timothy
with the wheat, and while more prompt germination is secured by
covering the timothy seed with the hoes of the drill, we often have
seen a successful seeding made without any covering being given. The
work is done at a time when fall rains may continue for days and, when
the sun's heat does not continue long, the covering given by settling
the seed into the loose earth is sufficient. Moisture does not leave
rapidly because the air is not hot.

Deep Covering.--In August the air is hot, and the surface of the ground
is dry nearly all the time. A shower may be followed by hot sunshine,
and the water at the surface evaporates quickly, leaving the ground
covered with a dry crust. There are two essential things to bear in
mind: the seeding should be made only when there is enough moisture in
the ground to insure quick germination, and preferably as soon as
feasible after a rain, and the seed should be put down where moisture
can be retained. It is poor practice to sow any kind of small seeds
before a rain that seems imminent. If it forms a crust, or causes
weed-seed germination along with that of the grass seeds, only harm
results. When seeds are put into a dry soil, and a light shower comes,
there may be germination without sufficient moisture to continue life
in the plants.

The seeds should be well buried: the soil and air conditions are
different from those of the spring. It is best to wait for moisture,
and to save the seed if it does not come, but when enough water has
fallen to make the firm soil moist, the danger of failure is very small
if the seeds are buried one to two inches deep. A surface harrow will
stir the surface, and then the seeds should be sifted down into the
soil by another harrowing. A light plank float, mashing the little
clods and pressing the soil slightly together, finishes the work. The
plants will appear above ground within a few days, the only danger
being in a beating shower that may puddle the surface before the plants
are up.

Seed-mixtures.--When grass is wanted for hay as well as fertility, the
clovers and timothy compose the greater part of a desirable mixture
wherever the clovers and timothy thrive. Probably this condition always
will continue. The clovers are needed to supply nitrogen to the soil
and to put protein into the hay for livestock. They give way, in large
part, or entirely, the second year. Alsike is more nearly perennial
than the red which practically lasts only