GRASS AND HAY 121 



tufted perennial, growing to the height of 2 feet. It is a native of 

 Europe, northern Africa, and western Asia. It occurs along road- 

 sides, in open fields, and on grassy mountain slopes, where its pres- 

 ence is said to indicate land of good quality. In Europe, Yellow Oat- 

 grass is classed with the best fodder plants and is highly valued for 

 temporary, but more particularly for permanent, pastures. It can be 

 grown on almost every variety of soil, is fairly productive, and is 

 readily eaten by stock. Wheat (Triticum ssstivum). Wheat in its 

 many varieties is one of the most important of the true grasses. It is 

 one of the oldest of the cultivated cereals, the grains having been 

 found in very ancient Egyptian monuments, dating back to 2,500 

 or 3,000 B. C. (See cereals.) Indian Corn or Maize (Zea mays). 

 One of the most valued of the cultivated cereals. The many varieties 

 which have originated in cultivation have been variously classified. 

 They differ much in the form, size, color, and hardiness of the grain, 

 and in the time required for ripening. (See corn.) 



Pasture Grasses. Wire Bunch-grass (Agropyron divergens). 

 A slender, usually densely tufted perennial, with very narrow, spread- 

 ing leaves, and bearded or beardless spikes. This grass is common in 

 the Rocky Mountains and Pacific Slope regions, extending westward 

 to the coast. Herd's grass; Redtop (Agrostis vulgaris). Mentioned 

 elsewhere. Timothy is called Herd's grass from Timothy Herd who 

 first called the attention of the world to its value. The term has 

 been applied by several writers to redtop, owing perhaps to its close 

 association with timothy. Creeping Bent (Agrostis stolonijerd) . 

 By some regarded as only a variety of Agrostis alba, with long, pros- 

 trate or creeping stems, well adapted for sandy pastures near the coast, 

 and useful, perhaps, for binding shifting sands or river banks sub- 

 ject to wash or overflow. It makes a good pasture grass for low 

 lands, especially for those which are somewhat sandy, and produces 

 a fine and enduring turf for lawns, for which it is especially well 

 adapted. Bushy Blue-stem (Andropogon nutans). This is a stout 

 perennial, 4 to 6 feet high, growing in dry soil along the borders of 

 fields and open woods, and on the prairies of the West it often forms 

 a large proportion of the so-called prairie hay. It is held in little 

 esteem in the Eastern and Southern States, but in the West it is 

 said to make excellent hay, and is particularly valuable because of 

 the relatively large amount of long root-leaves which it produces. 

 Big Blue Stem. (See hay grasses.) Little Blue-stem (Andropogon 

 scoparius). A rather slender perennial. This grass has a similar 

 range to the Big Blue-stem, extending over nearly all of the United 

 States east of the Rocky Mountains, and in the prairie regions it is 

 nearly always found associated more or less abundantly with the Big 

 Blue-stem and Bushy Blue stem. Needle-grass (Aristida fasciculata} . 

 Needle-grass grows from 6 inches to a foot high, and is a native of 

 the arid regions, from Montana southward to Texas, where it is par- 

 ticularly abundant in poor soils, and presents a great variety of forms. 

 It is usually found in dry, gravelly soils on the plains, mesas, and 

 foothills. Side Oats Grama. (See hay grasses.) Black Grama (Bou- 

 teloua eriopoda) . This is one of the species of Grama so valuable for 



