Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1875-04-17
THE GRASSES AND SHEEP HUs.
LANDRY.

Noticing daily the facility with
which bluegrass, orchard-grass and
others, including white clover, grow In
Tennessee, and how large, healthy and
prolific sheep are, where they receive
proper care, it would seem that we can
hardly call public attention too often
TO the Importance Of improving and
extending our sheep-walks till they
shall cover a third, if not half, Of the
anow useless, outlying lands Of the
State. The writer remembers taking
full blooded merino sheep to
a county fair IN Herkimer conn
ty, n. Y, IN 1917 and 1913,
and from that time to the present,
while wheat and corn have been for
years too low to pay for production,
wool has always paid, taking into ac-
count the value Of mutton, Of pelts
and of sheep to kiI briers, weeds and
manure a thin, needy soil. Good wool
may be cheaply transported to any dis
tant market according to It's value per
thousand pounds, and such is not the
fact in-resard to Tennessee corn and
wheat. Grain culture tends to wash,
leach and imPovezish titled land. a
field in grass fed by sheep Is not likely
to wash, leach or grow poorer by the
expectation Of wool and mutton from
the same. The reason is that more Of
the minerals exported in the products
of the soil, IN wool and mutton, rise
from the deep subsoI in water lifted by
capillary attraction In dry weather,
than the surface olparts with. Hence
there is a positive gain Of plant foodby
the long use Of grass and sheep. They
fertilize the ground-drawing elements
Of fertility from the atmosphere,
as sell as from the! earth below the
soil, thus making it fat and rich.
If a fat sheep is indeed the fat Of the
land, by all means let US study and try
to understand this curious piece Of ma.
lures h~andiwork, a fat sheep thickly
covered with wool, and as prolific IN
producing young as remarkable for
feeceand flesh. A Maryland farmer
who has lately visited some Of the best
sheep farms in England, makes the
following statement in the April num-
Der of the american Farmer: within
the last fifteen months f5rty-eight owes
belonging to the estate Of Aston Row
ant, have produced 295 lambs, all Of
which are still living or have been
sold fat. F0rty-four ewes have each
had three pairs, and most Of them N
less than fourteen months. Two ewes
brought seven lambs each, 3iz.: Two a
few days before Christmas, 1872; two
in June, 1873, and three IN January,
1874. One eve produced eight lambs
within fourteen months. Two Of the
lambs were sold for five pounds at
Easter. Yesterday the same W had
four lambs, all Of which are strong and
healthy, the mother is doing vel, ard
IN good condition. Twenty-one Of the
above ewes are Dorset; twenty-seyen
areaither Hampshire downs, or half
breeds"
The above is taken from the farm
record of the estate under the manage
ment of T. S. jackson. The American
visitor concludes his report IN these
words: "The estate Of Astor Rowant,
it should be remarked, is not 4 that
is carried on for mere profit. The
lawn, shrubbery, Conservatives, and
plantations generally, exhibit the ex-
quisite beauty with which wealth and
taste adorn so many places in England.
Regarding them with intense g~ratifca-
ton, and thinking Of the immense
amount Of money required to keep up
this display. I said to my worthy and
intelligent guide, i should like very
much tc know the pscuniary results Of
this style Of farming IN your country.
BE replied, as you live in America, 1
will tell you what 1 do not speak IN
the neighborhood: my balance sheet
shows for last year a clear profit Of
1850 $4,000, and added emPhati-
cally, sheep did It,"
If Engishmen get Sc much home
comfort, independence and wealth from
grass and sheep, why may not our read
ers and friends profit by their exam
pies; Undoubtedly there is q refined
art IN the most advanced grass culture
and sheep husbandry; but this aglicul-
tural art is not beyond our reach.
Bluegrass and white clover are not i'm
possible in Middle Tennessee, and on