EXPERIMENTING WITH GRASSES 105 



weeks later and orchard grass cut 8 days earlier yielded 

 3.6 tons. Redtop is not so much liked by animals as 

 is bluegrass, nor will they fatten so well on it. It is 

 adapted to wetter soils than most other useful grasses, and 

 is not such a stickler for lime as are the better grasses. 

 It endures heat better, too, and will grow farther south 

 than will bluegrasses. I have seen very good redtop on 

 black buckshot soil in north Louisiana, where I am sure 

 bluegrass would promptly perish in summer time. Never- 

 theless, it is not at all at home in hot countries; Ber- 

 muda grass is a far better pasture grass there. I am 

 inclined to advise this : Do not try to force nature. 

 Follow her lead. If you have a redtop soil and climate 

 use redtop. If you wish to grow bluegrass where natural- 

 ly only redtop grows, try drainage, limestone and ferti- 

 lizer first. 



Farms as Grass Experiment Gardens. It is interesting 

 to the student of plant life to observe how very many 

 forms of grass may be found on almost any farm. On 

 Woodland Farm, for example, we can find every grass 

 mentioned in this book excepting the distinctively south- 

 ern grasses, and even some of these are represented. 

 Johnson grass has survived several winters and is yet in 

 evidence, accidentally established. One should familiar- 

 ize himself with the different species ; he can do it readily 

 enough, and if he finds a new grass that he cannot quite 

 place he will get its identification if he will send a flower- 

 ing specimen, top, stem and a bit of the root, to his ex- 

 periment station. Today (July 23, 1910) I can find in 

 bloom or just out of bloom on Woodland Farm the blue- 



