and thicker than for syrup and set aside to stand two, three-
or four days. If erystals are thrown down in the vessel
there is then reason to believe more of it will do so. He
can, therefure, should he desire to make his own sugar, boil
it to the proper consistency, or until the steam comes up
through the syrup with a burst, and set it off in tubs to
granulate. Sometimes, however, this does not take place
for a few weeks, or even months. In order to expedite the
process, it should be kept in a close, warm room, heated up
to, at least, 90 degrees. This can be easily done by having
the tubs or barrels of syrup in a room made tight, and heat-
ed by a stove. With but little replenishing of wood the
stove may be kept hot continuously. When the granula-
tion has taken place fully let the whole mass, molasses and
all, be put into stout cloth bags and hung up to drain, Or
it can be put into conical tin moulds, shaped like a sugar
loaf, with an opening at the bottom covered by a wire sieve,
such as is used for straining milk. The bags, however, are
cheaper and equally as effective. Here let it remain for a
sufficient number of days, to allow all the molasses to pass.
off. It can then be taken down and mixed with a very
small quantity of water and redrained, and this application
of water can be repeated until the sugar becomes as white as.

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desired. The water can then be reduced by evaporation, to
the desired consistency of molasses.

In the manufacture of the Southern cane sugar, lime
water, (white wash) is used to clarify it. At first this was
used in sorghum, but it was soon found that it blackened
the syrup so much that no after treatment would restore its
clear color. Besides, it gave it a very disagreeable alkaline
taste. Afterwards the white of eggs was used, which did
very well, but further manufacture brought out the discov-
‘ery that it contained so much gum it would coagulate and
clarify itself better without the addition of anything with it.
Skimming easily removes all impuritie that arises upon the
surface.

The amount.of syrup procured from-an acre of ground is
‘as various as are the methods of cultivation and characters
-of the soil. From forty to two hundred gallons may be
-considered the range, and when it is considered that a culti-
vator can take his choice between the two quantities, it
aay seem that there is cause for emulation.

But it is rather as a forage crop that this plant properly
‘belongs in this treatise. Its uses are almost as various as
Indian corn itself. -As has been already stated, it is greedi-
ly eaten in all stages by stock ofevery kind. The seeds are
‘abundant, and one acre of good corn will make from forty
to sixty bushels of seed. These can be cut from the cora
and stored for use, taking care to spread the heads until they
‘dry, when they make good food for cattle, horses, sheep,
hogs and poultry. When ground into flour they make good
bread. Both the seeds and the expressed ‘juice have been
extensively used in distillation, large quantities of alcohol
and sorghum brandy being annually made from them. Du-
ring the war it formed almost the only resource of theSouth
for whisky, all grains being in too much demand for dis-
tillers to use them.

But probably it possesses more good qualitiesas a green soil-
ing plant than any other one. Let it besown either broadcast

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or thickly drilled with a seed drill very early in the spring,
with about one bushel of seed to the acre, and there is no
end to its feeding capacity. It will yield from 20 to 30 tons.
of green fodder to the acre, that, when dry, will make three
er four tons of the sweetest and best of hay, and stock will
eat up the last vestige of it. The proper time of cutting is
when the heads begin to flower, when it can be cut and
bundled as corn fodder, or left spread on the ground, if the
weather is good, for several days, and it will dry enough to.
store but not in too large a bulk. Its stems are so succu-
fent that it will not cure quickly, the juices in it, however,
will sugar directly, and then it will keep as well as timothy.
It possesses fattening qualities in an eminent degree, and
nothing like it was ever used for improving a drove of
mules. But if the farmer has a drove of mules or herd of
eattle or milch cows, it can be fed to them from the time it
iB two feet high, and they will eat it with avidity. By the
time a field is gone over, it will be ready to cut again, as
the root freely throws up new suckers, and will continue to
do so until stopped by the frost. Thus, as many as three
erops can be cut beforg it is destroyed by the cold. Or, if
it is not wanted as green forage, it can be cut at blossoming,
at least twice, without resowing, and the second crop will,.
be as good as the first. A mule raiser in Williamson coun-
ty has several large racks, and as soon as the hay is in con-
dition to cut, he draws a load to each rack daily, and the
mules are allowed to go to it ad libitum, so the farmer has.
only to give them grain to complete the process of fat-
tening.
MANUFACTURE OF SUGAR FROM SORGHUM.

