47 



and Australia, where it is called Mat-grass, has creeping or ascending flattened 

 stems, rather short leaves, and slender spikes. In some parts of Australia it is 

 highly esteemed for pasturage, and is said to retain its greenness throughout 

 the year in dry climates. It is not injured by light frosts. The prostrate stems 

 sometimes attain a length of 5 or fi feet. A closely related 

 species, M. fascicidata, occurs on the lower Rio Grande. 



No. 136. Melinis minutiflora Beauv. Molasses-grass. 



A sweet and highly nutritious species, and the most esteemed 

 of the grasses of central Brazil, where it is native, grow- 

 ing upon the hills and dry lands. It is regarded a most 

 excellent grass for dairy cows, and deserves a trial in the 

 Southern and Southwestern States and California. The 

 Brazilian names for this grass are "Capim mellado" and 

 "Capim (jordura." The English name given above is a 

 translation of these. This species occurs also in Ascension 

 Islaiul, Natal, and Madagascar. 



No. 137. Muhlenbergia diffusa Schreb. Nimble AVill. 



(Fig. 5.5.) 

 A low, slender, diffusely branched grass growing on dry hills, 



in woods, and especially in shady, 



waste grounds about dwellings. 



The leafy, wiry stems, which are 



from 6 to 18 inches long, spring 



from extensively creeping and 



ra.ther tough rhizomes, which make 



a turf very difficult to break up. 



When young, this grass is readily 



eaten by all kinds of stock, but 



after it matures it is so tough that 



few animals will touch it. It pos- 

 sesses really very little agricultural 



A-alue, and some look upon it rather 



as a weed. It is a native from 



southern New England to lowa^ 

 Michigan, and southward, blooming in the latter part of 

 summer. 



No. 138. Muhlenbergia distichophylla Kth. Bearded 



Saccaton. 

 This is a strong, firmly rooted grass, 3 to 4 feet high, with 



rather long and rigid leaves, and a narrow panicle often 



exceeding a foot in length. It is frecjuent in the rich 



valleys in Arizona and New Mexico, and on rich bottom 



lands it is often cut for hay. It is a coarse grass, like 



Sporoholua icrighiii, and by the settlers is classed witli 



it under the general name of Saccaton. In Arizona it 



forms the more common "hay" that one finds in the towns 



and Avay stations, being pulled by the Mexicans or Indi- 

 ans and brought in on the backs of donkeys or on carts. 



There are many species of Muhlenbergia in the south 



western part of the United States and northern Mexico, 



and doubtless many of them are of considerable agricultural value. 2InhJenhe)-gia 



rireacens is a soft and leafy species growing in clumps on the higher slopes of the 



mountains in Arizona, and with Poa fendleriana forms the chief herbage of the 



so-called "deer parks" of the mountains. (Pringle.) 



Fw. 55.— Nimblo Will 

 {Muhlenbergia dif- 

 fusa). 



Fig. E6. — Knot-root "rass 

 {Muhlenbergia mexi- 

 cana). 



