6 THE FORAGE AND FIBER CROPS IN AMERICA 



probable that all plants of the grass family are monocarpic 

 that is, produce seed but once. 



The duration of pastures and meadows may be influenced 

 also by the opportunity which exists for grasses to produce 

 seed freely. Pastures which are pastured too heavily often 

 decrease in the thickness of the sod. It is r, matter of observa- 

 tion that the duration of timothy meadows is shorter than 

 formerly. This may be due to the practise of cutting timothy 

 before the seed has formed, thus preventing re-seeding; or may 

 be due to conditions less favorable to vegetative reproduction. 



4. Common Characters. Generally speaking, the cultivated 

 grasses have the characters common to the grass family 

 namely, fibrous roots, jointed stems (nodes and internodes), 

 two-ranked leaves consisting of sheath, blade, ligule, and 

 auricle, one leaf arising from each node. Flowers are borne 

 in spikelets, ovulary one-seeded, styles two, anthers usually 

 three. (C. A. 52-58) 



The cultivated grasses have certain characters common to 

 each other but not common to all members of the grass family. 

 They are perennial, grow during a considerable period of the 

 year, produce but a small portion of their weight in seed which 

 has little food value, have relatively a large amount of leaves 

 to culms. The culms are rather small with relatively heavy 

 walls. In grasses of economic value the surface of the leaves 

 and stems is usually smooth. The essential characters which 

 make grasses of economic value are yield, palatability, health- 

 fulness, duration, prolificacy, and ease of curing. 



5. Growing Point of Leaf. The value of the grasses for 

 grazing consists in a considerable measure in the large number 

 of basal leaves and the manner of growth of the leaf blade. 

 The growing point, which can usually be recognized by its 

 lighter color, is at the base of the blade. The upper portion 