When sorghum was first introduced to the people of the
United States they were informed it would not only
make syrup, but that the Chinese made all their sugar
from it. But little attention was given this product of cane
however, and the cultivators were content to make it into

(151)

syrup, as this alone made it of immense value to the coun-
try. Still every one who made syrup observed that occa-
sionally it granulated so that it would not pour out of the
barrel. In the face of this, writers set it down that the
syrup was grape sugar and no treatment would make it
granulate. This being accepted, no further effort was at-
tempted to make sugar, and so the cultivation has continued
with that understanding until within the last few years.

The exception was established by the experiments of a
few enterprising gentlemen who, reporting their success in
eliminating sugar from the cane, were encouraged by the
Commissioner of Agriculture, Gen. LeDuc, to extend their
" experiments until now it has been completely proved that it
not only makes sugar, but to a degree that makes it very
profitable.

This department being desirous of contributing every-
thing in its power to add to the wealth and resources of the
State of Tennessee, has made accurate investigations as to
the process of sorghum sugar making in all its details.
With this view the Commissioner has lately visited all the
States engaged in the business and attended at the experi-
mental works at Washington where the whole process was
pointed out. In giving the details to the public the De-
partment can vouch for the reliability of the statements in
so far as the information of trustworthy men will permit.
Of course there are the differences of climate and soil to be
considered, but these will be in favor of the South, as we
have decided advantages over the States North in the soil,
which gives more saccharine matter, and in the increased
time allowed for working the cane from the length of our
seasons. In this matter the Department must acknowledge
its obligations to Messrs. G. W. Stockwell and David C.
Scales for valuable assistance. Before entering upon a de-
scription it may be of interest to say that in a short time
one of the most enterprising business men of Nashville will
engage in the business of sugar making. He is now getting

( 152)

up all the necessary information to enable him to go into
the business intelligently, and there is no doubt but that -his
success will invite others to enjoy the profits of the business,

The process of sugar making involves an outlay of from
$3,000 to $10,000, according to the character of the machine-
ry employed. ‘The former machine will not take the sugar
through the refining process, only through the centrifugals,
a mavhine that revolves with great rapidity and throws out
the molasses, leaving a dry white sugar, equal to Coffee A
sugar, but purer than any kird except the granulated su-
gars. There are so many adulterations of sugar, molasses
and honey, that even were it carried no further, this would
add greatly to its purity and healthfulness. Nearly all
those beautiful fancy brands of syrups that attract the
admiration of house keepers, are concocted from corn starch
and poisonous acids, with the addition of glucose. Even
much of our sugar is made from these materials, and it is
impossible to eliminate all the poisonous acids from it.

The finer and more costly machines carry it through a
refining process, making all the fancy brands of sugar and
syrup. The establishment of a refinery involves the erec-
tion of numerous steam works to boil the syrup to the proper
consistence, and these sell tu the refiners their products, either
in the form of syrup or semi-syrup and mush sugar. The
latter is made by boiling the syrup to a certain consistence
and then putting it in vats, where it remains in a cool atmos-
phere to granulate, which process is completed in forty-eight
to fi'ty hours.

Cane is grown according to the directions given above.
To make sugar, however, the soil is never fertilized nor is the
ground stirred after the cane gets twenty inches high, as either
of these measures injures the character of the juice. The
quantity of juice as well as its richness varies with every
season. When the seasons are wet more juice is made, and
when dry lessjuice but more sugar. In these there is but little
difference, except in the labor of boiling down. In wet

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seasons the juice makes about 8 per cent. of sugar, while in
‘dry seasons it reaches from 12 to 14 per cent.

