GRASSES FOR MISCELLANEOUS PURPOSES 71 



planted which in time produce a forest, the dunes being 

 thus permanently fixed. The waste land has now become 

 productive, as the forest under proper care yields an 

 income. The trees cannot be started on the shifting sand. 



93. Sand-binders. — Except near the seashore the 

 function of grass or of an inert covering is temporary, as 

 the land is ultimately converted into forest. Along the 

 seashore where a barrier dune is formed the action of the 

 spray from the ocean prevents the growth of trees. On 

 this barrier dune which protects the forest in the rear from 

 the aggressive action of the sand, the grass covering must 

 remain indefinitely and must be kept in condition by con- 

 stant attention after it is planted. 



A sand-binder must be a plant that will thrive in the 

 sand, and that possesses an abundance of vigorous 

 creeping rootstocks that will bind the sand and prevent 

 its being blown by the wind. The best sand-binder is 

 beach-grass, or marram-grass (Aynmophila arenaria), a 

 native of the sea beaches of Europe and of Atlantic North 

 America as far south as North Carolina. It is also found 

 along the shores of the Great Lakes. An important char- 

 acter of beach-grass is that it thrives best where the sand 

 is drifting. Here it continually rejuvenates and grows up 

 through the sand as it is covered. A few other grasses have 

 been tried but none give as good results. 



94. Fixing sand with beach-grass. — Beach-grass is 

 propagated by transplanting and not from seed. The 

 planting is best done in the fall between maturity, which is 

 about September, and the time when the ground freezes. 

 It can also be done in spring before growth starts. Plants 

 for the purpose are chosen from a nearby plot where the 

 grass is growing vigorously. Those chosen should be two 

 years old and should have one or two nodes on the root- 



