36 THE SCIENTIFIC FEEDING OF ANIMALS 



Key 



A. Spike grasses including false spike grasses (spikelets sessile or short- 

 stemmed on the unbranched rachis) : 



(a) Spike symmetrically arranged around the rachis; 

 I. Pales awned: 



1. Only one awn: Alopecurus. 



2. With two awns: Anthoxanthtim. 



11. Pales not awned, glumes mucronate : Phleum. 



(b) Spike prismatic, fourth side of rachis naked: Cynosurus. 



(c) Spike bilateral, the other two sides of the rachis naked, spikelets 



alternate. 

 I. Spikelets short-stemmed: Brachypodium. 

 II. Spikelets sessile: 



1. Spikelets with the wide side toward the rachis : Triticum. 



2. Spikelets with the narrow side toward the rachis : Lolium. 



(d) Spike unilateral, the three other sides naked: Nardus. 



B. Meadow grasses (Poa sp.), (spikelets distinctly stipitate, rachis 



branched : Poa. 



(a) Spikelets one-flowered (or apparently so) : Agrostis. 



(b) Spikelets two or more flowered : 



I. Glumes as long as the spikelets: 



1. Spikelets and pales arched: Avena. 



2. Spikelets and pales compressed, carinated: Holcus. 

 II. Glumes shorter than the spikelets: 



1. Spikelets and pales carinated: 



(a) Spikelets glomerulate, compressed with rachis: Dac- 



tylis. 



(b) Spikelets solitary: Poa. 



2. (Spikelets and) pales arched: 



(a) Pales usually awned at tip; stigma inserted at tip 



of ovary : Festuca. 



(b) Pales awned below the tip or naked ; stigma inserted 



below the tip of the ovary : Bromus. 



Alopecurus, foxtail. Cylindrical, soft, false spike, resembling Phleum. Spikelets 

 of Alopecurus at all times readily stripped from above upward, while those of 

 Phleum can be stripped only in maturity and then with difficulty. Glumes of 

 Alopecurus connate, long, pointed densely ciliated, floral glumes (pales) with long 

 awns; spike resembling fox's tail. Glumes in Phleum not connate, resembling 

 bootjack. 



Alopecurus pratensts, meadow foxtail (Fig. 13). Good forage grass, on meadows. 



Alopecurus geniculatus, jointed foxtail. Good pasture grass but short lived. 

 Anthers yellowish white, leaves somewhat bluish green. 



Anthoxanthum odoratum, common spring grass. Of little value. Rather loose 

 false spike, distinctly pedunculated spikelets when in bloom (panicled spike). 



Phleum pratense, meadow grass, Herd's grass, timothy grass (cf. Alopecurus). 

 Valuable. Dense, stiff, cylindrical, false spike (Fig. 14). 



Lolium italicum and L. perenne, Italian and English rye grass. Highly prized 