The best soil for growing sorghum is sandy or gravelly
loam, aud the land that makes nothing else will turn out a
fair crop of the cane. It is the one crop that is unaffected
by droughts; for let the season be as dry as it ever becomes
in this country, the cane grows sufficiently large to produce
a good yield. Cane stripped of its leaves will make from
37 to 39 per cent. of its weight in juice. ,

An acre of first-class land will make 30 tons per acre, and
it varies down to 10 tons with the character of soil and cli-
mate, and method of cultivation, The Commissioner of Ag-
riculture at Washington caused analyses to be made of every
Species of cane grown in the United States, and ascertained
that the variation in amount of syrup or sugar was so slight
that but little attention need be given to the species. He
also found out that it makes good syrup and sugar in every
stage ofits growth, from the milk stage of the seeds to their
{ull ripening, so this peculiarity enables the farmer to begin
the process of cutting-and boiling down at an early period
of its growth, which can be continued for at least six weeks
after the full ripening of the seeds. He recommends, how-
ever, that it should be boiled down as soon after cutting as
possible, as the juice in the ends ferments and some of it is

thus lost.
The poorest syrup makes two to three pounds sugar, while

the best makes nine pounds per gallon. The medium and
average may safely be put at six and a half pounds per gallon
of syrup. But there is no loss in it, or not more than two
per cent., as what is left makes a choice and superior syrup.
It may be safely said that one gallon of syrup will make
ninety-eight per cent. of sugar and syrup.

In Minnesota, where the business has already assumed
large proportions, there are but about two months in which
to make syrup, while in Tennessee the.seasons extend from
the lst of August to the Ist.of January.

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The refinery can work all the year from the store of syrup
it lays in, provided the farmers grow enough to keep them
at work.

The refinery in Minnesota buys cane and syrup. There
is, as yet, but one large refinery, and that is at Faribault,
Minnesota, although there are hundreds of lesser ones that
act as feeders.to the larger one.

From $2 to $3 per ton are paid for the cane, stripped and
ready to grind, og from twenty to thirty cents per gallon for
the syrup, according as the saccharometer declares the pro-
portion of saccharine matter, which in every case under-
goes this test. Thus the farmer is incited to produce a first-
class syrup. By planting varieties of cane that mature at
different times, the farmer can take advantage of the seasons,
and thus get in a much larger crop, with less crowding for
labor than if it all ripened at once.

From investigations made by Gen. Le Due there is but
little difference in the amount.of sugar or syrup between
the Louisiana cane and sorghum, and it requires substan-
tially the same machinery to convert it into sugar.

Dr. Wilhelm, of Minnesota, a celebrated chemist, has
made discoveries of materials that free the juice of al] acids
and vegetable matters that have operated so far to make the
taste of sorghum so objectionable to many persons. He and
Messrs. Blakely, a capitalist, and Mr. Jolly, the inventor of
the machines, have a manufactory of the machines, and
they, in selling machines, agree to impart the secret of these
chemical agents to purchasers, as well as to teach them the
art of refining the sugar avd syrup. By aid of these pro-
cesses every grade of Louisiana sugar and syrup is made,
and they compare most favorably with them. The polari-
scope shows a grade of ninety-five to nirety-eight per cent.,
the crystals are sharp and well defined, and the cubes are
perfect, and this is all that is claimed for the best Louisiana
sugar. The syrup will yield about seventy to eighty-five
per cent. of its bulk or weight in sugar. A ton of good cane

(155 )

will make one hundred pounds of sugar, and six gallons of
ayrup, according to the testimony of experts. If this be so,
the profits of sugar making are enormous, as any one can
see by a small calculation. The world has never yet had a
supply equal to the demand, hence its high price. But if
this business is pursued to its full capacity, the supply will
stimulate a greater consumption, as any family man knows.
In short, there is no danger of glutting the market. It
may drive beets out of the trade, but it will always, let the
supply be as great as it may, command a remunerative price.
The people of the United States every’ year send out one
hundred millions of dollars to buy foreign sweets. The
effect of keeping this immense sum at home, and distribut-
it among the farmers, will be felt materially. This economic
view alone is a great inducement to this department to stim-
ulate the production of sugar.

Nor is the production of sugar and syrup confined to
sorghum. Large quantities have been and are being made
from Indian corn stalks. This department would not
recommend the erection of machines for that purpose, but
where they exist, and cane is stripped of its corn for roast-
ing ears in market gardens, the stalks could be utilized in
this manner rather than left to dry up. It does not make
so much syrup or sugar as sorghum, but it is as good.

