84 GRAMINEAL 
the edges ; rootstock with short runners. Perennial. This is not infrequent 
in mountainous woods ; its stem is from 2—4 feet high, and has at its base 
a number of brownish scales. The leaves are long, and of somewhat yellowish- 
green. It flowers in July. It is an early grass, but one not much relished 
by cattle. There is a small variety, decidua, with narrow leaves. 
5. Meadow Fescue (F. praténsis).—Panicle always close ; branches in 
pairs, one bearing a single spikelet, the other one or more spikelets, some- 
times wanting ; spikelets 5—10-flowered ; flowering glumes scarcely awned. 
Perennial. In one variety of this grass some or all of the branches of the 
panicle are in pairs, one usually having several spikelets. In another, which 
is often described as a distinct species or hybrid (F. lolidcea), the spikelets 
are arranged alternately on the stem in a spiked form, either without stalks 
or with very short stalks. This form is very much like the floating 
meadow-grass in appearance, and it is a grass much valued by owners of 
grass lands. The Meadow Fescue is from a foot to a foot and a half high, 
the leaves flat and rough, the upper spikelets on branches springing imme- 
diately from the stem. It is a very common plant, often forming a large 
portion of our meadow-grass near rivers or streams, the variety loliacea being 
less frequent. Though rather a coarse grass, yet the Meadow Fescue is, 
when young, much relished by cattle and sheep, and affords excellent hay. 
On some soils it becomes exceedingly large and coarse, and hence less 
serviceable. 
6. Tall Fescue-grass (Ff. eldtior).—Panicle loose, spreading, with 
many branches, which are mostly in pairs, each bearing 2 or more spikelets, 
and straggling after flowering ; spikelets very numerous, and shortly awned. 
Perennial. This grass differs from the preceding in appearance, yet many 
botanists consider it not as a distinct species, but a variety or sub-species of 
it. The genus Fescue was once believed to contain many more species than 
now, as experience has proved that some plants considered distinct gradually 
run into one type under culture and on different soils. This is not an infre- 
quent plant in wet meadows, flowering in June and July, and growing in large 
coarse tufts. It differs from the /. pratensis by its much-branched spreading 
panicle. The upper spikelets are on short stalks proceeding from the stem, 
the lower ones on simple or divided branchlets, the cluster being large, and 
having a full and branched appearance. The leaves are flat, tapering to a 
point, rough within, and smooth on the outside. The branches of the panicle 
are rough, and the panicle often bends to one side. It is a very productive 
grass, and its herbage, though coarse, is nutritious. Dr. Calvert says it is 
ravenously preferred to all other grasses by cattle and horses. 
7. Tall Bearded Fescue (/. gigantéa).—Panicle branched, drooping 
towards one side; spikelets 3—6-flowered ; glumes very unequal, awn very 
long, inserted a little below the point of the flowering glume. Perennial. 
In a form found in Norfolk the panicle is larger and more drooping; in 
another the panicle is smaller and erect, the leaves are narrower, and the 
spikelets about 3-flowered. This grass when fully grown may be distin- 
guished by its large size, for it is one of the very tallest of our grasses, and 
one which is common in shady woods and moist hedges. In the latter places 
it often even overtops the shrubs ; for when shade and moisture combine, its 
