32 



ing thin improved iu liesli and the milli flow considerably increased. 

 They came to the pens at night with their stomachs distended, and 

 chewed the cud as contentedly as if they had been grazing in a first- 

 class pasture. Investigating the matter, the fields and pastures were 

 found to be covered with a weed from 3 to G inches tall, in appearance 

 like a young tobacco plant, apparently this star thistle. The cows 

 were eating of it greedily. Later it put up many stems from each root 

 that grew to be from 2 to 3 feet tall. The Hower was yellow and white 

 and the seed head, when ripe, at a distance resembled that of the wild 

 sunflower. Matured specimens of star thistle were found in great 

 abundance in Callahan, Shackelford, Eastland, Taylor, Jones, and 

 Nolan counties and were identified by various farmers as this forage 

 plant. A farmer who resides in Burnet County saw it growing in 

 Callahan County and says that the farmers of his neighborhood esteem 

 it very highly as an early forage, especially for milch cows. 



Lamb's Quarters {Chenopodium album). — A common weed through- 

 out this part of Texas. When young it is used by housewives a^ a 

 salad, but farmers here regard it as a valuable forage plant for cattle. 

 It grows in pasture lands as well as in cultivated fields, appearing in 

 early sin-ing. 



Grandpa's Beard {Clematis drummondii). — This vine has some value 

 for forage purposes, as cattle often eat the leaves. Its fruits are very 

 showy and give to the plant its common name, as above. 



Wild Sages {Croton spp.) grow abundantly in this section, and if 

 valuable for forage purposes the fact should be definitely determined 

 and made known. Some farmers here say that cattle and sheep both 

 eat them. On the other hand there are those who regard them as 

 poisonous. It is possible that these sages have been confounded with 

 other aromatic perennials which have much the same appearance and 

 odor but which are known to be harmless. 



Red Root Sedge (Cypenis erythrorhizos). — A species of sedge that 

 occurs in many parts of this section and is believed to be a good forage 

 l)lant. It grows 2 or 3 feet high, has a strong root, stools out like 

 wheat, and forms large bunches of leafy stems which stock of all kinds 

 eat. W cut before it becomes too old it will produce a large amount of 

 nutiitious hay. It grows only in wet or marshy meadows. 



Hog Nut, Chufa {Ctjperus esculentim). — A sedge that appears in 

 early spring in low places. It produces tubers similar to those of the 

 blue weed, though in much larger quantities. Hogs are fond of these 

 and will root up the ground in their search for them. In some sections 

 of Texas it is cultivated especially for hogs, and the tubers are said to 

 contain large amounts of starch, oil, and sugar. As it withstands dry 

 weather well it is recommended for cultivation in sections subject to 

 periodical droughts, with the caution that it may, like Johnson grass, 

 be difticult to eradicate when once established. 



Ephedra nevadensis belongs to the same general group as the 