Capt. Blakeley has submitted specimens of sugar and

syrup to the Merchants’ Exchange of Minneapolis, and they
speak of it in the highest terms as being equal in every
respect to the sugar and syrup of commerce. It was then
submitted to the polariscope, and it showed the presence of
ninety-eight per cent. of sucrose, or true sugar.
_ From repeated experiments made by the Minnesota re-
finery, and by the Commissioner of Agriculture at Washing-
ton, it costs about two cents to make a pound of sugar.
Take the price of ten to twelve cents, its present value, and
the profit is apparent.

Not only does this new process add sugar to the country,

(156 )

but pure syrup, a thing much rarer. Millions of gallons
of adulterated honey are sold every year, as well as other
impure syrups. By this refining process pure syrups of de-
lightful flavor are made so cheaply they can undersell even
the adulterations so common in all stores. The United
States make 315,000,000 gallons of syrups from sorghum
and Louisiana cane, while the country consumes twice that
amonnt. It has its growth in the laboratories of the adul-
terator, instead of the sugar mills of the country. It will
add no little to the healthfulness of the people when this
vile trade is arrested, which can only be done by making a
pure syrup that will undersell the fabricated article. Sor-
ghum presents the only solution to this difficulty, and it is
to be hoped the time is not far distant when it will be ac-
complished. It will require a large increase in the cultiva-
tion of cane. If the erection of mills has the same effect
in Tennessee as it had in Minnesota, the increase in the
amount grown will be enormous. It will be the same here,
doubtless, as there are large amounts of land devoted to
products that often fail, such as cotton, tobacco, and wheat.
Sorghum never fails. When it gets a start it will grow
with or without care.

The farmers of Minnesota grow early amber to the exclu-
sion of all other varieties, and they think no other kind
will succeed. But Gen. Le Duc has established the fact
that no material difference exists between them, one variety
being as good as another. It may be well enough to try
the early amber, however, and possibly the experience of
Tennesseans may discover a difference. The amber is a
sport or hybrid of some of the African varieties.

Above is stated the difference of the various machines.
Supposing that only one refinery will be established, it will
be of interest to farmers to know the best process of pre-
paring cane for sale to the refinery. The ordinary mill and
evaporating pan only are required. Let the syrup be
boiled in the pans as usual, until it is of the ordinary thick-

(157 )

ness. In this form it is salable to the refinery as well as to.
consumers. At an outlay of $3,000 a farmer, or a cumbi-
nation of farmers, can sell sugar to the refinery, or to the
general market, that is equal to the best coffee sugars.
This is done by the addition of a “centrifugal,” an iron box
with gauze wire sides, that revolves with amazing rapidity.
in a hollow cylinder, and it throws out every particle of
fluid matter, retaining only the solid crystals of sugar. Of
course, the centrifugal can only be revolved with the aid of
steam. But steam is so far superior to furnaces for the
evaporation of the juice of sorghum that it will be an im-
provement to employ it for that purpose even if a centrifu-
gal is not provided. Hon. Seth H. Kinney, of Morristown,
Minnesota, proposes to sell these machines and send a man
to teach their use.

Another method of selling to the refinery is the “ mush
sugar.” This is.made by the use of the ordinary mill and
evaporator and granulating pans. First boil the juice to a
certain consistency, shown by an instrument called the
saccharometer, then place the syrup in pans provided for.
the purpose, that shut up like a chest of drawers. It here
remains fora certain time, varying from forty-eight hours
to three weeks, when it is found to be in the condition that
is called mush sugar, and it is then ready for the centrifugal
or the refinery. It would be a good idea for several neigh-
bors to pool together and provide one centrifugal for a
hundred mills, as it can be run at any time throughout the
winter or the succeeding year.

These machines will soon appear, however, when the erec-
tion of a refinery creates a demand for their services.

Messrs. Stockell and Scales have kindly placed at the dis-
poral of the Department of Agriculture a correspondence
held with persons owning these supplemental machines, from
which the following information has been gathered. The
reader will notice how reticent they are about giving the

(158 )

details of the process they employ. It is the fear of com-
petition which influences theth to this silence.

