27 



This is qnite common and alinndant on damp soils, and its long and abundant 

 leaves give it considerable value lor grazing, but its stems are too coarse and woody 



for bay. 



Bkoom-sedge {Androi)ogonviroinici(s).— Stems strictly erect from an almost woody 

 base, flattened below and loosely brancbed above; lower leaves about 1 foot long, 

 upper leaves sborter, smooth or hairy; panicle long and loose; spikes usually in 

 pairs and partially inclosed by the sheaths; spikelets covered with white or yellow- 

 ish hairs, and with awns nearly four times their length. 



One of the most common species in old flelds and on dry soils, being usually the 

 iirst to make its appearance in old fields and often causing great annoyance in 

 meadows. When young and tender it is grazed to some extent, but soon becomes 

 tough and worthless. It is one of the most troublesome weeds of lawns and 

 meadows, and has so little value for pastures that its growth should never be 

 encouraged. 



Bunch-Grass {Andropo(jon /en«-).— Stems very slender, with many widely spread- 

 ing branches; leaves numerous, narrow, short, and smooth; spikes single, 1^ to 3 

 inches long, slender; spikelets slightly hairy, half as long as the bent and twisted 

 awn. The most slender and earliest flowering species in the group. 



Very common in open, dry pine barrens, but the numerous stems are so wiry and 

 the leaves so slender that it is not eaten well when other grasses are available. 



Johnson Grass {Jnclropogon lialepense) (fig. 4).— Perennial from long, creeping 

 rootstocks; stems single or in clumps, erect-branching, coarse, 3 to 6 feet; leaves 

 numerous, long and broad, panicle open and spreading; seeds large and numerous. 

 Much like a small sorghum in general appearance. 



This grass has been in cultivation in this country since about 1830, and is now 

 quite generally distributed through the Gulf States. It grows best on the rich and 

 heavy lime soils of the black prairie region and along the creek bottoms of the yel- 

 low-loam region, and is rarely seen in the pine-woods region near the coast. In 

 localities where it grows well it is at the same time one of the most valuable hay 

 grasses and the most troublesome and pestiferous weed. As a i)asture grass it has 

 but little value, as it begins its growth late iu the season and the tops are killed by 

 the first heavy frost in autumn. Its large and fleshy rootstocks are near the surface, 

 and are so injured by trampling that the grass soon almost wholly disappears from 

 the fields, though there is always enough left to restock the land when it is again 

 brought under the plow. Its greatest value is as a hay grass, and for that purpose 

 it can not be excelled. On land which is suited to its growth it will give at least 

 three cuttings annually, and make a total yield of from three to five tons per acre. 

 The hay is coarse and not attractive in appearance, but stock of all kinds eat it 

 greedily, seeming to prefer it to any other hay. Liverymen who have used it state 

 that it is the best hay they can find, but it is rarely fed in stables where there is a 

 ready sale for the manure, for the seeds spread the grass wherever the manure may 

 be used. But if the hay is mt, as it should be, before the heads appear, the manure 

 from it can do no harm. 



The objections to the cultivation of Johnson grass are the rapidity with which it 

 spreads to fields where it is not wanted, and the great difliculty in eradicating it 

 from fields where it has become established. It will soon almost disappear when 

 fields are pastured, but the roots remain alive and will again take possession of the 

 field as soon as it is plowed. Instances are known where fifteen aud even twenty 

 years of continuous pasturing have failed to produce any appreciable eft'ect on the 

 vitality of the roots. When there are only occasional small patches of it in a field 

 they can be destroyed by hoeing and covering with salt to the depth of half an inch, 

 but when it covers any considerable portion of a field the only practicable method 

 of killing it is by weekly hoeings continued from early spring until late summer. 

 On sandy soils it can be readily killed in this manner, but on heavy clay or black 

 lands the work is more difficult, and will require a longer time. In any case, the 

 field should be watched constantly for plants which are almost sure to make their 



