50 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 



objection to mixing these grasses is that animals like 

 brome grass so much better than orchard grass that they 

 will not touch the latter while they can get the brome, 

 which is soon weakened by too close grazing and finally 

 nearly disappears. When used as a meadow, this mix- 

 ture would do very well. 



Brome Grass (Bromus inermis). Brome grass is of 

 rather recent introduction from Europe. It is prized in 

 south-eastern Europe for both hay and pasture. It was 

 introduced by the Department of Agriculture and dissem- 

 inated throughout the West and Northwest in the hope 

 that it might prove adapted to the semi-arid regions. This 

 hope has been in part realized. It is fairly drouth-resist- 

 ant. It will not make much growth during dry weather, 

 but it survives to grow when rain comes. Brome grass 

 makes considerable hay of nutritious quality if cut early. 

 It is hardy and one of the first grasses to start in spring; 

 nor is it cut down by frost till all else is killed. As a pas- 

 ture grass in regions adapted to its growth, it is doubt- 

 ful whether there is a better. It out-yields Kentucky blue- 

 grass by 100 per cent, and animals like it fully as well, 

 often indeed preferring it. The forage is tender, juicy 

 and sweet. Brome grass is a vigorous perennial with 

 stems 2' to 5' high, rather broad blades like oats, slender 

 seed stalks, a wealth of leaves lower down and a habit 

 of making a good deal of second growth of blades after 

 being mown off. It has a habit of thickening and spread- 

 ing by strong creeping root-stocks, so that a thin stand 

 soon thickens and indeed the danger is that the sod may 

 become so interlaced with roots and the stems so crowded 

 that the growth will be very short. When the grass thus 



