The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1883-09-11

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fnf cattle and quite Q number Of them bred
thAir entire supply OF work.stock, horsea and
nules Ssnce the war this industry has beea
mach neglected The decay Of fences, and he
Eaoopt'oo generally Of the tenant system on the
4 plantations. made the care OF stock quite I'm
Epractcab'e Al present there are very few In.
+ s,ancts In she county where stock-Fasiae b COO
dnc,ed as is understood by that term among The
u,odel farmers Of the North and North west; nor
are there any operations resembling the methods
of the rstehmen and herders of the Western
prairies; l'ii there does exist considerable and
/ rapidy- Increasing investment in raising stock
By what aiight be considered modified plan Of
the estcFn herder. improved by method and
+ providence, borrowed from the more econostcal
+ aud scientific farmer Of the North.
E 80 little care and protection are necessary 20
insure coniparative success in breeding and raia-
iHE stock Of all kinds n climate like ours that
most operators are satisfied with u degree ot
prnhtable success tha, more ambitious men can
greatly improve upon. Under The benenceut In.
Enuences, however, Of agricultural exhibitions
Ecompcttive shows and great amount Of excel
lent literature on the subject of improving and
:bFeesiing stock, together with the fact that We
ishave wholesomely- administered laws that give
l;ptetection IL stock they did not enjoy for soma
syears after the war, the majority Of our farmers
are recognizing the great value Of stock % an ad
jnnci to their farm operations, and are beginning
ltio foster that branch Of their business in q waY
sthat will soon place Leon county in the front
crank OF meat and butter producers. Thorough.
Isbred eaIIhcs, bulls, bOars and bucks have been
siptroduced to that extent that 1t will be safe
estimate t0 say that twO-thirds of all live stock
sin the County are grades Of some improved blood
f1r another. Several very fine horses have been
brought 80 the county during the last Ave years,
issHd every farm 10 be found weli-bred
;col,s. Dutham, Devon. Ayrshire. jersey and
| sAlderney cattle have been literally introduced,
land severs. very respectable herds of thorough
breds and sigh grades OF these several stocks arc
sto be found in the vicinity OF Tallahassee
/. Of the healthfuness OF live stock in this sec
ttiou Of Florida too favorable a statement can
scarcely ba made. Horses occasionally are ad.
slicted 10 what is known as "blind-staggers," and
swork horses and mules are frequently killed by
snatnifnt collie. Both diseases yield readily TO
! areatmenl, and the latter need never result f.
,ta:ly if properly attended to- About twenty-five
II kyears ago plague called black tongue ragged
sr"sus Inc cattle and deer in Florida as it did
Shr"'gn.ni the South, and destroyed great mum.
xbers. Wltn this e~osps;~- .ho writer KNOWS or
/ mo serious malady that has ever affected cattle
anre. II has been found that thoroughbred cattle
SAr>ught here from the North frequently die after
y few months residence, but just why have
heard no intelligent reason assigned. It was
frcunnnced TO he pleuro- pneumonia but If 90 il
Slever became contagious for no native cattle
fser affected similarly. Milk stock sometimes
| = sccur," but never knew case that was not
| fnred at once
T.: In addition TO the general healthfulness there
Aua.s, screw-worms. horse-fies, deer-fies and
teel-fies to torture and destroy cattle as in some
|; parts of tho South.
L, Sheep do most excellently, and owing to the
!. .absence OF waxy mud to cake and harden be-
tween their toes foot rot that dreaded scourRe
Is entirely unknown 1t is never cold enough 70
/ Aeceasitate sheltering them. They lamb in the
open fields in December and January with per-
A5ci impuniiy. Hogs have several times been
|, seriously iccimated by cholera"
Z Feed for stock.
