STUDIES IN SOUTH INDIAN PASTURES                    69

growth of the grass in normal years. During the eighteen months of the
investigation from July 1929 till December 1930, the seasons can be divided up
into Dry period I, July-August 1929 ; Wet period I, September-November 1929;
Dry period II, December 1929—August 1930; and Wet period II, September
1930—November 1930. Dry period II can strictly be broken into at May 1930;
when an unusually heavy burst of rain occurred in connection with the passage
inland of a cyclonic storm, and when the bulk of the fall of 9.64 inches fell during
48 hours and large losses of moisture occurred by run-off and the residual soil
moisture did not influence the growth of fresh herbage to any great degree.
That month is thus included in the Dry period II. Judged by yields of hay from
adjoining paddocks, the years were fairly normal, the yield for the season 1929 was
500 lbs. hay per acre and that for 1930 was 700 lbs. The year 1930, though it had a
lower rainfall, seems to have been the more favourable for the pasture owing to a
better distribution of the rainfall.

                                             SOIL CONDITIONS.

The Livestock Research Station has a uniformly light red sandy loam soil, of
medium depth which varies in composition and character but slightly. The
topography of the Station would lead one to believe that the soil varies very widely,
because of its undulating nature. Soil profiles as revealed in cuttings for wells and
deep silo pits show a light red soil to a depth of 6-10 feet, underlaid by a
greyish gravelly clay and then by bed rock of gneissic origin. The bed rock is
usually at a considerable depth but outcrops occasionally in the higher parts of
the Station.

Table II gives the composition of the soil in the paddocks from which samples
were drawn.

                                                   TABLE II.

              Composition of soils of paddocks from which samples were drawn.

                                                                                                                       F