FARMERS' REGISTER— CHARACTERS OF GRASSES. 



325 



The brotnus secalinus spoken of in the foregoing ar- 

 ticle is what is called by the name of cheat in Vir- 

 ginia, and the lolium tcmiilcntum (or darnel) is our spelt. 

 Those who believe that either, or both of these plants 

 are the products of wlieat, may here see their opinions 

 supported by that of the old Hertfordshire farmer 

 above quoted: but at the same time, they should ob- 

 serve that this opinion is evidently stated as one not 

 entertained by many, if by any other persons — which 

 could not be the case if the supposed change was pos- 

 sible, and a matter of frequent occurrence, as is sup- 

 posed by many persons here. 



As both of what we call cheat and spelt are English 

 weeds, it is strange that we hear nothing of either be- 

 ing very injurious to the wheat crops, as is the casa 

 here, and particularly with spelt. 



We have reason to believe that spelt has not very 

 long been known in Lower Virginia, and that the seed 

 was first brouglit from England in the provender of im- 

 ported English race horses. This opinion is supported 

 by a fact stated by Col. Thomas Emory (in a former 

 volume of the American Farmer,) that this plant was 

 not known on Kent Island, in the Chesapeake, until 

 after some British cavalry had been stationed there 

 during the last war. We should be glad to learn any 

 facts serving to confirm or disprove the supposed recent 

 introduction of spelt into this country. If there was 

 a time, since wheat was generally cultivated, that we 

 were clear of spelt, (or darnel) or if there is any part 

 of the country which is still free from it, these facts 

 alone ought to prove that its origin is not from wheat. 



We add below the article from Loudon's Encyclo- 

 paedia of Plants, on the Grasses, which gives some in- 

 formation of what we call spelt. The author does not 

 notice (if he had ever heard of) its supposed change 

 from wheat. We dissent from his opinion of the harm- 

 lessness of the seed as food for man, whatever it may 

 be for beasts. When it has been largely mixed with 

 wheat, we have heard of several well established facts 

 of the bread producing sudden and violent sickness. 



GENERAL CHARACTERS OF THE ORDER OF 



GRASSES [gRAMINEjE.] 



From Loudon's Encyclopcetlia of Plants. 

 The order of grasses is beyond doubt the most 

 natural of all that the ingenuity of systematic bo- 

 tanists has contrived; it is also the most numerous 

 in species. The inflorescence is very much ahke 

 throughout the order, and the floral envelopes, 

 which are bracteas in a progrescive state to the 

 form of calyx and petals, offer few striking charac- 

 ters by which the genera can be characterized. 

 Hence if is that the classification of the order, and 

 its division into genera, has not only been found 

 extremely dilTicult, but has given rise to much dif- 

 ference of opinion among botanists; some of 

 whom, adhering to the synthetical arrangement of 

 Linna?us, admit but a small number of genera, 

 while others, admitting the analytical principles of 

 modern science, divide it into a vast number. The 

 middle course in this, as in most other cases, is 

 probably the just one. A subdivision of the order 

 into tribes, has been attempted by Palisot,Trinius, 

 Dumortier, Raspail, Kunth, Link, and others; that 

 of M. Kunth is here adopted. — The general habit 



of grasses is so familiar to every one, tliat it may 

 be passed over in silence. They are remarkable 

 lor exhibiting, in no case, properti^-s that are actu- 

 ally [:oisonous; possessing on the contrary, in 

 almost all cases, wholesome and nutritive qualities. 

 These latter are especially obvious in their seeds, 

 which always contain a farinaceous substance, 

 mixed with a certain proportion of glutinous mat- 

 ter. No one is ignorant of the various and import- 

 ant uses of the seeds of wheat, rye, barley, oats, 

 maize, rice, and others, and in general of all the 

 larger kinds of grass. It must however be re- 

 marked, that if the smaller sorts are not em[)loyed 

 in like manner, it is merely on account of their 

 minuteness, and not on account of any diflerence 

 in their nature; in fact, in times of scarcity, and in 

 half cultivated countries, use has advantageously 

 been made of Festuca fluitans, Zizania aquatica, 

 Avcnaffitua, Ptinicum sanguinale, Avena elatior, 

 Bromus secalinus, and E'lymus arenarius. It is 

 also to be noted, that the ))articular uses for which 

 the seeds of certain grasses are employed, are not 

 peculiar to them, but may be obtained from all the 

 others, with slight modifications. Thus beer is 

 made, not only from barley but also from wheat; 

 spirituous liquorsnot only trom our European cere- 

 alia, but also from rice. But it must be remarked, 

 that a singular exception to the generally Avhole- 

 some properties of grasses, appears to exist in 

 Lolium temulentum, 1he seed of which is reported 

 to be narcotic and inebriating, and even poisonous; 

 there is no doubt, however, that these qualities 

 have been greatl)' exaggerated; for in the first 

 place they clisappear in bread or beer manufactured 

 from Lolium temulentum; and secondly, in times 

 of scarcity, people have frequently lived upon it. 

 But even supposing all that has been stated upon 

 the subject to be true, this plant will still be found 

 to be litde different from wheat, when long ex- 

 posed to wet; so well, indeed, is this known by 

 country people, that a belief exists, that in wet sum- 

 mers wheat is actually transmuted into rye grass. 

 The exciting properties of the oat, which are very 

 unusual in this order, have been found to reside in 

 the husk and not in the seed, and to depend upon 

 the presence of a minute quantity of an aromatic 

 principle, analogous to Vanilla, lying imbedded in 

 the envelope of the seed, and capable of being 

 extracted by aid of alcohol. As to the deleterious 

 eflfects of the ergot of rye, these do not depend 

 certainly upon any such jiroperty in the rj'e itself, 

 but is caused either by the ergot disease, or, as is 

 believed, by the parasitic fungus, from the attack 

 of which it arises. Now let us pass from the 

 seeds of GramineiB to their stems, and we shall 

 find a no less remarkable unilbrmity of nature in 

 them. They all contain, especially before flower- 

 ing, a sweet sugary mucilage, which varies in 

 qirantity in different species. The sugar cane, in 

 which this is found in greatest abundance, not only 

 constantly exists in the most favorable condition 

 for producing it, as it rarely flowers, but is also one 

 of the largest grasses known. The maize also 

 abounds in sugar; and the same substance is se- 

 creted in such abundance by the Sorghum saccha- 

 ratum, that attempts have actually been made in 

 Italy to cultivate it as the sugarcane. — The creep- 

 ing roots of grasses, which are generally mucil- 

 aginous and demulcent, are sometimes used in 

 medicine; but they are of more importance for re- 

 tauiing in banks the sand ol' the sea shore, so as to 



