The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1889-01-15
FOREIGN GRASSES.

The question Of grasses has not
occupied the minds of our ranchers
and dairy farmers here as much as
it should have done, or rather we
would say, as widely as it should
have done There have been re-
Gently some careful experiments
made, which have gone far towards
proving what can be done in this
direction.
1t is well known to all country
residents that the native grasses
have been steadily ousted by two
foreign intruders, viz: Hilo grass
and manienie. The ordinary OBJ
server believes the former to be
utterly worthless and the latter to
have every good property. This is
not entirely true, for if not too rank
cattle will eat Hilo grass readily,
though it makes very poor beef,
while the latter is not by any means
the best material to fatten animals
upon.
The question has, therefore, come
up before some of our stock raisers
as to what to do to improve the feed,
especially has it come before those
who have small herds running on
limited pasture. The grasses that
have been tried are cocksfoot and
rye grass from England, rib grass
from Australia, prairie and Johnson
grass from America and Guinea
grass from Africa; besides red and
Spanish clover. These can all be
seen growing luxuriantly on at least
two ranches in this Kingdom. There
are two methods of planting. One is
to SOW free over a field already con
tanning Hilo grass and manienie.
We had recently an opportunity of
seeing the result of such sowing.
The foreign grasses, in spite of a
luxuriant growth of Hilo grass, were
holding their own famously the
cocksfoot in several places or
patches having come ont victorious
over the Hilo grass. OF course. such
a method of sowing is comparatively
inexpensive, moreover it shows what
an imported grass can do FOR itself
when left to fight its own way. The
other method is to plough out the
worthless grass from a field, harrow
it we'll and then SOW the imported
grass. The results from such plan
are much more rapidly obtained. but |
of course the process is much too
expensive to be carried out on any |
very large scale. On small butter
farms, however, it will be found to |
pay very well, as by sowing at inter
walls constant supply of excellent
fodder for cattle will always be on
hand.
Not only, however, has the expert
ment of sowing imported grasses
been tried on small scale, but on
one ranch a considerable tract of
open land has been free sown, and
in spite of the fact that the cattle
and horses naturally $50" for the
new grass, it is beginning to hold its
own both against its animal and
foes.
Experiments such as these are of
great value to the country. We are
or have been so wrapped up in the
of sugar, that every other
industry has been allowed to get
along in a happy go lucky fashion.
In the last few years there has GER
tainly been great improvement in
Dur stock breeding, but we are not
going 20 keep up the best of stock
unless we supply it with the best OF
iced Just as great general once
said that a soldier marched Oh his
stomach, so does horse or a bullock
work on the same necessary mem
Der. We have no business to go
abroad in the feed line: every pound
IF hay, every portion of feed for our
animals ought to be raised right
lere. and can be raised here if peo-
Die will only set about it systemati-
ally.