Weekly Chillicothe crisis., 1885-07-16
INDUSTRIAL TOPICa
A Practical Method OF Introducing Improved
grasses on Land without Plowing-Mis-
cellaneous Notes.
Sowing Grass.Seed on Sod.

desire to obtain the best grass for pas
turage in as short time as possible.
The common prairie grass and blue
joint are excellent at certain periods
Of the grazing season. They make
good stOck-feed while they are sweet
and tender, and animals lay on flesh
well when they are in that condition.
Toward the end of the grazing season,
however, they are likely to become
tough and dry, and cattle that feed
entirely on them very often become
constipated Even if their digestion
remains good they do not gain as they
do when the grass is sweet and tender,
They only eat Of it to satisfy their
hunger. They do not eat because the
taste Of the grass is gratifying to
them, as it is in the early part of the
season. Few of our native grasses
spring up after the fall rains and
afford as good food as they furnish
during the spring and early summer.
On this account it is desirable to in
troduce varieties OF grasses that will
supply better food in the fall, To
make the most out of land devoted to
p"o'u'o y"i pv'oo II o'o"'u s p'oV"Co p'.o
.N o"oN' "nu ''i"ol St"'' iiOlu 'nG 'iii'o
'o5'"V'I .;,i :. ~ Ill w. 80" .rt ,t 'is
the fall.
The usual plan of introducing what
are geherally calleu the cultivated
grasses Is TO destroy the natlVe SOD by
turning IL over ana putting IL INTO
some crop that IS harvested Corn or
max Is geheraIy raised the hrst year.
anu this Is l0lloWeu Dy corn ana some
klhu Oh small gram IL Is seeded down
10 grass OF cloVer' OF Doth' IN three or
iouT years aitcr the natlVc sou Is
hrokeh' Inc process OF introducing
new grasses Is long ioDoriouS' ana
cosby one IL not only calls ior work
ihS inc lahu uurlhS several seasons,
n"t ior lenclhS II Ill oruer 10 protect
me crops that are sown. Inc ground
mus prepared ana secGeu IS not III Il
CONDITION 10 use II at once Tor pas
lure lhcre Is no Sod TO sustain the
icct OF me animals while grazing up
on II; IN walking over II durlng wet
weather the roots oil !hc grasses are
thrown out OF the son ana are Killed
ny the acllon ol 'he sun IN summer OF
oi irost IN winter 1t Is generally nee.
essary 10 Keep stock OIL from land
seeded IN the usual manner Tor at
Ieast one year OF tl!l such 'lme as Il
seiueWhat lriI sou Is Sfcurcd' Dur,
ing thlS llme the grosSlS cut ana cured
ioT nay
various methods nave been suggest
ed Tor introducing the improved
pasturc-grasseS an native sod. In
great majority oi cases lhey nave no
been very successful. Much OF The
seed Sown has been wasted, for the
reason that IL never came IN contac
WIN the soil where 1t could gcrmlnate
II IL ala germinate, the young plant
made a very slow growth. In thu
case OF bluegrass, 1t did not becOm,
visible Tor several years When
sharp narrow or Scarlller was used ol
inc Sou before the SraSs'Seed wa
Sown better results were secured. s.
great mas been found the difficulty il
introducing this variety OF grass an,
, clover INTO native sod 10y means o
, sowing. the seed That many have ad
6 yocated transplanting small sods o
II bluegrass and white clover and al
loving them to spread and take pos
a session ot the ground. This plan, how
ever good 1t may he fora small paStur
@ designed Tor single COW, Is Cntirel
/. lmpractlcable fIr Il pasture in whic
>. several hundred cattle are TO be kept
b. During the past two wears MI
George u. Subway, son Of l." B. Sid
, way, Esq, OF this city, has been en-
t. gagged IN preparing a stock farm q
about one thousand acres in Barr
/. county, southwestern Missouri. Mos
1t OF the land is llmbefed, but the tree
are chiefly small and alta conSidcrabl
/, distance apart. Some OF 1t was fire
II from trees, and considerable porto
/. has been cleared. The tract has
variety of soils. A part of the Ian
g is rich valley, a portion table lane
re- and the remainder n rocky hillside
/. The native sod was composed of blu
e. joint and common prairie grass.
:. was the desire OF Mr.. Subway to II
e place the native grasses with blue an
10 orchard grass in the shortest time po
as Siblc, and at the least expense. II
ID sowcd the seed OF these grasses on tn
II. sod at different times IN the year, an
r noticed the results. He observed th;
c. some spots on the open range that ha
H. not been burned over in the fall, viii
y. ter, or spring, but over which iir'
at had run in the midsummer, produce
scarcely any grass the next seasol
,y This indicated that the fires klndled
to tins season OF the year nearly or qui
E. Killed out the wild grass. The burr
IN ing proceeds very slowly at such time
a if there is no wind, and the combu
IL tion OF the old and dry grass, and tn
e- which is green, produces so muC
,le heat as to kill most of the grass-root
at Mr.. Subway sowed orchard and bit
grass seed on the spots where fires hg
On been started during the summer by a
m cident, and found that he obtained
IT, good stand. About the LIST of last }
ty ly he selected II dry, hot, and calm da
IL and burned the grass on tract co
A. tanning sixty acres. Last March
n; sowcd the seed OF orchard and bit
d, grass on this land, but used no harro
RS. for covering it. He sowed the SEE
Il, during a drizzling rain, when Il
cd ground was quite wet. The seed ge
minated at once, and grass soon co
c" cred the ground. In sixty davs stot
10 was feeding on the orchard -gras