CH. vm] Timothy grass 157 



are frequent: Ox-eye Daisy (Chrysanthemum leucanlhemum, L.), 

 Forget-me-not (Myosotis arvensis, HofT., etc.), Nipplewort (Lap- 

 sana communis, L.), Black Medick (Medicago lupulina, L.), and 

 Field Madder (Sherardia arvensis) (see Figs. 158, 164, 171 and 172). 

 Good seed should have a bushel weight of at least 20 pounds and 

 the Purity and Germination should be equal to the figures given 

 for perennial Rye-grass. 



Phleum pratense, L. 



For Botanical description see p. 121. 



Timothy or Cat's-tail grass is indigenous to most of Europe and 

 temperate Asia ; also to parts of Northern Africa and to North 

 America. It is common all over Britain especially on moist soils. 

 It is a hardy species, resists cold well, and succeeds at high eleva- 

 tions ; but it thrives best at low levels and on moist loams and 

 clays. On wet, marshy or peaty land it often grows with extra- 

 ordinary luxuriance but is then rather coarse. When properly 

 established Timothy withstands drought moderately well, but it is 

 quite unsuitable for sandy soils and dry land generally. In the 

 United States of America it is very largely grown by itself for 

 hay, and it is said to have been introduced from that country 

 into England as an agricultural crop by an agriculturist named 

 Timothy Hansen, about the middle of the eighteenth century. 



Its development from seed is rapid and under suitable con- 

 ditions the maximum yield is reached by the second year. It is 

 not however a long-lived perennial and frequently tends to die 

 out after the third or fourth season. Bather loose tufts are 

 formed which do not cover the ground well by themselves, and 

 it produces quite as much "top" as "bottom" growth. 



It is perhaps more adapted for hay than for grazing, but for 

 the former purpose it should always be cut before the flowering 

 stage is reached. If not cut until after flowering its produce 

 becomes very hard and fibrous (especially the stems) and un- 

 suitable as food for cattle. Timothy is a late-growing grass, the 

 bulk of the crop being formed after midsummer, but it produces 

 a large yield of heavy hay of high nutritive quality. The amount 

 of aftermath is relatively small, especially if the first crop is cut late. 



For the formation of permanent grass, or for leys of two or 



