CHAP. 37. (15.)—THE VETCH.
The vetch, [Note] too, enriches the soil, and its cultivation en-
tails no labour on the agriculturist. It is sown after the
ground has been but once turned up, and requires neither hoe-
ing nor manuring; nothing at all, indeed, except harrowing
there are three periods for sowing it; the first is about the
setting of Arcturus, when it is intended for feeding cattle
in the month of December, while in the blade; this crop, too,
is the best of all for seed, for, although grazed upon, it will
bear just as well. The second crop is sown in the month of
January, and the last in March; this last being the best crop
for fodder. Of all the seeds this is the one that thrives best
in a dry soil; still, however, it manifests no repugnance to
a shaded locality. This grain, if gathered when quite ripe,
produces a chaff superior to that of any other. If sown near
vines supported by trees, the vetch will draw away the juices
from the vines, and make them languid.