1204 



Rural School Leaflet 



4. The pupils should know that barley is not extensively grown in 

 New York State because some of the more useful cereals, such as wheat, 

 corn, and oats, produce good crops. Owing to its shallow root system 

 barley can be grown where there is but little soil moisture. The great 

 bulk of the barley crop of the United States is grown in those western 

 States where the soil and climate are too dry for the 

 production of other grains. 



5. If there are reference books available, have the boys 



and girls find out how long barley has been cultivated 



and for what purposes. They should know that barley 



takes about the same place in European agriculture 



that corn takes in the United States. 



It is very frequently mentioned in 



English literature. One of the finest 



pastoral references in Tennyson's 



poems is the following from " The 



Lady of Shalott": 



" Only reapers reaping early 

 In among the bearded barley, 

 Hear a song that echoes cheerly 

 From the river winding clearly, 

 Down to towered Camelot; 

 And by the moon the reaper weary, 

 Piling sheaves in uplands airy, 

 Listening whispers ' ' Tis the Fairy 

 Lady of Shalott.' " 



Redtop. — The study of 

 grasses will be valuable for 

 summer work. The difference 

 in the size and shape of the 

 heads of the grasses should be 

 observed, also the difference in 

 the seeds. The pupils may be 

 interested to enter a com- 

 petition that has for its object 

 the best collection of grasses 

 mounted and named. 



Redtop is third in impor- 

 tance among our cultivated forage grasses. Timothy ranks first and 

 Kentucky blue-grass second. Have the pupils find out how much 

 redtop is grown in the neighborhood. If it is used instead of timothy, 

 find out why. 



A few facts that the teacher may find useful in the study of redtop are 

 as follows: 



Fig. 2. — Types of barley: a, two-rowed, bearded, 

 hulled; b, six-rowed, bearded, hulled; c, four- 

 rowed, bearded, hulled; d, six-rowed, beardless, 

 hull-less 



