9. Long-rooted Clover.—This is a Hungarian variety—biennial, but resows itself several years in succession, on good, clean land. Its yield of hay and seed is abundant. Needs a deep, dry soil, and stands a drought better than any other grass. To plow in as a fertilizer, or for soiling cattle, it is valuable, wherever it will flourish.
10. Sain-Foin.—Adapted to calcareous or chalky soils; considered one of the best plants ever introduced into England; but in New England it proves almost a failure—it requires more cool moisture and less frost.
11. Timothy.—In England, Meadow Cats'-tail, and in New England, Herd's-grass. This is the most valuable of all the grasses, and wherever it will thrive well, should never be superseded by anything else for hay. It should be cut when the seed has begun to harden, but before it begins to shell, and never in the blossom. Let every farmer remember that timothy, cut in the seed, contains twice as much nutriment as when cut in the blossom; hence, it is not worth more than half as much for hay, sown among clover, as when sown by itself, as it must be cut too early, to avoid losing the clover.
12. Red Top.—We can not find this described in agricultural books; but we have been familiar with it for thirty-five years, and can not find a New York or New England farmer who does not know it well and prize it highly. For low, moist, rich meadows, the red top is the best for hay of any known grass. It yields abundantly, and may be cut at any time, from July to last of September. The hay is better for cattle than timothy. Many intelligent gentlemen insist that it is the most healthy hay for horses.
After all that has been written on the various grasses, we regard it best for farmers throughout the continent to cultivate only the following:—
For early pastures, vernal grass and meadow foxtail; pastures through the season, white clover, cocks-foot, meadow foxtail, red clover, and timothy; for lowland pastures, red top and tall fescue; for hay, timothy, red top, orchard grass, and tall fescue; for the shade of fruit-trees, orchard grass; to be plowed in as fertilizers, red clover and white clover, for soiling cattle, tall oat-grass and lucern.
Time of sowing grass-seed is important. Some prefer the fall, and others the spring. Fall sowing should be very early or very late. Early sowing will give the young plants strength to endure the frosts of winter, which would kill late sown; but sow so late that it will not vegetate until spring, and it will come up early and get out of the way of the droughts of summer. Grass-seed sown late in the spring will always fail, except when followed by a very wet season. Sow timothy with fall grain, or late in the fall, or on a light snow toward the close of winter. Do not sow clover in the fall, as the young plants will generally fail in the cold winter;—sow it on the last light snow of winter, and it will always succeed. Roll the land in spring on which you have sown grass-seed in the last of winter; it will benefit the grain, and cause the grass-seed to catch well, and get an earlier and more rapid growth. Let all who would not lose their seed and labor, remember that grass-seed not sown so as to form good roots, before the frosts of winter or the drought of summer, will be lost; the plants will be killed. Timothy-seed sown in the fall, one peck to the acre, will produce a good crop the next season.
GREENHOUSE.
Greenhouses vary as much in style and cost as dwellings. The simplest is any tight enclosure, covered with a glass roof at an angle of forty-five degrees, facing the south, and kept warm by artificial heat. The temperature is not allowed to be lower than forty nor higher than seventy degrees of Fahrenheit; this will keep plants growing and make them blossom, and affords a good place for starting plants to be transplanted to out-door hotbeds, and finally to the vegetable garden, after frosts are over. There is but one main danger in greenhouse culture, and that is obviated by a little care: it is, allowing the air to become too much heated for the health of the plants; they require but little heat, but need it regularly. Some greenhouses are warmed by stoves, and serve a good purpose; others have a stove set in a flue which is built in the wall, gradually rising until it has passed around two or three sides of the building. Place three or four sheet-iron pans over this flue, at different points, and keep them filled with water; the fire in the flue will heat the water, and impart both warmth and humidity to the atmosphere, which is very favorable to the health and growth of plants. Such a house is favorable to the growth of tender exotic fruits and plants. A similar house without any artificial heat affords an excellent place for the cultivation of the finest varieties of foreign grapes.