OF SCOTLAND.

539

crop in spring, after it is above ground, although no grassseeds may be sown among it.

No culture whatever can be given to grass land, exceptspreading mole-hills, cutting thistles or other weeds, and ga-thering surface stones, especially when the grass is intended tobe mown. These operations must be given, of course, in thesubsequent year or years after sowing, as all such operations,in the first year, belong to the grain crop. In all wet soils, orthose leaving a retentive bottom, water-furrowing is necessary,and opening up gaw-furs and cross cuts must be carefully at-tended to, as nothing is more injurious to cultivated herbagethan stagnant water.

With every possible attention, grasses are sometimes par-tially or totally suffocated by the luxuriance and lodgmentof the grain crop among which they are sown •, or may bethrown out, especially the clovers, by frosts in the ensuingspring. On these occasions, a careful husbandman will fill upthe blanks by sowing and harrowing in fresh seed, or he willresow the whole field with tares or hot-seed peas. This evil ispeculiarly distressing when, by the conditions of a strict lease,the field ought to remain in grass during the remainder ofthe lease, or when the farmer is liable to heavy penalties, if thestipulated quantity of grass land is deficient No rules of hus-bandry whatever can be devised for overcoming this difficulty,which will be any way effectual or profitable. To implementthe imperious conditions of his lease, the tenant may be un-der the necessity to sow the land over again with grass seedswithout any grain crop, with the almost absolute certainty ofincurring a heavy loss, by being obliged to keep his land un-der worthless grass, not in the least advantageous to the land-lord, or rather obviously injurious. For such land will stockitself with weeds, and its quality or fertility will become de-teriorated, instead of being improved, by remaining in pastu-ra ge. If the field, however, be sown in spring with ten pound°1 white clover seed of good quality, and three pecks of rye-grass per acre, well harrowed in among the stubble, a flush ofherbage will appear before mid-summer.