288 Bulletin 38. 



mans, and is now known among botanists as Hordeum hexash- 

 c/wn, which is simply the Latin for " sixrowed barley." The 

 botanical name of the troublesome weed is Hordeum murinum,the 

 Latin for "wall barley." Since we call the corresponding species 

 of oats "wild oats," this weed is very properly called "wild 

 barley." 



But whatever its correct common name, or whatever it is to 

 be called, it is certainly a very troublesome pest. It is by far the 

 most noxious weed of the Salt River valley, the writer receiving 

 more inquiries concerning it than concerning all other weeds com- 

 bined. The inquiries have been especially numerous during the 

 past year, indicating that the weed is becoming more common 

 and troublesome. The fact also that Professor Tourney in Bul- 

 letin 22, " Something About Weeds," issued only a little over 

 four years ago, does not mention this one, indicates its recent in- 

 troduction, or at least that it has only recently become trouble- 

 some. It is now the most widely spread and most common win- 

 ter and spring weed of at least the Salt River valley. It is every- 

 where, along roads, fences and ditches, and in fields. 



Wild barley is an annual that grows from seed just as culti- 

 vated barley does. It starts to grow in the fall or early winter, 

 at about the same time that barley is commonly sown, and ma- 

 tures in the spring or early summer, as does cultivated barley. 

 Like the latter, it grows readily with alfalfa during winter, mak- 

 ing the most of its growth while the weather is too cool for alfalfa 

 to grow rapidly. It is in alfalfa meadows and pastures that it is 

 the most troublesome. When young it is eaten quite freely by 

 cattle, but as it approaches maturity, it is avoided by them, and 

 thus gets an opportunity to produce seed. Even when grazed 

 quite closely, it manages to produce short-stemmed heads that 

 cattle avoid. The reason it is allowed to mature seed in pastures, 

 as cultivated barley would not be, is that the grain is very small 

 and the beards very rigid and very irritating to the mouths of 

 stock. Consequently the wild barley succeeds in producing a 

 good crop of seed with which to sow the ground for the coming 

 season. 



Not only does the wild barley have the objectionable beards 

 of the common cultivated barley, but its heads break up into 



