The Union and journal. [volume] (Biddeford, Me.) 1858-1882, 1860-11-02
NUMBER As.
How 60 get Cheap Hay.

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thro' tho winter, the hay crop is of the frs,
importance. Indeed, taking tho whole
country into the account, the single item ol
grass Is far moro valuable than any Other
product of our soil. II far outstriIs corn
cotton, and wheat, which generally attract
more attention because they are more gen.
orally sold, affecting the commercial cx.
changes of tho country. But the lowly
grasses that our cattle graze during tho
summer, and which, dried, form their prin-
cipal food in winter, are moro important To
tho prosperity OF the country than any other
crop. This crop in the form Of dried gr.lss
was cstimatrIat about II ,OO0, 900 Of tons al
the last census, and the pasturagc is quite as
abundant and valuable. The increased pro-
duction of the last ten years has been very
great, both from the new lands brought un-
der cultivation, and from the better cultiya-
ton of the old. Reckoning hay at ten dol
lars ton, and putting the pastaragc ut
equal value with hay. the whole crop OF the
country cannot bo worth less than $50 mil.
lions Of dollars. Ifby any cheap process we
could add ten per cent. to the production Of
grass, It would be an addition Of thirty.fve
millions to the worth Of the country.
With all this enormous aggregate, the
processes Of growing grass are very defective
in all parts Of the country. Not one farmer
in ten resorts to the most economical meth.
DDS. My opportunities for observation in
my present lantern adventures abundantly
confirm me in this belief. The difference
between the croIs Of good and poor farmers,
or between wisc and bad husbandry is
more than one hundred per cent.
The dearest process Of getting hay is that
of neighbour Of my friend Higgins. lie
lives ON q ffty-acre farm, and has been
there for q score Of years or more. Roberts
belongs to the old school Of farmers, and no.
thing is orthodox with him that is not done
in the good old way,-Grass, he holds to q
" material growth" OF the soil, and where q
thing comes naturally, tho morc you do Tor
it, the worse it is. lie has some twenty
acres in moving, and tho gross product Of
the whole does not exceed fifteen tons. The
yield is always from half ton to u tor to
the acre. This thin half nourishcd grass,
no firmly believes Is much more nutritious
than that from well cultivated meadow,
tho no can SEQ the difference between hall
starved and we'll fatted beef, and never fails
10 prefer tho latter. lIc often declares
that he does not want land that will yield
four tons to the acre. llc does not SEQ how
cattle can cat such stuff, and doubts IL il
docs them any good. Higgins cattle look
sleek to be SURE, but he feeds with meal, he
cuesscs, and 1t must be the meal which makes
the flesh. Roberts believes In selling hay,
and nothing is more common than to SEQ him
start of to the city with load, tho hc have
to sell cow during the winter for want OF
fodder to keep her through. Ills oxen ar,
never able to draw full load, for lack 0I
muscle ON their ribs. Ills rotation Is corn
two years with ten loads Of well sun-dricd
and blcachcd barn-yard manure to the acre,
oats one year, without any manure, and then
grass several years until 1t will not produce
enough to pay for moving. The first year
after stocking down he cuts ton to tho
acre, and if the season is uncommonly wet,
he gets u ton aud quarter. His yield Of
corn is about twenty five bushels to tho acre,
which satisfies his ambition rs well as nine
ty does the man who takes the premium 1T
tho County fair. In good grass years he
gets profit of four or live dollars an acre.
Right across the way from Roberts, lives
Young Dan Baker, who has been on his 80
acre farm only five years, and has already
got the most Of it into good heart. lie has
about the same quantity of land in meadow
that Roberts has, but lic gets sixty tons in.
stead of fifteen, averaging three tons to the
aero. Roberts of course, SAYS that "ho don't
want any such coarse stuff for his cattle to
eat" but some of your readers will have
q curiosity to know how Dan Baker does It.
Ills rotation is two years in corn, one in
spring wheat, with which hc stocks down,
then in grass four or fyc years until hc gets
ready to plow again. llc docs not believe
in any thing lcss than three tons OF hay to
the acre, and has an idea that land may be
kept perpetually in grass without any ial-
ling of. When he t.kcs up piece OF
sward he puts on fifty loads Of good stable
or compost 10 the acre aud more IL he has II.
lie usually gets from seventy to eighty BUSH
els of corn 10 the acre. To do this he plows
twelve inches deep, while Roberts plows only
Gyc. lie stocls his ground with mixture
of grasses, herd, clover, rcd-top, etc., and
finds that with deep plowing they get much
stronger hold, and last longer. lie has
great faith in top-drcssins, aud makes COM
post every year for the purpose Of spreading
upon moving land. On level land he spreads
this in the fall and winter. On hill sides
no spreads It in May, after the griss is well
started, so that the grass may hold the ma
nure, and prevent It from washing. lie
makes great use OF muck, Of which be has u
large deposit within q hundred rods oi his
barn. Indeed, hc built his barn with refer
encc TO the muck mine, ~ that he could get
Il at n small expense for carting. lie claims
that no can make cord Of good compost
for fifty cents, and spread It upon the now
ing Tor fifty more, and that five cords
spread upon an acre, will show its effects for
three years or more, and will make differ
encc in the yield of three tons of hay. In
other words he gets three tons Of hay for five
dollars, taking 1t as 1t stands in the field.
Dan Baker takes the papers, and is close
calculator, and | guess he's about right.
by this thorough mode Of cultivation md
high manurins, he gets his hayye cheap
The corn and wheat crops no. only pay Tor
the manure and labour but leave hand
some profit, no that the land has no charges
against IL when IL comes into moving. Hc
gets three tons Of hay, worth. this year,
thirty-six dollars standing Besides this nc
gets eight weeks pastarasc fur COW, worth
four dollars more, or forty-eight dollars ih'
come irnm an acre Of land above all expenses.
D,n R,Ler never sells hay, says bc would
mat ne soon sell his Morgan mare, or his
S,u,b Down Bnck. II there Is any profit
IN tho use Of hay, and he guesses there
must be, he wants to makeit. 50 he buys
stoct I enough every year to cat up all tho
bny and grain no raises upon the farn.
with these he makes MANURE, moro manure,
most manure, every year. This is tho Alpha
and Omega Of cheap hay, and Of all PROFIT
able farming. Feed the soil, and tho blades
Of crass will spring up. not only two to ono.
bnt sixty and q hundred fold. Light m
crcases and am beginning TO SEQ IN diin