FERN. 



FESTUCA. 



FERN SWEET (Comptonia asplenifolia} is 

 commonly found in Pennsylvania and other 

 Middle States, where it is most abundant on 

 iry slaty hills; but rare elsewhere. The 

 bruised leaves emit a strong resinous, aromatic 

 adour; and the plant is reputed medicinal. 

 The infusion is a popular remedy in dysentery. 

 This is the only known species of the genus 

 Comptonia. (Flor. Cestrica.) 



FERRET (Mustela furo, Linn.). A useful 

 animal, which came originally from Africa, 

 whence it was introduced into Spain, and sub- 

 sequently into England. It has red, fiery eyes; 

 the colour of its whole body is of a pale yel- 

 low ; and its length from the nose to the end 

 of the tail is about 19 inches. The female is 

 rather smaller in size, and produces, twice 

 annually, from five to eight or nine young 

 ones, after a gestation of six weeks. Ferrets 

 are principally employed for the purpose of 

 hunting rabbits, to which they are mortal ene- 

 mies, and of destroying vermin in corn stacks 

 and outbuildings. These animals are always 

 kept confined in a box or cask, and fed upon 

 bread, milk, &c. 



FERRUGINOUS SOILS. Soils which con- 

 tain a large proportion of iron. 



FESCUE GRASSES. See FESTUCA. 



FESTUCA. A very extensive genus of 

 grasses, of which the meadow fescue (Fe- 

 tiirn jiKitensis") and the hard or smooth fescue 

 (Festuca duriuscula, vel ?/6r) are those of 

 the greatest use in permanent pasture. Com- 

 bined with cock's-foot or orchard grass and 

 some other of the natural grasses, these two 

 species of festuca will be found well adapted 

 for the alternate husbandry, and secure the 

 most productive and nutritive pasture in alter- 

 nation with grain crops. Sir J. E. Smith, in 

 ,% Hot., observes, " that in this genus it 

 is hard to say what may, or what may not, be 

 a species ;" and with his usual force and 

 clearness he reduces the F. glauca, F. zl<tf>rn, 

 F. cumhrica, F. (Inriuscula, and.JP. rubra of Hud- 

 son, Lightfoot, Withering, Winch, and Stilling- 

 fleet, &c. into one species. All these grasses 

 vary much from change of soil and situation ; 

 the flowers are particularly apt to vary in 

 number as well as in the length of their awns. 

 There is one character, however (says Sin- 

 clair), which I have never found to change 

 under any variety of culture, which is the 

 creeping root; and this is also an agricultural 

 distinction which is never to be lost sight of, as 

 it always produces a specific effect upon the 

 soil, very distinct indeed from that of the 

 fibrous-rooted kinds. It will be sufficient, 

 therefore, for the purposes of the agriculturist, 

 to consider these grasses as two distinct spe- 

 cies, the fibrous-rooted and the creeping-rooted, 

 noting at the same time their varieties from 

 other parts of the plant. Following the expe- 

 riments instituted by Sinclair, in his valuable 

 work on the grasses, I shall proceed to notice, 

 seriatim, the different species of festuca, and 

 point out their relative properties. 



Festuca alopecuris. Foxtail-like fescue grass. 

 Root annual. Although sometimes classed as 

 a BroDius, this grass is evidently a Festuca. 

 From the amount of produce and nutritive 

 powers afforded by this annual fescue, it will 



be found much inferior to the soft brome-grass 

 (Bromus mollis), many flowered brome-grass 

 B. multifonts), and other of the annual indige- 

 nous grasses, and it does not therefore appear 

 suitable for agricultural purposes. 



Festuca bromoides. Barren fescue grass. A 

 pale, smooth, slender, insignificant grass of 

 short duration, at least after it has flowered. 



Festuca calamaria. Reed fescue grass. This 

 species, which is too large and coarse to pos- 

 sess any agricultural merits, is found in moun 

 tainous woods in Scotland, Ireland, and the 

 north-west part of England. There is a smaller 

 variety, with much narrower leaves sometimes 

 met with in Scotland. 



Festuca Cambrira. Welsh fescue. This con- 

 stant variety of F. rubra (see Smith's Engl. Flora, 

 vol. i. p. 142) is readily distinguished from the 

 F. ovina, and the varieties of F. rubra and F. 

 thtriuscula, by the pale green colour of the 

 panicle and culms. Experiments tend to prove 

 that this grass is greatly inferior to the F. duri- 

 it.iniln in the quantity and nutrient qualities of 

 its produce. 



Festuca dumetorum. Pubescent wood-fescue 

 grass. Root perennial, slightly creeping. This 

 grass, which appears to belong to the inferior 

 kinds, is a native of woods, where the soil is 

 dry and sandy. 



Festuca duriusnila. Hard fescue. PI. 6, fig. %. 

 Panicle unilateral, oblong, much spreading 

 when in flower; florets longer than their awns; 

 stem round, upper leaves flat, root fibrous, 

 perennial ; scarcely creeping, though sometimes 

 throwing out short lateral shoots. Stem 1$ or 

 2 feet high, erect, leafy, striated, smooth. The 

 hard fescue early attains to maturity; the culms 

 are succulent and nutritious ; it grows quickly 

 after being cropped, and springs pretty early. 

 From the above details, although very defi- 

 cient in the weight of produce, it appears to 

 be one of the chief of the fine or dwarf-grow- 

 in? Brasses. This grass is most prevalent on 

 light rich soils; but it is also continually found 

 in the richest natural pastures where the soil 

 is retentive of moisture, and is never absent 

 from irrigated meadows that have been pro- 

 perly formed. It attains to the greatest perfec- 

 tion when combined with the F.pratensis and 

 Poa trivialis. From its property of withstand- 

 ing drought in rich natural pastures better than 

 many other grasses, added to the merits above- 

 mentioned, this grass is entitled to a place in 

 the composition of the best pastures, but not 

 in any very large proportion on account of its 

 inferior productive powers. 



When cultivated on a poor silicious soil, or 

 on a thin heath soil, the culms become very 

 fine and slender, and promise to be valuable 

 for the manufacture of straw hats. This grass 

 flowers about the middle of June, and the seed 

 is ripe late in July. 



Festuca elatior, var. fertilis. Fertile-seeded 

 tall fescue grass. This is a coarse but nu- 

 tritious grass, forming sometimes a consider- 

 able proportion of the crop of marsh land 

 hay. Root somewhat creeping, with downy 

 fibres penetrating deeply into the mud or clay. 

 Stem about 4 feet high, reedy, striated, smooth, 

 and leafy. Panicle a foot or more in length, 

 repeatedly compound, spreading widely. Thin 



