10 FORAGE CROPS 



character of the climate, it has not beeu possi))lo 

 successfully to grow the grasses which do well in 

 the northern and central parts of the country. 

 Timothy, orchard-grass, red- top and other grasses, 

 which serve to very good purpose for pasturage and 

 hay in the North and West, are not well adapted 

 to .these regions. Therefore, special crops, which 

 may or may not be adapted to rotations, answer 

 an excellent purpose in providing grass, where the 

 production of live-stock and the maintenance of 

 soil fertility are matters of special importance. In 

 many of the southern states, varieties of grasses 

 have been introduced that possess such peculiari- 

 ties of growth as to enable them not only to sur- 

 vive but to provide hay and pasture of an excel- 

 lent quality, while at the same time protecting 

 the soil from losses due to washing from heavy 

 rains, so prevalent in the South. Bermuda grass 

 is probably one of the most useful for the South ; 

 its characteristics are discussed not so much in 

 reference to its place among other forage crops in 

 a rotation, as to its special usefulness in providing 

 a satisfactory forage that is suitable for the con- 

 ditions which exist there. 



In many of the colder regions, also, grasses 

 whose value is established do not always survive 

 the hard winters. These conditions have been 

 met by the introduction of plants that, in a meas- 

 nv(\ will take the place of those which are not to be 



