Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1874-04-24
Providing Grass Seed.

Every farmer uses more or less seeds Of
the different grasses and forage plants
Most of these seeds are purchased from
dealers or growers, few farmers being
SO Situated as to grow all the grass
seeds needed for stocking down pas.
lures and meadows in the Spring
The season is coming on when these
seeds must be sown, if ever. 1t is time
to look around and find where these
can be procured to the best advantage,
or at the cheapest rate. Both these
requirements are, or must be, kept in
view; it will not do to buy seeds with
either object in view alone. Seeds
bought at the best advantage are al
ways cheap. They may cost a little
more money at the outset, yet may be
the cheapest. AS an instance, the ex-
perience of man in Western New
York may suffice. Wishing to sow a
little Alsike clover seed, he consulted
the catalogues and advertisements of
all the regular and transient dealers.
Prices ranged from seventy-fve cents
to one dollar and twenty-five cts. per
pound. The difference-fifty cts. per
pound-was considerable; so he con-
cluded to send to the parties offering
the seed at the lowest prices. heseed
grew well, but the next year several
stools of the white or ox-eye daisy
blossomed out finely. They were dug
out, of course, but new ones have APP
peared every year since, from seed
which had hitherto remained dormant
in the ground. That seed was not
cheap at any price. The same person
wished to SOW some more last season.
He was at the trouble and expense of
taking a journey of sixty miles in or
der to personally examine, at a large
seed store, the samples of Alsike seed.
The seed purchased was previously ex-
amined with magnifying glass, and
no ox-eye daisy seed could be detected.
The Alsike seed cost more than adver-
tised prices, but the purchaser will
probably find it cheap.
It is wise to SOW the best seed and to
SOW plenty of it. 1t is wise also only
to buy of seedmen who have an estab-
lished reputation for accuracy, careful
ness and responsibility. The reputa-
ton of such is worth more than the
profits on whole seasons sales, and
of course either goods can be relied
upon. They also have direct inter.
est in. selling only the best seed, since
usually the results Of such sales are q
4ststanding advertisement" in every sec.
ton where sown.
It is necessary to SOW plenty of seed
Ten cents saved in seed result usually
in dollar lost in the harvest. JUS
how much would be enough the cir
cumstances of each particular locality
can alone determine. This much il
certain-no one has ever reported thai
he had sowed too much. All errors
have been invariably made the othel
way, as far as known. Ifthe "penny
wise but pound foolish" course-tha1
of sowing as few pounds of seed az
possible followed, the hay crop will
be, quickly gathered, and in Winter
will soon be gone. Just as much seed
must be sown as will stock every square
inch of the ground with at least one
growing plant. This will take more
seeds in number than just the number
of square inches of surface in the field
-Four or more times this amount should
be provided, for much is inevitably
lost. The seed should be scattered
lavishly enough to secure a gooo
stand, if takes a full half bushel O.
seed to each acre to be seeded down.
Country Gentleman.