MEADOW FESCUE. 197 



indeed on farms in any part of Canada. It is not well 

 known in the various provinces of that country, al- 

 though it is pretty certain that it could he grown with 

 profit in tillable areas from Lake Huron to the Atlantic. 

 In the northwestern provinces of Canada, Russian 

 brome grass and western rye grass (Agropyrum tene- 

 rum) are likely to remain higher in favor than meadow 

 fescue. Four reasons may be given why this useful 

 grass is not more generally sown first, the seed is 

 relatively high ; second, it is frequently adulterated with 

 one of the rye grasses, which it very much resembles; 

 third, its merits are not universally known ; and, fourth, 

 it takes so long to reach a maximum of production that 

 it is not well suited for being grown in meadows of 

 short duration. 



Soils. Meadow fescue will grow, but of course not 

 equally well, in a great variety of soils. Although 

 when once established it has much power to maintain its 

 hold on soils lacking in moisture during at least a por- 

 tion of the year, it . will grow much better relatively 

 where considerable moisture is present, even where 

 the land is annually covered by the overflow of rivers. 

 It is best adapted to good, strong, moist loams well 

 stocked with the elements of production, and underlaid 

 with a subsoil which the roots can easily penetrate to a 

 considerable depth. The best returns have been obtained 

 from this plant when grown on such soils in states which 

 have a considerable rainfall. On the deposit soils of 

 river bottoms it has also proved highly satisfactory 

 where the sand element in these has not been too pro- 

 nounced. In alluvial bottom lands it grows luxuriantly 



