68 



THE FORAGE AND FIBER CROPS IN AMERICA 



67. Description. The roots are more shallow than timothy;. 

 the plant is strongly stoloniferous, especially upon moist soils, 

 making a firm sod which stands tramping well, and also makes 

 the grass useful for preventing soils from washing. The culms 

 are I to 3 feet tall and are frequently decumbent at the base. 



The nodes which come in 

 contact with the ground 

 root freely. 



The inflorescence is an 

 erect, open, much-branch- 

 ed spreading panicle with 

 many one-flowered spike- 

 lets, 1.5 to 7 inches in 

 length, with an expanse 

 of the lower branches 

 half such length. The 

 panicle is at first contract- 



Redtop taken in central New York State June 28 

 Just coming into bloom. One-third natural size 



Spike let of 

 redtop. En- 

 larged four 

 times. 



ed and green in color, but later expands and assumes the char- 

 acteristic purple color. The flowering glume is hyaline, usually 

 awnless; palea short, often minute or wanting. Empty glumes 

 longer than flowering glume. Redtop has a superficial re- 

 semblance to Kentucky blue grass. The general observer may 

 distinguish it from the latter by the purple color of the panicle 

 and the smaller and more numerous spikelets. The fact that 

 the spikelets are one-flowered in redtop and from three to 

 five-flowered in Kentucky blue grass serves to separate them 

 positively. 



