KENTUCKY BLUE GRASS. 83 



Both varieties are very palatable. All kinds of stock 

 are exceedingly fond of both ; both are exceedingly nu- 

 tritious ; while both are hardy, Poa compressa is prob- 

 ably the hardier in so far at- least as it has greater power 

 to grow on poor, stiff, arid, dry soils. Poa pratensis 

 is the better pasture grass, but Poa compressa is much 

 the superior for hay. The former is highly prized 

 and is freely sown, whereas the latter has not been taken 

 at its true worth, and has usually grown as it were spon- 

 taneously. Consequently its distribution does not near- 

 ly equal that of the other variety. Taking it all in all, 

 Kentucky blue grass is probably the most valuable pas- 

 ture grass in America, but some authorities claim first 

 place in this respect for orchard grass. Unquestion- 

 ably, however, blue grass is more generally grown in 

 the United States than orchard grass, and the prefer- 

 ence thus shown for blue grass is not accidental since 

 blue grass is more palatable and nutritious and has a 

 wider distribution. 



Distribution. Blue grass (Poa pratensis) and also 

 (Poa compressa) are indigenous to Europe, and it is 

 thought also to certain parts of the United States. It 

 is thought to be native to the Wabash valley having been 

 found growing there in 1811 by the troops of William 

 Henry Harrison on their march to Tippecanoe. It 

 grows in considerable areas of Asia also and in certain 

 parts of New Zealand and Australia. It is becoming 

 in a sense cosmopolitan in the temperate zone. But 

 nowhere does it gr^w better than in certain parts of the 

 United States and Canada. In these it is more highl/ 

 prized than in Great Britain, since in that country its 



