The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1886-04-08
Orchard Grass.

The following paper read by Mr.. D.
T. Mills, Sumner County, Tenn, before
the Interstate Agricultural Convention,
recently held at Jackson, Tenn, was re-
ceived with great favor by every one who
heard it. Mr.. Mills said:
ri have been sowing orchard grass for
fifteen years. To give an idea about this
valuable grass, will describe mine as it
now stands. have about three hundred
acres, which has been sowed for from
two to fifteen years without reseeding,
and it is now green as can be, notwth-
standing the long spell of freezing
weather we have had this winter. I
think it will grow and flourish if prop.
erly seeded and managed in almost any
latitude, judging from the way it stands
the droughts and freezes we usually have.
T SOW both in the fall and spring and
rarely fail to get a good stand. I, how
ever, prefer sowing in Semptember, say
from the lst to the 20lb, with clover, if
desired for hay crop the following year.
l regard orchard grass and clover mixed,
cut at the proper time, superior to any
hay ever used on my farm, ard | raise
AT kinds, timothy, herd-grass and all
the millct hays. regard it as having
the finest fattening qualities of any of
the known grasses, and, as for pastures
or grazing grass, it ia with me much su-
pcrior to all others, bluegrass not excep'
ted, as it is the earliest and the latest
grazing. l have had much experience
in grazing it; for instance, in October,
1854, l grazed $50 head of 1000 pound
cattle from October to January 10. l
made test of the fattening qualities by
weighing a lot of eight of those cattle
after weighing them at Lebanon and
driving them twenty miles to my farm.
1 weighed the same eight head of steers
thirty days after they had been on the
grass, and they averaged a gain of forty
five pounds per head, although driven
before weighed two and one.half miles
to the scales. We thought the entire lot
averaged at least 40 punds per head up
to the time we commenced feeding,
which was January 10. Fifteen days
after taking the cattle off the pasture, we
turned in 300 head of sheep and grazed
them until April Is, but found they
damaged the yield of seed per acre one
half. BY grazing the sheep so late in
the spring, as the average was only five
bushels of seed per acre, whereas the
year before, 1 averaged ten bushels per
acre by not grazing SO late and heavy in
the spring. Now, understand before |
commenced grazing the cattle in October,
1 had cut the grass for seed with self
binders, tied and shocked as wheat or
oats. averaged ten bushels of seed per
acre sold TO the dealers in Nashville at
81 per bushel, and within ten days or
two weeks after cutting for seed moved
the meadow, which produced one ton Of
good hay per acre, estimated in sheds by
measurement, which was sold to parties
for whom l was grazing cattle at IS per
ton the sheds. This particular meadow
was mixed with clover. ] forgot to state
that sold the straw after threshing the
seed for S5 per ton.
ain conclusion will say that orchard
grass stays green and grows the year
round grows, too, when mostly needed,
from the fall rains i'll September to ma
turi.y. 1t is as much Il winter grass rs
summer on good land, when not grazed
too late in tho spring. am certain,
from ample experience, that it will make
from fifteen to twenty-five bushels of
seed per acre. All kinds of stock are
fond of it."