486 



seed from Michio-aii, Coiinecticnt, Nebraska, and Ohio, together with 

 the composition of the dry matter of the liernels of each sample. 



Forage plants of the salt marshes of Connecticut, A. L. 

 Wtnton, jr., Ph. B. (pp. 233-245).— " In 1881 the United States 

 Department of Agriculture i)ul)lished a report on the tide marshes of 

 the United States,* from which it appears tlmt there are in Connecticut 

 34.79 square miles or 22,201 acres of 'salt marsh,' and 1.07 square miles, 

 or 1,009 acres of 'swamp land' or fresh-water tide marsh. * * » 



"It appears that of the 23,300 acres of marsh, both salt and brackish, 

 5,309 or nearly one fourth lie about New Haven. 



"The money value of the salt marshes in this State ranges from less 

 than $10 per acre upwards, according to the character of the land and 

 its situation. 



" Witli the exception of a few acres of reclaimed marsh the only crop 

 gathered from this large area is the so-called 'salt hay,' which varies 

 greatly from place to place in the character of the herbage producing 

 it, yields from one half two to or more tons per acre, and brings in market 

 not more than from one half to three fourths as much per ton as upland 

 hay. The marshes are neither miinured nor tilled in any way by their 

 owners. * * * The sediment which settles from the water that 

 overflows them during high tides, or in the case of the river marshes 

 during freshets, supi)lies the oidy fertilizer which they get, and is a 

 kind of natural sevvage irrigation. The importance of ditching is well 

 understood." 



Ctittiny and curing the hay. — The incaclows are mowed anywhere from tlie uiiddle of 

 Jnuo to December. Although " black grass," " three-square," and most of the other 

 marsli plants, excepting, perhaps, " red salt grass," yield a larger and better crop of 

 hay the latter part of .June or the first part of July than afterwards, still, as a matter 

 of fact, few farmers cut salt hay till mucli later in the season. When the marshes 

 are firm enough to bear it the grass is cut with mowing machines. The horses' feet 

 are often shod with "clods," which are stout pieces of board 7 by 9 inches square, 

 attached to their hoofs by means of irons fastened with bolts. * * * The v.alne of 

 the hay for feeding varies greatly, according to the kinds of plants which compose 

 it, as well as the time when cut. We have seen well-conditioned stock that have 

 received none other than good salt marsh hay, while on the other hand some hay cut 

 on the marshes is entirely unfit for feeding. The coarser kinds are only useful for lit- 

 ter, and on some farms salt hay is used exclusively for this purpose. The hay from 

 "red salt grass" makes an excellent mulch, which is particularly valued by straw- 

 berry growers, being (piito free from any seeds which can prove troublesome. Salt 

 hay is also lai'gely uscmI for packing crockery, etc. 



Brief descriptions are given of the following kinds of plants growing 

 on the salt and biackish marshes in the State, together with tabulated 

 results of analyses of most of these plants : black grass {J uncus gerardi)^ 

 salt grass {Spartina juncea), creek sedge {Spartina stricta, vnr. glabra), 

 spike grass {Distichlis marithna, or Brizopi/rum ftjncaium), sea club rush 

 {Scirjms maritimns), goosegrass or greasy bog {Triglochin mariiimvm), 



* Miscellaneous Special Report No. 7, The Tide Marshes of the United States, by D. 

 M. Nesbit, with contributions by the U. S. Coiisi and Geodetic Survey. 



