THE HERBARIA OF THE SOCIETY. 105 



but in an herbarium mucli might be clone toward this end. Sup- 

 pose the Society should form a complete collection of the native 

 and introduced grasses, arranged as specimens usually are in an 

 herbarium. Each label might state, 



1. The scientific name, with the synonymes. 



2. The best P2nglish name and the local synonymes. 



3. Whether native or introduced. 



4. Where it originated. 



5. Whether annual, biennial, or perennial. 



6. Whether of value as an agricultural or horticultural product. 



7. District, climate, and soil best adapted to its growth. 



8. If of horticultural value, its uses. 



9. If of agricultural value its rate of production per acre. 



10. An}^ other facts or information of value concerning the 

 species. 



The following is an example of the label proposed : 



1. Phleiim pratense, Linnaeus. 



2. Timothy. (Erom Timothy Hanson, an early cultivator.) 

 2. Herd's Grass. (In New England and New York, not of 



the South.) 



2. Cat-Tail-Grass. (Of England.) 



3, 4. So long under cultivation that the native habitat is in 



doubt. Gray considering it introduced from Europe; 

 Pickering considering it an American species. 



5. Perennial. 



6. A valuable agricultural product. 



7. " Thrives best on moist, peaty or loamy soil ; not suited 



to sandy or light gravelly lands." Flint, " Grasses 

 and Forage Plants," 1874. 

 9. Yield of hay, two to four tons per acre ; of seed, ten to 



thirty bushels per acre. 

 10. A coarse grass, not successful south ; very extensively 

 cultivated north. 



A collection so arranged would give all the information that a 

 complete book on the subject could furnish. The same thing could 

 be done with other orders and genera where no works are published 

 describing the species. In this manner the herbarium would be 

 made an accessory to the library, rather than a separate depart- 

 ment, which, for a society like this, would seem to be the most 

 satisfactory arrangement, and certainly the least expensive. 



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