The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1889-02-22
SOWING GRASS AND CLOVER SEED.

What world of changes this Is, sure
ly. and change Is no more apparent in
any other direction than in farm prac-
tice. Heretofore it has been thought
indispensable to have grain crop for
the protection q of grass and clover
seed, as if grass and clover cannot take
care OF themselves. They do this well
when they spring up as weeds where
We don't want them, and, in fact, they
are as able TO do it as well where We
don t want them consequently We are
gradually cutting loose from the foster
crops, and We are sowing clover and
grass just rs We SOW other crops, Civ
ing them all the ground. and all the
light and air. sowed few acres of
clover and timothy, last spring, alone.
The land was thoroughly well plowed
and worked with the Acme pulverizer.
The grass and clover-a peck of each
per acre-were sown. and 4 light, slop-,
ing tooth harrow was run over the sur.
face. 1t was pleasing sight to see the
young grass, like hair, coming through
the surface III two weehs after SOWING,
and the round clover leaves interspers-
ed among the tiny spires of the grass.
Nothing interfered with that grass and
itcame on quickly, covering the ground
by the end of May, lit was sown in
April, and in August it was a dense
mat. In September turned IA lot of
calves on 1t, and they fed it down,
and now it does not differ at all in ap-
pearance from an adjoining part of the
field seeded the year before with oats.
But oats. ) few years ago the man
who sowed grass seed with oats would
risk being thought an imbecile at least,
perhaps crazy. Fall grain was thought
the only crop to seed grass with and
clover Was sown on the snow, or on the
frozen ground, or on the hard. beaten
snrface, haphazard. in the spring, to
do or die. Usually it did die. Then
the poor catch WAS complained of and
seedlings that had failed made poor
meadows and scanty hay. The thing
cured itself. Grass would no longer
grow in the old way, and fresh land
must be provided, and oats necessarily
ursnrped.the place of the fall grain.
| say usurped, because it robs the grass
and clover of the food they need and
must have or perish. But grass and
clover are sown with oats, and the
practice is becoming popular and gen.
eral. just as boy on 4 log fears to
get out ofreach of the shore of the pond,
and keeps within knee depth of water,
so We farmers hang on to the spring
grain seeding, and cannot break loose
because the young grass is so tender,
We think. 1t is tender, doubtless, but
1t is too tender to be burdened with a
hungry crop TO starve and shade it
from the air and sun. If one cannot
bring himself to this belief, he must
choose the oat crop as the foster, and if
he does well with the land, giving it
manure literally, the oats will pay for
it, and the grass will repay for it, and
tit the soil well: the grass ard clover
will make ont to stand the strain and
show a fine aftermath on the stubble,
and give a good account of themselves
the next year. have about so acres
thus seeded with oats, not that
thought the oats helped the grass, but
that the land was good enough for both
as it was-and wanted the oats any
how. But for several years past l
have lost every clover seeding made in
fall crops, and | have had but poor
timothy and other grass from fall SOW.
ing. If one will study the drift of ex-
perience now given in the agricultural
Journals, he will find that the old
method is fast being abandoned and
that spring sowing is becoming popu-
lar and successful. Thus we change
and advance. but unless one reads of
what is going on. he gets left behind.
Henry .Htcwarf IN Parol Neg York.
cr.