As towhst stock find to eat in Leon county We
a.lhnlit the scllOwing: Horses, cattle and sheep
lave been successfully and proftably raised in
leon county, year after year. without being fed
AZ ALL but lefs entirely to subsst on the natural
!, and wild supply of food, and without being shell
iered one hour from their birth to their maturity
Il, the cases If Mr.. George A. Groom and Cover
| ecr r. X. Call, on their plantations ON Lake
jackson, we know this to have been done And
or course this could only be possible where graas
" esows--good grass and plenty of it, The Ber-
ynuds stsii'ls pre-eminent as permanent pasture
grass. II sods close and sOlid on our stiff clay
sand and affords an nexhausible supply of ten
DER rich food, from the first of March until about
tbe frst Of December The testimony of large
cattle and aheep-breeder near Corpus Christi,
/ Texas, is thsl ii will keep more stock to the
etre than any grass in America. and he declares
shat ten acrts of his Bermuda equals any one
hundred acres Of his best mesquite" II -four
ishes with us in Leon county better than at Cor
pus Christi. because Of our having more rain and
! X more pOr0uS soil.
! Next in order of excellence among our wild
permanent pasture grasses is what is popularly
termed black-top" or smut grass" This Il
coarser specimen than Bermuda, does not run
hut stools WELL and spreads until il becomes
aolid. When kept grazed it puts up tender
s1routs from April until December. and coquets
/ with the warm DAYS all winter. The writer win
! srie. lot Of calves mainly on a small enclosure
,-ff nc thp xa-in of IL io
exceedingly nutritious. and stock of all kinds eat
| Il greedily We have, indigenous, several varie-
;.es OF a rather coarse grass, termed indifferenuy
| + broom sedge" This very common growth
! springs up upon all lands turned out If allowed
/ 40 grow ~ maturity II is tough and woody, and
| If little value, but kept well under foot il fur
hishes an ineNhaustible supply of sweet and fat
| saniDg food throughout the year, and is the main
Chance for green stuff to cattle in the open range
1uring January and February. For sheep it is
! equally good. but the latter kind of stock get
| Through January and February very well on .
Eucculent little weed or clover that covers all
| iaild cultivated the previous year, during these
! snonths The name Of this plant we are uufa-
| niliar with There are also four other dstinct
| native grasses the names of which we do not
| know, that furnish large percentage Of our
| permanent pasture, and sod closely, come early
and stay late; they are called by the country
people carpet grass velvet grass" Z" sheep
! grass" &c.
| IN the CuiitVAteO ueIuS we nave Sever0I excel
| :ent hay grasses Crab-grass and crow-foot, the
.wo most prominent, spring up wherever the
| ground is broken, yield as much as eighteen to
awentt'-ive hundred pounds Of most excellent
| nay to the acre. Both of these grasses, when
| properly harvested, are quite as good A. timo-
thy. A native white clover, one Of the frat
srFiug visitors, is abundant and universal. Blue
| grass, from kentucky seed, has been known to
| 40 well In shaded pastures
| Z Beggar-weed " Is one of the greatest produc-
tions Of this country. This is plant that comes
| mp wherever the land has been stirred, or on
sthbble ground, in corn fields &c. It grows to
| i've often ten feet high, completely covers the
| ground, and yields more green forage than any
| known plant 1t is a cousin german of the pea
| saanily every leaf, twig and stem ia sweet and
tender and possesses greater fattening properties
| than any plaut known to feeders. Stock of oil
crib from " hich "Ole Mike" and Jude" draw
.heir rations from laying ng-by-tme" until frost !;
1 i ~ indeed the salvation of 80 per cent. of the
/ treeelmens mules which, but for the rest and
/ @beggaI-lice in the fall, would never get
j through the winter. This plant shades tho
i ground completely during the August and Sep
i setnber heat, has long tap-root and brings up
i the salts and returns an astonishing amount Of
i vegetable matter to the land. The dead wood
is brittle puverzes easily and is far superior to
i clover or anything else to recuperate land. Il
can be cut lor winter forage at the time il begins
il to bloom, and If properly cured does not throw
iss leaves, and ia the best winter feed for young
atGck we have
il As has been said elsewhere in discussing dairy