8. _Lucern._--This yields much more green feed at a single crop than any
other grass. For soiling cattle it is one of the best, and may be cut
twice as often as red clover. This makes a good crop, soon after time
for planting corn. Common corn or pop-corn, and later, Stowell's
evergreen sweet corn, are the best for soiling cattle; but for early
soiling, use lucern, or some other quick-growing, large grass. Lucern
needs clean land, or cultivation at first, as young plants are tender.
The tap-root runs down very deep; hence, hard clay or wet soils are not
favorable. It stands the cold, in latitudes forty to forty-five degrees
in this country, better than red clover.
9. _Long-rooted Clover._--This is a Hungarian variety--biennial, but
resows itself several years in succession, on good, clean land. Its
yield of hay and seed is abundant. Needs a deep, dry soil, and stands a
drought better than any other grass. To plow in as a fertilizer, or for
soiling cattle, it is valuable, wherever it will flourish.
10. _Sain-Foin._--Adapted to calcareous or chalky soils; considered one
of the best plants ever introduced into England; but in New England it
proves almost a failure--it requires more cool moisture and less frost.
11. _Timothy._--In England, _Meadow Cats'-tail_, and in New England,
_Herd's-grass_. This is the most valuable of all the grasses, and
wherever it will thrive well, should never be superseded by anything
else for hay. It should be cut when the seed has begun to harden, but
before it begins to shell, and never in the blossom. Let every farmer
remember that timothy, cut in the seed, contains twice as much nutriment
as when cut in the blossom; hence, it is not worth more than half as
much for hay, sown among clover, as when sown by itself, as it must be
cut too early, to avoid losing the clover.
12. _Red Top._--We can not find this described in agricultural books;
but we have been familiar with it for thirty-five years, and can not
find a New York or New England farmer who does not know it well and
prize it highly. For low, moist, rich meadows, the red top is the best
for hay of any known grass. It yields abundantly, and may be cut at any
time, from July to last of September. The hay is better for cattle than
timothy. Many intelligent gentlemen insist that it is the most healthy
hay for horses.
After all that has been written on the various grasses, we regard it
best for farmers throughout the continent to cultivate only the
following:--
For early pastures, _vernal grass_ and _meadow foxtail_; pastures
through the season, _white clover_, _cocks-foot_, _meadow foxtail_, _red
clover_, and _timothy_; for lowland pastures, _red top_ and _tall
fescue_; for hay, _timothy_, _red top_, _orchard grass_, and _tall
fescue_; for the shade of fruit-trees, _orchard grass_; to be plowed in
as fertilizers, _red clover_ and _white clover_, for soiling cattle,
_tall oat-grass_ and _lucern_.
Time of sowing grass-seed is important. Some prefer the fall, and others
the spring. Fall sowing should be very early or very late. Early sowing
will give the young plants strength to endure the frosts of winter,
which would kill late sown; but sow so late that it will not vegetate
until spring, and it will come up early and get out of the way of the
droughts of summer. Grass-seed sown late in the spring will always fail,
except when followed by a very wet season. Sow timothy with fall grain,
or late in the fall, or on a light snow toward the close of winter. Do
not sow clover in the fall, as the young plants will generally fail in
the cold winter;--sow it on the last light snow of winter, and it will
always succeed. Roll the land in spring on which you have sown
grass-seed in the last of winter; it will benefit the grain, and cause
the grass-seed to catch well, and get an earlier and more rapid growth.
Let all who would not lose their seed and labor, remember that
grass-seed not sown so as to form good roots, before the frosts of
winter or the drought of summer, will be lost; the plants will be
killed. Timothy-seed sown in the fall, one peck to the acre, will
produce a good crop the next season.