296 



GRASSES OF IOWA. 



in pastures are bluegrass, white clover, redtop and timothy. 

 In the Boyer and Maple valleys and on the Missouri bottoms 

 the wild grasses predominate. To a limited extent alfalfa 

 meadows have been started in Carroll, Ida and Woodbury 

 counties. The loess hills, skirting the Missouri bottoms, are 

 mostly cultivated, though unbroken wild meadows and pastures 

 still remain. In the eastern portion of this district consider- 

 able corn fodder is u^ed as forage, the amount used depending 

 largely on the condition of the pastures and meadows. 



Fig. 139. Grass covered bills and forests along the Mississippi. 



Andropodon and Bouteloria. 



The open places on hills contain 



Many other grasses have been tried with varying success. 

 Orchard grass, naturalized in many places, is on^ of the most 

 successful. Tall oat grass gives some promise. Italian rye 

 grass is unable to resist the cold of our winters and is a com- 

 plete failure. Meadow foxtail {Alopecurus pratens is) does fairly 

 well as an early grass when sown the season before, but is 

 hardly adapted to this section. The most promising of the 

 recently introduced grasses is smooth or Hungarian brome. 

 The short- awned brome has also been tried and is very prom- 

 ising. Rye and barley are often used as forage plants. Ger- 

 man millet and Hungarian grass find extensive use in some 

 s3asons. Broomcoru millet is frequently sown in northern 

 and northwestern Iowa. " 



