Year: 1860

ordinary seasons the growth will not be grea- ter than is required for the protection of the roots All the pasturage afforded by timothy meadows is not equal to One-quarter of the damage the succeeding hay crop sustans by allowing stock to run over them. Meadows that are never pastured will last much longer than those that are pastured because the ex- posture of the roots by cropping the grass and poaching the surface of the ground not only kill out the timothy, but after being injured in its growth and partially killed out, weeds and inferior grasses come in and increase the evil already sustained If, in a very favora- bic fall, the undergrowth becomes So heavy as likely to interfere with the moving machine the following season, sheep may be allowed to trim the surface, causing comparatively less injury than cattle and horses.

 Blue grass, and other pasture grasses, gene ally are furnished with long fbrous roots, that run to a surprising depth and hence these grasses are not liable to the same injury by being pastured.

 In order to sustain timothy meadow in health and vigor, and expect large and m- creasing crops from it, a surface dressing of old, wel-rotted stable manure, or rich com post, should be occasionally applied in the fall. This will afford protection to the roots during winter, and the rains ant melting snows will reduce the manure to a situation which will enrich and increase the subsequent growth much beyond the cost and labor of ma- nuring. [Valley Farmer. To PROCURE Fees IN WINTER-Build a commodious hen house upon some plan, only that there be roosting apartment, a place for feeding, with boxes for nests. X good plan is to build in the shape of 9 parallclogram, with the roostiug place across one end. The central portion can be used for feeding, the boxes for the nests being placed around the sides Of the building. with small place be- hind them and the wall, that the hens may enter the nests on the back side. Build the house either of stone. wood or other material. as may be thought best but let it be warm and comfortable in the coldcst weather. and so made that 1t can be well ventilated. Pro- cure some of the large Asiatic breeds, as 1 have found, by my experience, that they will lay in winter when the common varieties will not, with the same treatment. But the per son who expects his hens to lay much in summer after laying all winter, will be dis appointed. Give them as great variety of food as possible, such as corn, bucI,wheat, oats, barley etc., with pure water daily. Give them fresh meat once or twice a week. ottencr, if convenient, with an occasional feed of boiled potatoes or apples. In short, make their feed as near as possible what it Is in sumner and not forget to give them a free supply of oyster shells pounded fine, or lime and sand. Mix together lime and sand, as for plastertng a house; then let 1t dry, and place box filled with it in one corner of your house, and it is surprising how fast it will disappear. Hens will lay some ill winter, without being to all this trouble; but they must have good comfortable quarters. There are other advantages from having good hen house, aside from hens laying in winter. Two or three good wagon loads of good home made &aano every year will pay the expenses, and help to raise corn 10 feed them And then again. fresh meat cannot always be pro- cured They will lay if they have plenty of corn; and as this contains a large portion of oil or fat, it may, perhaps, be substituted for meat to some extent.

 HENS LAYING ALL THE YEAR.-Some people think that if they keep their hens warm in winter, that they will lay eggs freely all the year; but that is mistake. as fowls can be made to lay but about ten dozen eggs each in the year, if ever so great pains are taken with them in the winter; and when they lay enough less in the spring, so that not over the average of ten dozen eggs are obtained usually. The Prairie Farmer has the following statement, which leads one to infer that lis hens may be made to lay one hundred or three hundred eggs in year -accordine to the management of them Still the better treatment spoken of is adyisa- ble, as more eggs will be laid in the winter by adopting t, when they command better price but it will be at the expense of the regular spring laying