43 



of seedsmen. In Germany this grass is used on railway embankments, where 

 on the poor, thin soil its strong, creeping roots form a turf wliich holds the 

 earth together, thus preventing it from being washed or blown away. 



No. 124. Hordeum jubatiim Linn. Squirrel-tail-grass. (Fig. 51.) 

 A rather slender annual or biennial, usually about a foot high, growing along the 

 sandy seashore, borders of the Great Lakes, and in the alkaline regions of the 

 West. The long, slender awns of the glumes are widely spreading, and. the head 

 or spike is thus given the appearaut-e of the "brush" of the fox, hence the com- 

 mon name, '"foxtail." This grass is sometimes recommended for cultivation for 

 ornament, and if the tops are cut off before the awns have expanded they may 

 be used for dry bouquets ; but the heads soon break up, and. for this reason the 

 srass is of little value even for ornament. It 

 has no agricultural value, and, in fact, where 

 it has s])read in the West, as it often does along 

 the irrigating ditches, it becomes a serious 

 pest. Hay containing this squirrel-grass is 

 considered nearly valueless. The sharp-pointed 

 joints of the spike, each with several long and 

 slender beards, stick fast in the nose and 

 mouth of horses and cattle, often penetrating 

 the flesh, and cases are reported where they 

 have caused the death of these animals. 



No, 125. Hordeum murinum Linn. Wall Barley. 



A coarse, tufted annual, 6 inches to 2 feet high, with 

 dense and somewhat flattened, bear<led spikes 

 2 to 4 inches long The beards or barbed awns 

 are 1 to li inches long and rather rigid. This 

 grass IS a native of Europe, and has been intro- 

 duced along the Pacific Coast, particularly in 

 California, where it has become a serious pest. 

 At maturity the head or spike readily breaks 

 up, and the groups of spikelets, which are sharp 

 pointed at the base, adhere to almost any jiass- 

 ing object; they work up the nostrils of cattle 

 and into the fleece of sheep, and may do in- 

 jury to the animals in much the same way as 

 the native Uordeum juhatum. 



No. 126. Hordeum sativum Jessen. Barley. 



Cultivated barley presents many varieties, pri- Fig. 51.— Siiuirrel-Uil-grass {Hordeum 

 marily divided into two-rowed, four-rowed, juhatum). 



and six-rowed races. The varieties under these 



races are based upon the varied characters presented bj'^ the head, beards, or grain. 

 All api>ear to have originated from Hordeum spontaneum Koch, which grow.s wild 

 in the conntries of southwestern Asia. Six-rowed barley has been in cultivation 

 since prehistoric times in southern Europe ; two-rowed barley is now largely cul- 

 tivated in England aud central Europe. The four-rowed barleys are of later 

 origin than the others, and are most generally cultivated in northern Europe and 

 in this country. The bailey crop of the United States for 1895 was 87,072,714 

 bushels, of which amount six States jtroduced over 73,000,000 bushels, California 

 leading with 19,023,678 bushels. Barley is the most important cereal of the far 

 north, some of the varieties being cultivated in Norway to latitude 70°. It is 

 employed in making bread also in northern Asia and Japan. Barley soup is an 

 article of diet in central Europe. From naked barley {Hordeum decurllcatum) a 



