AGRICULTURE AND PLANTING, ^ -47 



On Natural Grasses. 



striated, smooth, leafy. Leaves linear, sharp-pointed, spreading, striated, the 

 upper leaves rou^h on both sides. Sheaths striated-, very smooth: Stipule very 

 short, embracing the stem. Panicle suberect, branchy, one-sided, spreading, 

 with binate, unequal branches which are commonly S4|nple, subracemose, and 

 rough. Spikelets shorter footstalked, alternate, erect-divaricated, linear-oblong, 

 compressed, subobtuse, many-flowered, smooth. Calycine glumes uneijual, 

 subacute, keeled, smooth ; the one being rather wider and three-nerved. Flos- 

 cules numerous, slightly remote, distichous, smooth, cylindric, acute, ecari- 

 nate (not keeled) at the base, towards the tip subcarinate. (slightly keeled) 

 obscurely five-nerved, and commonly mutic. Interior glumes concave, scarcely 

 shorter, torn at the tip, and pubescent at the margin. 



Th e foliage of this most excellent grass is very sweet and productive; it is 

 very hardy, ard will grow in any kind of soil. It makes excellent hay," and all 

 sorts of cattle and horses are fond of it» 



VII. LoLiuM Perenne. Darucl or Raygrass. 



Darnel with mutic spike, spikelets longer than calyx, and lanceolate 

 lloscules. 



Perennial, flowering in June. 



Root fibrose, pubescent. Stem a foot high, erect, jointed and flexuose 

 at the base, above leafy, round, striated, and smooth. Leaves linear, keeled, 

 smooth, deeprgreen. Sheaths striated, smooth. Stipule short) obtuse, em- 

 bracing the stem. Spike suberect, distichous, compressed, with flexuose, 

 smooth, striated midrib, alternately excavated for the reception of the spikelets. 

 Spikelets alternate, erect, ovate, compressed, many-flowered. Calyx univalve, 

 lanceolate, subconcave, acute, mutic, striated, scarcely keeled, smooth, almost 

 twice as short as the spikelet. Floscules distichous, approximated, alternate, 

 lanceolate, depressed, nervose, mutic," with the interior glume smaller, ciliated, ._ 

 and concave*. The spicules are sometimes awned, and rarely, viviparous. In 

 a barren soil, the plant grows with slenderer spikes and leaves,, three or IbuK- 



