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THE AMERICAN FARMER 



cut from one acre five tons and one thousand six hundred and twenty-two pounds of dry hay. 

 The proper time for mowing Timothy, is when the first dry appearance is seen above the first 

 joint; if mowed earlier than this, the plant is injured; if left to a later period, the starch and 

 sugar are converted into indigestible woody fibre, and the nitrogenous compounds, on which 

 its value chiefly depends, are transferred from the leaves and culm to the seed, which mostly 

 drop out before they reach the manger. Timothy is not well adapted to hot sands, gravels, 

 chalks, nor hard, sterile clays; but thrives on peaty, damp soils, and especially on most 

 calcareous loams, where it exhibits its fullest perfection. 



Meadow Foxtail. (Alopecurus Pretensis.) Generic characteristics: Spikelets, one 

 flowered, glumes compressed and keeled, united at the base, lower palea awned on the back, 

 upper palea wanting, stamens three, styles generally united, stigmas long, panicle compressed 

 into a cylindrical spike like the tail of a fox, from which it derives its 

 name. Native of Great Britain. 



The specific characters are, an erect, smooth stem, two or three feet 

 high, with swelling sheaths, spikes cylindrical, obtuse, equaling the sharp 

 cone-like glumes, awn twisted and twice the length of the blossom. The 

 spike not so long as that of Timothy. Flowers in May, in fields and 

 pastures. Perennial introduced. 



The meadow foxtail closely resembles Herds-grass, but may be distin 

 guished from it as having one palea only. The spike or head of meadow 

 foxtail is soft, while that of Timothy or Herds-grass is rough. It flowers 

 earlier than Timothy, and thrives on all soils except the dryest sands and 

 gravels. 



It is valuable grass for pastures, on account of its early and rapid 

 growth, and of its being greatly relished by stock of all kinds. The stems 

 and leaves are too few and light to make it so desirable as a field crop. It 

 thrives best on a rich, moist, strong soil, and the quantity of its nutritive 

 matter when raised on such soils is considerably greater than on sandy 

 soils. As a pasture grass, its luxuriant aftermath, being in value nearly 

 one fourth greater than its first spring growth, recommends it still more 

 highly. In this respect it is superior to Timothy, the aftermath of which 

 is generally but slight. For lands designed to be laid down to permanent 

 pasture it will make a prominent part of the seed. &quot;Where it occurs in 

 fields it loses largely its nutritive value if cut in the blossom. It is 

 regarded in England as one of the most valuable of the native pasture 

 grasses, forming there a very considerable portion of the sward, vegetating 

 with great luxuriance, and starting up vigorously when eaten off by stock, 

 producing seed in abundance, and enduring any amount of forcing and 

 irrigation. It does not acquire its full perfection and hold of the soil 

 until three or four years after being sown. The aftermath exceeds the 

 flowering crop in quantity as well as in nutritive matter. The grass loses 

 seventy per cent, of its weight in drying, and the hay contains about sixty- 

 seven hundredths per cent, of nitrogen. 



The seed of meadow foxtail is covered with the husks of the flower, 

 MEADOW FOXTAIL. so ^ t anc j woo u V) w hil e the larger valve is furnished with an awn. There 

 are five pounds of seed in a bushel, and 76,000 seeds in an ounce. An insect attacks the 

 seed while it is forming, and it is also subject to blight, and hence the seed is somewhat diffi 

 cult to procure and is held at a high price. We have many grasses superior to it for cultiva 

 tion, but for permanent pastures it is superior to Timothy, which is not a suitable pasture grass. 

 It is found abundantly in our best pastures, is one of the earliest to start in the spring, 

 and the first to mature its seeds. 



