GUASSE3 OF IOWA. 371 



spicuous bluish patch of grass on the embankments. This is 

 the introduced Colorado blue stem or western wheat grass. It 

 is native from Texas to Kansas, ISebraska, Iowa, Dakota and 

 Montana. It is one of the most valuable grasses of the plains 

 and is one of the three valuable grasses of this genus that are 

 native to Iowa. It is common on the loess in western Iowa, 



Fig. 172. Western wheat grass, [Agropyron occidcntale). One of the most val- 

 uable grasses of the plains. Conamon in the dry prairies. Introduced in 

 many portions of this state. Also native to the loess of western Iowa. 



where it is used for hay and pasturage. In the northwest it is 

 much prized as a forage plant. The yield is not large, but the 

 quality is said to be unsurpassed. Like quack grass, it pro- 

 duces a large number of underground rootstocks. Lamson- 

 Scribner says: "After two or three cuttings the yield of hay 

 diminishes so much that it is scarcely worth the harvesting 



