GRASSES 25 



Coolah Grass (Panicum prolutum] is an erect, rather 

 rigid species occurring over a great part of Australia, but 

 principally in the interior, and in some localities it is fairly 

 plentiful. It grows from one foot to two feet high or more, 

 generally on good land that is liable to periodical inundations, 

 and as it makes most of its growth during the hotter months, 

 and retains its greenness far into autumn, it is a valuable 

 stand-by for stock when much of the surrounding herbage 

 is dry. In the interior it is greatly valued by stockowners as 

 a pasture grass, but is not considered a good one to make into 

 hay, as its stems and leaves are too rigid when fully developed. 

 It makes rapid growth, and the young, leafy herbage is greedily 

 eaten by all herbivora, which thrive on it. Under ordinary 

 conditions the Coolah Grass produces an abundance of seed 

 which ripens during summer and autumn. Before the aborig- 

 ines tasted the sweets of civilization they collected large 

 quantities of them, and used them as an article of food after 

 grinding them between two stones and converting them into 

 a kind of meal, which they made into dough and cooked like 

 damper. 



Coolibar Grass (Panicum trachyrhachis) which has stout 

 stems and smooth leaves grows from two to three feet high 

 and is found principally in the eastern portion of the continent, 

 from the coast to the far interior, and in some places fairly 

 plentifully. Inland it is generally found growing on rich 

 soils on open downs, and in ordinary seasons, during the 

 warmer months, yields a great amount of valuable, leafy 

 herbage, of which stock of all descriptions are fond, and on 

 which they fatten. This grass is suitable for systematic 

 cultivation either for permanent pasture or for hay. When 

 allowed to grow undisturbed for a time it produces quantities 

 of seeds which ripen during the summer and autumn. Like 

 the previous species, its seeds at one time formed an article 



