Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1872-03-20

am invited to open the discussion on
% Grass Culture by reading a paper. The
subject is Of such moment, the invitation
should have been given 10 one having some
-equisite qualification for doing Justice to it,
can only refer briefly to some facts. per
maps of common experience, and leave It for
those VINO follow in the discussion u speak
in detail,
The Vermont farmer, living SO far from
large cities and seaport towns as to pre-
:luJe market gardening, must necessarily
ever make grazing in some OF it's forms hi
principal and chief reliance The cerca!
grains be laid down at this door from
the great granary Of the West, at too low
ate for him to raise them to sell.
The grasses form the basis Of food for
most OF our domesticated animals Their
culture then, how we can best increase tie
amount and value of the crop, is a su beet OF
almost vital Importance should be held
IN the highest estimation, and reckoned
second to none else by the Vermont FARMER
From me you did not expect a scientific
view of this subject, nor facts in relation t.
other localities. Neither did you expect ]
| rad tampered with Lucerne or Alsike clio, err
| Az it is | trust you desire such facts as are
available by, and come within the reach OF
| all, and not what retired capitalist or
fancy farmer accom- plished, by spending four
I
er who tills his acres TO remove mortgage
that became necessary in the purchase OF his
farm, never listen to the almost obsolete ieer
/ tgainst book farming. Let him rather
adopt that progressive kind, which arises
/ from all the knOwled re one can get from
| books, from agricultural periodicals, from
ueh associations as this . B ard, - an, every
other source of information. If he discard
fife 80 far as to buy one out Of it, instead
u into il. it Will he all the better for him
| Ii be stands at the head of well selected
tbOrers and does much work as any Of
them, they will need no other stimulus
Next make the cultivation of the grasses
4 speciality. Instead of cultivating to s, e
how many bushels Of corn or other grain lie
can raise to the acre, let that be a secondary
and the after grass paramount consideration
Soils differ Sd materially, often in close prox-
unity to each other, that the same treatment
will not answer for both, Hence the con
aIcting views IN relation TO deep and shallow
blowing, surface manurIng, and blowing m
manure. | believe that farmers, as a class
are noted for great conscientiousuess in rela
ton to the usury law, and would have the
legal rate at six per cent. That being so, il
would be wise in them to make greater eE
fort TO bring their acres up to a standard
and not be content to take much less rate
Ii one acre only can at first be brought Il
the right standard, 1t is commencing in the
right direction. That acre v i'll help largel Y
to fit out other acres. Tie ball will increase
every time it Is turned over Ask the advo-
cate of shallow blowing if deep soil is not
better than a shallow one, and how will be
o. tain it without deep blowing and manur
ing?
Our recent, frequent droughts, arising from
a general destruction of the forests, or other
causes render deep cultivation of the utmost
! Importance 10 the grass crop. With it, and
liberal manuring, good grass crop may be
obtained on most soils, even in seasons of
great drought. The man who insists on
shallow cultivation must, just so long, fol
low the sklnniDg system. One writer who
/ believes IN surface manuring, asks US to be
| instructed by nature, in the large forest
growth produced by an annual tOp-dressing
OF leaves. Surely, and does not that dense
forest shield the suns rays and keep that
top-dressing moist and pllable? Whereas
we want the solar rays about the roots OF
plants. and little artificial covering 10 keen
the necessary dressing from being parched
up by them, | have used for some fifteen
years, on farm located on a spur OF the
Green Mountain range with westerly slope.
and loan soil, neither sandy nor clayey, one
/ OF Nourse and Mason s dOuble-swivel plows.
1t does not turn a fat furrow slice, but thin
iy skins the sward, then filings up loose earth,
leaving an uneven surface, which facilitates
coDmlngling Of the manure with the soil.
spread a coat OF manure on the sward, and