WEEDS OF MEADOWS AND PASTURES 15 



seeds. In permanent pastures some patches may be kept 

 down by salting, thus inducing close feeding by sheep or 

 cattle. In some cases, however, the removal of the turf 

 or cultivation with a hoed crop becomes necessary. 



Most meadow and pasture weeds are troublesome, be- 

 cause they reduce the product of the land, but the Squirrel- 

 tail Grass or Tickle-grass is much worse 

 than these, because it produces festering 

 sores in the mouths of cattle. Consequently 

 it not only reduces the grass and hay crop, 

 but it renders them of less value for feeding. 

 This is a widely distributed annual, easily 

 recognized by its glistening, whitish heads 

 of barbed awns, each awn an inch or two 

 in length. It is especially troublesome in 

 Western meadows and alfalfa fields, being 

 considered in many regions the most pes- 

 tiferous weed. The seeds are carried by the 

 wind, though fortunately they are not dis- 

 tributed in grass seed. Rotation with an 

 annual crop, or the pulling and burning of 

 the plants before the heads appear are the 

 only effective remedies, and they necessitate 

 community action for the best results. If 

 one farmer keeps his meadows free and his 

 neighbor does not, there is little benefit to 

 either. 



In California a closely related annual grass from Europe 

 is troublesome in similar ways. It is called Mouse Barley 

 or Wild Barley, and is often abundant in sandy pas- 

 tures. 



