GRASS AND HAY 133 



to eight purple flowers on elongated flower stalks. It grows in 

 moist soil from New York westward to the prairie region. Stock 

 are very fond of it and fatten in pastures where it is abundant. 



Artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus). Fed to milch cows these 

 tubers, which contain a large amount of sugar and gum, greatly 

 increase the flow of milk. The leaves are also greedily eaten by all 

 kinds of stock. Artichokes are planted like potatoes, but at greater 

 distances apart, and the yield is from 200 to 500 bushels per acre. 

 On rich and friable soils it yields uninterruptedly for several years 

 without replanting. Artichokes are of most value as food for hogs, 

 which may be penned on the field and allowed to harvest the crop 

 themselves. 



Australian Saltbush (Atriplex semibaccatd) . Australian salt- 

 bush is a much branched perennial, which forms a thick mat over 

 the ground a foot thick. The branches extend from 6 to 8 or 10 

 feet, so that one plant will often cover an area 20 feet in diameter. 

 The leaves are about an inch long, broadest at the apex, and coarsely 

 toothed along the margin. They are fleshy and somewhat mealy 

 on the outside. The pulpy, flattened fruits are tinged with red at 

 maturity, but dry out as soon as they fall from the plant. They 

 are produced in enormous numbers and ripen continuously for three 

 or four months, or under some climatic conditions, throughout the 

 year. At the California Experiment Station it was determined that 

 the seeds germinate better when sown directly on the surface with- 

 out any covering. When they were harrowed in to the depth of 2 

 or 3 inches most of them eitner rotted before germination or the 

 young seedlings were unable to reach the surface. Some practical 

 stockmen have had good results in establishing this saltbush on an 

 alkali range by sowing the seed on the ground when it was wet with 

 heavy rains and at once driving a flock of sheep over the land, thus 

 treading them into the soil. Sheep are especially fond of this salt- 

 bush, and cattle relish it if combined with other feed. Many of the 

 valuable qualities of the Australian wools are said to be due to the 

 abundance of this and other saltbushes in the regions in which the 

 sheep are grazed. The plant may be propagated by cuttings, as 

 well as from seed, and this method is to be preferred wherever the 

 land contains much alkali. The seeds will germinate in the pres- 

 ence of an amount of soda salts which would entirely prevent the 

 growth of cereals. This saltbush is perennial in California, Arizona, 

 and New Mexico, but must be treated as an annual wherever the 

 winters are severe. In South Dakota plants from seed sown in May 

 had just commenced to blossom at the time of the first hard frost in 

 autumn. This is the most promising of the Australian saltbushes 

 for cultivation in this country, both because of its hardiness and 

 the bulk of fodder produced. The forage contains 11.6 per cent 

 of crude protein in the air-dry substance as compared with 14.3 per 

 cent for alfalfa. Thus, 100 pounds of the dry substance will con- 

 tain 8.7 pounds of digestible crude protein as compared with 10.0 

 pounds in alfalfa. 



Balsam-root (Balsamorhiza deltoidea). A stemless perennial 



