Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1877-09-12
An English Dairy Farm.

They give prizes in England for the best
dairy FARMS 1t would be a good idea for
our state agricultural society to follow, and
would pay much better, so far as advancing
the interests of our agriculture is concerned,
than the "purses offered to fast trotters.
An English paper Quoted by the Country
Gentleman gives some account of the dairy
farm to which the Royal Agricultural So
cietys first prize was recently awarded;
"The farm consists of one hundred and sew
enty-sX acres of meadow and pasture land and
seventy-four acres under cultivation The seeded
fields cut for hay the first year. and the quail
ity of the grass afterwards determines the length
of time the fields lie to pasture, varying from two
to ten years There was a heavy, level crop of
wheat growing in field that had been oats last
season, after lying ten years to grass The usual
course of cropping pursued is-first, oats after
grass; second potatoes and turnips; third, wheat;
| fourth, oats or barley, sown with grass-seeds ,
| fifth, hay, and an uncertain number of years
pasture. About six acres of Swede turnips and
mangold are grown The soil is apparently well
adapted for the growth OF potatoes and turnips
| The taking of two grain crops in succession and
sowing the last down with grass is in direct con-
travention of the rules of good husbandry; yet
! Judging from the prize farms-and these too,
| light soils which are easily impoverished-the
cashire 1t should be stated, however, that after
| the removal of the grain crops the young grass is
dressed with about ten hundred per acre of finely
crushed bones Nearly the whole of the pasture
| land has been dressed with bone during the cur
rent month. Unless applications of this kind are
used for the old pastures they are found to de-
! teriorate on dairy farms.
The cows, being the source of profit, ought to
be the centre of interest. There are seventy-four
cows and heifers in full milk, all bred on the
| farm, and all grazed in one lot They are mod
crate sized, useful, though not fashionable Short
horns, Twenty of the best heifer calves are
annually reared to replace an equal number OF
cows which are drafted. This plan keeps the
whole of the herd young, The remainder of the
calves are sold as soon after being dropped as pos
sibe, milk being the great desideratum. This
| seasons calves were grazing in one of the re-
Gently laid pastures. They are nearly all roans
and though not in high condition, are an even,
healthy choking lot
THE cows at present getting about two
pounds OF decOrticated cotton seed cake per day,
which not only keeps them in condition, but
greatly improves both the quantity and quality OF
the milk, From about Christmas until March,
when cheese making recommends the milk is
sold; but that Is a time when most Of the cows
are dry for caving. About one hundred and
| seventy of this seasons cheese had been sold 10
| Manchester merchant at seventy-six shilngs
nineteen dollars per hundred About fourteen
tons are turned out during the season. or four
| hundred and twenty-four pounds TO the COW.
"A good breed Of medium-sized pigs are kept.
A large number are fed To good weights on the
refuse whey mixed with scalded Indian meal
The cows are fed during the winter chiefly on
| meadow hay and brewers grains, the small
breadth OF roots grown not going far amongst so
| many.
"The farm buildings form good-szed square,
| and as matter of course are chiefly cow-stahles
| These are low and the reverse of roony having
| hay-loits above them. The cows stand tail u
tail on each side of passage with through doors
| The whole concern, both inside and outside,
| n tn1t nj