W. Z. Haight, of Winnebago, writes:

The early amber is the best variety for sugar making. Select sandy or
gravelly land, and prepare it as for a crop of Indian corn. Sow the seed
in drills four feet apart, and cultivate in the same manner as corn is cnl-
tivated. When the corn is twenty inches high allow it to take care of it-
self, as plowing it again would cut the surface roots, and thus injure the
quality of the juice. When the seeds are in the dough state begin to cut,
first stripping off the leaves and cutting off the heads. Cut it off at the
first and last joint. Some allow it to lie after cutting five or six days,
while others contend it is best to grind at once. I have never seen any
difference, and the range gives more time to get it ground up. My syrup
makes about eighty per cent. of granulated sugar. It will make good
syrup when the seeds are too green to germinate, and it also makes, for
me, good syrup when it has been cut and has lain seven weeks. But this
is an extreme that should be avoided if possible. If possible to avoid it,
it should never lie longer than one week. An ordinary good mill and
evaporating pan should make 20,000 gallons syrup in one season. I get
my syrup worked into sugar on the shares, and my sugar will compare
favorably with any sugar brought from New Orleans. Any farmer can
reduce his juice to syrup, leave it in pans to granulate, and by use of a
centrifugal convert it into sugar. The centrifugal is a sieve like box that
revolves with great rapidity, and it throws out the molasses, leaving the
sugar. There is next to no waste in the syrup, as what does not make
sugar will make fine syrup.

Mr. J. B. Thoms, of Crystal Lake, Illinois, writes:

A ton of cane will make twenty gallons of good syrup. This syrup
eells for fifty to sixty cents per gallon. Each ton of cane will make one
hundred pounds of sugar and eight gallons of syrup. The machinery to
work out one hundred tons per day will cost from $1,200 to $1,500. This
includes the services of a man to teach the business,

Mr. C, F. Miller, of Dundas, Rice county, Minnesota,
wriles:

Cane machinery is very expensive. First-class machinery, with vacuum
pans, centrifugal, bon2 dust filterers, etc., etc., will cost $10,000. This will
work up a crop of two hundred acres in a season. A machine that will
work up a crop of five hundred acres will cost double as much. But it
can be used for refining purposes all the year, The business is more re-

(159 )

munerative than anything I ever knew of. It will make any man of good
judgment rich in a few years. He can make enough in the first season to
pay all expenses, and the cost of the machinery. The amber cane is the
best. It will make in this climate two hundred and fifty to three hundred
gallons per acre. I have made four hundred gallons on one acre. Many
other varieties are raised here, but amber is the best. The early orange
comes off too late to suit us, but would make a fine successive crop with
you in Tennessee.

.

Hon. Seth H. Kinney, of Morristown, Rice county,
Minnesota, writes:

About ten tons of cane is an average crop with us. The average yield
is one hundred and sixty gallons per acre of good syrup, and this makes,
on an average, six pounds of sugar per gallon, leaving the balance in
syrup. It costssix and a half cents per gallon when made thick enough
for sugar. We plant and cultivate in drills, as Indian corn is raised,
rows three and a half feet apart. But I think it would be better to check
it off on hills four feet apart each way. I strip the leaves off with a
forked stick, cutting off the seed first. We prefer the amber variety.
There are seventeen factories in my vicinity, each as large as mine, be-
sides some smaller ones, all sprung up within the last two or three years.
I have been grinding and making syrup twenty years, but have been
making sugar about six years. I find it very profitable. I pay $2.80 per
ton for cane. One ton makes one hundred pounds sugar and sixteen gal-
lons syrup. I work at it five or six weeks. I have expended about $3,000
in perfecting my machinery. We have a good thing of it out here in
Minnesota, and there is no good reason why you should not enjoy it also.
It is within the reach of any man of ordinary intelligence. He can soon
learn with a little showing. It is the very best agricultural pursuit we
know or ever heard of. It beats wheat a long way with us, and will beat
‘cotton with you. It is a cash business, also. It will bring in cash at all
times, and never lacks a purchaser. It will pay you to send for a press
and go into the business. I have made sugar now about six )ears, and
each year find out something new that lessens the work and makes better
sugar. The early amber is the best by all odds. I have supplied the
Commissioner of Agriculture with amber seed every year for seventeen
years. Last year I sold him 50,000 lbs. of seed, besides shipping 2,400
Ibs. to Japan and 1,500 Ibs. to France. It retails at fifty cents per pound,
though I only got ten cents per pound. That I shipped I got eighteen
cents for. The stalk of the amber is eleven to twelve feet high, and three-
quarters to one inch in diameter.

