31 



Fig. 25. PASPALTJM DISTICHTJM L. Amoen. Acad. 5 : 391. 1759. KNOT- 

 GRASS.— A low, creeping, somewhat succulent perennial, with fiat leaves and 

 two spikes 3.5-6 cm. (li'-2i') long at the apex of the upright flower-bearing 

 branches, which are 1-3 dm. (4'-12') high. Racemes 3-5 cm. (l'-2') long; spike- 

 lets (b, c) in two rows, OA'ate, acutish; empty glumes 3- to 5-nerved, about 2 mm. 

 (1") long, thinly and minutely pubescent.— Ditches and muddy or sandy shores, 

 Virginia and Missouri to Florida, Texas, and southern California, northward 

 on the Pacific coast to Oregon. (Widely distributed in tropical and subtropical 

 regions of both hemispheres.) April to October. 



Knot-grass has much the same habit of growth as Bermuda-grass, and is val- 

 aable for holding loose sands along river banks and margins of ponds. The 

 somewhat succulent stems and tender leaves make excellent grazing. 



