of foliage, either failed to produce seeds or shbwed other characters 

 which may possibl.y exclude them from the list of varieties of prac- 

 tical utility for general cultivation. Johnson grass made a good 

 yield of forage, but is objectionable to some becau! e of its habit of 

 growth, which, in the South, renders it at times a serious pest in 

 cultivated fields. Both big blue-stem and bushg^ blue-stem thrive 

 under cultivation, but it is quite difficult to secure seeds that will 

 germinate. The Metcalfe bean made an excellent growth, covering 

 the ground thickly with its leaves and stems, and produced flowers, 

 but did not mature seed. It showed great sensitiveness to frost and 

 stock did not seem to relish the forage obtained from it. Gram, or 

 chick pea, and lentil produced good crops of seed and may prove 

 valuable for use in connection with grain and other feed stuffs in 

 fattening stock. 



Quite a number of other grasses, some twenty in all, gave results 

 of sufficient promise to deserve further study and experimentation. 

 These include a number of the indigenous species of Poa, Elymus, 

 Paspaluin, and Mulilenhergia, which in their native condition are 

 valuable for hay and pasturage. The more important of these are 

 mutton grass {Poa fendoleriana), smooth bunch grass {Poa Iceviga- 

 ta), Wyoming blue grass {Poa wheelef^ii), Canadian lyme grass 

 {Elymus canadensis), smooth paspalum {Paspalum Iceve), and 

 wild timothy {Muhlenberg ia racemosa). 



Of the sand-binding grasses which were tested during the season, 

 Marram grass has made a fine growth and will, no doubt, prove as 

 valuable here as it is on the Atlantic coast. Bitter panic grass 

 {Panicum ainai^um) made a good growth, but failed to mature seed, 

 and for this reason may prove to be of less value here than it is along 

 the coast of the Southern States. Reed canary grass {Phalaris 

 arundinacea) has made an excellent showing, particularly in situ- 

 ations that are liable to be submerged for some time ; for example, 

 along the Columbia River. Even where submerged six weeks dur- 

 ing the summer, excellent growth was made early in the spring and 

 late in fall, affording a large amount of forage. In addition to serv- 

 ing as a sand and soil binder, this grass has also made a good show- 

 ing on the drier land of the experimental plots at Walla Walla, and 

 also at Pullman on the grounds of the State Experiment Station. 

 Small sand lyme grass {Elymus arenicolus) has made an excellent 

 growth at Walla Walla from roots transplanted from Grants, Ore- 

 gon, indicating that it will grow on ordinary soil as well as dry, 

 sandy ground, where it occurs naturall3^ It will undoubtedly be of 

 great value as a sand-binder. Big sand grass {Calamovilfa longi- 

 folia) has not given very good results and may prove vmsuitable to 

 the conditions which prevail on the Pacific coast. Seaside blue grass 

 {Poa macrantha) has given excellent results wherever tried and, 