This closes what is to be said on the subject. It is seen
that there is a difference of opinion about the results or

( 160 )

yield, but this arises from the difference in soil and treat-
ment. But even taking a point far below the lowest esti-
mate and it will be seen that the yield is very great. The
man who takes the initiative in this business will probably
work without competition for a few years. In that time he
will reap rich rewards, for there is no doubt of the profit
ableness of this special industry. When the matter of
making sorghum sugar was first agitated, this department
held aloof from recommending it to the citizens of the State.
It is the policy of the Bureau to act conservatively, and to
do nothing and to recommend. nothing that will cause the
people to lose money. The attention of this Department
has been drawn to it constantly by prominent gentlemen,
among them the late Col. Sam. D. Morgan, and now, by.
actual observation, it can conscientiously recommend the
production of sugar from sorghum as a highly profitable
pursuit. And such being the conclusion, there is no good
reason why our citizens shall not enjoy the benefits arising
therefrom. Our State is peculiarly well suited to the culture
of sorghum. The seasons are long, giving a sufficiency of
time to work it up, and the reward is certainly stimulating,
It is the opinion of the Department that more than one re-
finery should not be erected for the present, for it requires
many small machines to keep one running. But there
should be no limit to the others. More of the cane should
be raised, and every one that raises it in sufficient quantity
should provide himself with a mill and an evaporator. It
would be a good idea for a number of men in each county:
to set upa centrifugal, and make sugar enough, at least,
for home consumption.

Mr. E. S. Jones, of Pulaski, Tennessee, has met with
considerable success in the manufacture of sugar. Accord-
ing to his experience the juice of the orange cane contains
from 10° to 12° by Baume’s instrument. This is from 2° to
4° sweeter than is obtained from any other variety of sor-
ghum planted in Tennessee. The old varieties of sorghum

(161 )

require from eight to ten gallons of raw juice to make one
gallon of syrup, while with the early amber and early
orange it only requires from five to six gallons of juice to
inspissate a gallon of syrup. This is a great advantage, as
no more work is required to cultivate an acre of the one
than of the other. Mr. Jones thinks the older varieties of
sorghum have become impared by hybridization with
broom corn and other congenital plants.

The sugar which Mr. Jones makes is equal to Coffee A
and C, and is free from the objectionable sorghum taste.

With the introduction of sorghum into Tennessee agri-
culture, it does seem that the last desideratum of the farmer
is supplied. With a climate the most salubrious and equa-
ble, a soil the most various and comprehensive, it sends into
the market, annually, grain and hay of every description.
Her cattle and sheep are sent in large numbers into North-
ern cities, while her mules and horses supply the teams of
the South. Fruits and vegetables anticipate the gardens of
the North, and now she is able to draw a plant from Africa
or Asia to supply her people with an ample quantity of
home-made syrups and sugars.

BEGGARS’ LICE—(Cynoglossum Morisoni.)

Although this is nothing more than a weed, and a very
troublesome one when it comes in contact with sheep’s wool,
yet it performs a very important function in the economy
of nature, as it constitutes one of the main dependencies
for food in certain sections of the State for stock. During
the winter months the seeds adhere to the mouths of cattle,
causing their mouths to look like warty exerescences adher-
ing to them. The seeds are full of gluten and starch, and
deer get fat on them in the season. ‘This weed has seeds

11

( 162 )

covered with minute hooks, so that they cling to any body
coming in contact with them, it being a provision of nature
by which they are conveyed to distant points for germina-
tion.

It abounds in almost every section of the State, but
especially on the “rim lands” in the “barrens,” where it
exists in the greatest abundance. (‘attle are very fond of it,
and it serves a useful purpose while all other food is destroyed
by the cold weather. In fact, the cattle of the range keep
in good thriving order on the seeds alone during the entire
winter months. This weed, although it answers such a use-
ful purpose as a food for both cattle and sheep, is 9 great
pest, as the seeds render wool almost worthless, for they ad-
here with so much tenacity to wool it cannot be separated
from them, and no machinery has yet been invented that
can remove them. We would not recommend its propaga-
tion.

PAGE.
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