Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1873-06-25
a9rifultnral.
The Hay Crop.

Every year there Is A vast amount written
about the hay crop. Every summer, in every
agrIcIlturt Il paper, and in al most every other
PAPER, we find more or less .ucernIng Oh.
cutting, curing ard storing OF this crop, And
It's great impoI t tnce t, tn individual iaIneI
and its imrseLse value to the country It large
ustfes and, indeed, requires Il great deal VI
attention. ANY man who will suggest IA
practical method for improving the quality
OF the hay crop or increasing It's quantity, or
who will point out quicker or easier meth
cd OF curing and storing it, Is benefactor
to the public at large. lie may get LITTLE
thanks for lis trouble, but he does valuable
work. Even the man who does nothing but
call the attention of the farming community
to the Immense Importance of this crop is
valuable public servant. For, strange as it
may seem, this crop is not appreciated OF
it's value realized even by it's produ GERS. This
crop, which ranks first in value with all cul-
tivated crops 10 this country, is rot well
manag, d by half its producers. On great
many, probably the great majority of farms.
no special attention Is paid To the bay crop.
What grows is harvested. Bat little work
is done and little expense incurred TO IN
crease the quantity OF value OF the crop.
With corn, wheat, tobacco, and In fact al
most all other crops, great pans are taken,
and time, skill, money and tertilz rs are
freely employed. But grass grows very much
as il happens to. Other crops cannot be
raised without toll and expense, but grass
will grow almost anywhere. Of this fact our
farmers have taken advantage and bestowed
their toll on other crops, while relying upon
the bOuntes of nature to furnish hay. Bur
while this has been the rule, there have been
exceptions. There are farmers who treat the
hay crop as it deserves. They recognize It's
Importance and act with reference to It's great
value. And their success should Incite others
to follow in their steps. They have made it
far more profitable than any other farm crop.
Other men could do the same. Ga natural
grass farms large sums of IN Oney cIn be an
nually cleared. And by proper cultivation
good results can be obtained on land not
specially adapted to the production OF this
crop. For there are SO many varieties oil
grass which make good hay hat the inell,-
gent farmer can adapt his crop to the lanG
instead ut doing. as Is necessary with mos.
other crops, a great deal # work 10 adapt
his land the crop. For instance, Ii a
farmer has wet land which is Liable 10 heavc
and which Is, on that account, not suitable
for upland grasses, he can seed 1t wi tn Alske
clover and obtain a large Quantity oil tir>t-rale
bay But the ease with when a crop can
he started is not the only thug IN favor Oi
cultIvatlng grass. Alter IL is once started
it eqlires little work to take are OF IL unit
time of cutting. Corn potatoes, tobacco and
other hOed crops rtq IRE great deal more
work to get them started and then they must
be Carefully titled ali through the season. The
seeding, too, has To he performed every year
while with grass this work, once dVne well,
will not need repeating for several Year.
Tue cutting and Storing can also, 10y tue use
of proper machinery, be quickly and cheap
" done. Another point III favor Ut this crop
1t Is IOG exIaustlng 10 the land The same
amount Of manure winch used 10 one aci e
OF tobacco and produces only one GRIP (ur
tobacco must be manured every ytarl, viii
60 over Iour acres ut grass Idud produce
two large crops per year iUr two years, aud
one fair crop ca year Tor some years onger.
OF course 1t Is better to manure grass land
each Year, and by dong 1t larger crops eau
be obtaIued than can be if the land Is only
sp4TiDgly mauured; but heavy manuring Is
net Necessary IN the cultivation o thls crop. !
One thing IN Re. l0 one way or another,
this crop can always fad d market. Corn
may be dull aud pres low, potatoes may be
a drug IN the market. rye aud oats Command
only a nominal prIce-nO sales being eft -cted |
at any isures-the trade in tobacco be dead
the demsnd or want OF demand for these
crops, hay may be sold or else prOftably |
used. Generally it can be sold tor tar
price for cash. When the price is low 1t is |
often much more profitable to iced 1t out to
cattle than TO sell it. The 1t creased value
OF the cattle will often pay Tor the hay, and
the manure, at present prices, will be worth
large sum either to sell Or use on the farm
Having thus dwelt at some length on the Im-
portaDce and value OF the crop, the ease with
which It is produced and the readiness with |
which it Can be sold, We come now to the two !
practical questions concerning this crop
which almost every farmer must meet and
answer. The first Of these questions is how |
much hay shall be produced. the second is |
shall its quality be good or poor? lie is IN
his power to obtain, by careful cultivation,
large crop from his land, or he can so
manage bis farm that he will have little hay
or anything el>e. But the crop is So yalua-
Bile both to the single farmer and the country |
at large, furnishing as 1t does the means o.
keeping the multtudes OF cattle which sup |
ply our people with beef, and the COWS
which enable us to not only supply our home
demand but a to send Vast quantities o.
butter and cheese To foreign markets, We |
hope that more effort will be made than has |
been ID preceding years to incre Sc the
quantity OF bay pr0du eed IN our country. |
But the second question IS very important
one the one, in lact, to which speclal atten-
ton should now be pad. Ii is well known
fact that the farm products of this country
are not, In any large proportion, what may
be called first Glars, and that they do not
command high price IN market. A western |
peIer published a statement about year
ago, by some board of trade in that section OF
the country. that the actual cash loss to the
farmers IN only two States, caused by care
lessness in seectng the seed Tor their corn
crop the previous year Was one hundred and
twenty thousand duIars This being the
case In this comparatively small section,
what an immenee loss must have been sus
tained by the country ut large Probably
not a one-thousandth part OF the butter made
10 the United States commands the highest
scale vi prices, and there Is no doubt that
more than halt of all that We produce Is,
and is SOLD for, a miserable and almost worth
less quality OF goods. Vast quantities o
cal Sc The quality is SO poor. The same Is
true OF ali farm products. Far from being
an exception to this rule. the hay crop is a
striking example oftbe immense and needless
loss Caused simply and only by the careless
ness and neglect OF its producers. Compared
with the amount Of hay cut there is but lit
tie " hich is really OF fret quality. There is
a great deal that is very good and great
deal more tLat is mIserabiy p,or. Probably
tLud.Iate Article would eland frat IL POINT