THE IMPORTANCE OF GRASS

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1682, 25 May 1904, Page 67

THE IMPORTANCE OF GRASS

Grass is a soil-protector, a soil-renewer. and a soil-builder. -Covering the land with grass is Nature’s way of restoring bo old, worn-out soils the fertility and good tilth characteristic of virgin soil. The true grasses do not add nitrogen lo the soil, as do clover and alfalfa, yet they are in a sense nitrogen-gatherers, in that the nitrogen of the soil is collected and stored up in the roots -if the grass in the form of humus. Thus grasses prevent the waste of nitrogen and other plantfood elements, and serve to protect the soil’ and to maintain its fertility. By these extensive and deep penetrating, root systems, many grasses also- tend to break up and deepen the soil, gathering and storing plant food in their roots, an l thus actually increasing the available plant food of the soil. , Grasses and legumes maintain the supply of soil nitrogen and restore the proper soil texture; besides, they are profitable crops, and, in fact, absolutely necessary on every farm upon which stock is kept. Pasture must be had on every farm, and it is quite essential that it bo made a part of the regular crop rotation. Many soils become too light and mellow by continuous cropping, and need the trampiig or stock to firm them up. Then, so much more grass can be produced when the pastures are kept fresh and new, and tliincrease of fertility and improvement of soil texture results in larger crops of corn and grain when the pasture is broken up and planted to these crops. A convenient and desirable time to mature land is while it is being used as a pasture. If the manure is applied a year or so before breaking, it will stimulate the growth of grass and _ cause a greater production 'pf pasture, giving more and better grazing; meanwhile the soil is enriched by an increased root growth and the formation of humus. Besides these -beneficial results. some plant food will be supplied by the manuring to the first crop which is grown on the breaking at a time when it is much needed, because the larger part of the fertility'in the new breaking is in an unavailable state and cannot readily be used by the new crop. At this stat'd on (says the principal of the _ Kansas Experiment Station), the following rotation is used on a 640-acre section. divided into eight equal parts: First year, grasses and legumes; second 3 r ear. grasses and legumes; third year, pasture; fourth year, pasture; fifth year, corn; sixth year, corn; seventh year, corn; eighth year, grain. By this system of rotation one half of the farm will always be in grasses and legumes or pasture, while the other half of the farm will be producing the largest possible crops of corn and grain. E : acli field will have, a protecting and fertilitymaintaining crop four years out of eight. If, however. the above plant keeps too nnien of the land in grass, the period for which the land is kept in- grass may be maae shorter, or a double rotation may be introduced, in which the farm may be divided into tiro divisions of four fields each. _ The rotation system given may be practiced on one-half of- the farm, only two or three of the fields being kept n grass, while on the other half of the farm the following rotation of crops may be practisedFirst year, legumes and forage; second year, corn; third year, corn; fourth year, grain. At the end of eight years the systems of cropping which are practised on the different divisions cf the farm may be interchanged, the first taking the place of the second, and the second taking the place of the first.