29 



the roots, is formed. Grasses of this cljaracter are persistent, and they 

 are not likely to die out under the action of natural causes nor to be 

 crowded out by other species. Among such grasses meadow fescue and 

 tall meadow fescue, Kentucky blue-grass, awnless brome grass and reil- 

 top are the more important. 



There are a few grasses which sjjread and form a turf gradually thicker 

 and thicker, by rooting at the lower joints of the stem. The stems of 

 such grasses incline to bend near the base, so that the lowermost joint and 

 perhaps the second joint also comes to rest on the si;rface of the ground. 

 Under these circumstances, if the soil is moist, roots are sent out from 

 the joints in contact with the ground, and thus the plant spreads and 

 gradually forms a turf which becomes thicker and thicker with the lapse 

 of time. The bent grasses ai'e of this description. Grasses having this 

 habit, like those having the underground stems which have been spoken 

 of, are persistent. 



The non-sod-forming grasses are not provided with either of these 

 means of renewing themselves. Each plant comes from a seed. The 

 plant, originally small, gradually increases in size, until from a single 

 root a very considerable number of stems may be produced. In other 

 words, these grasses stool freely. As a consequence of the stooling 

 habit, many of them ultimatelj' form tufts which make the surface quite 

 uneven. Between the tufts formed by the individual plants there may 

 be spaces which are relatively bare. Orchard grass and sheep's fescue 

 are prominent representatives of grasses having this habit, while the 

 common timothy, tall oat grass, yellow oat grass and the rye grasses are 

 less likely to form tufts, but propagate themselves only by stooling or 

 from seed. Most of the non -sod-forming grasses are rather likely to 

 be crowded out of permanent mowings by the sod-formers, which have 

 an advantage in the struggle for existence. 



Some of the More Important Grasses described. 



Timothy. — This variety is so well known that it seems almost un- 

 necessary to describe it, but some of the principal reasons why it is a 

 favorite and a statement of a few of its peculiarities may be of interest. 

 Timothy is a large, moderately coarse grass, producing relatively little 

 leaf and a large proportion of stem. The hay made from it is compara- 

 tively coarse and strawy, but the character of its growth is such that it 

 may be readily cm'ed. The hay is, therefore, perhaps more certain to be 

 free from dust than that from most grasses. It is therefore looked upon 

 as the standard of excellence, and usually sells for a higher price than 

 any other haj' in our markets. 



Timothy requires a deep, retentive loam for its best gi'owth. On 

 such loams, with liberal top-dressing either with manures or fertilizers 

 supplying abundance of nitrogen, it ma}' jjrove quite persistent; but on 

 the lighter soils and under less generous treatment timothy is likely to 

 give way to inferior species within a comparatively short time. Just at 

 the surface of the ground on a timothj' plant which is mature will be 

 found a considerable number of pointed and rather small solid bulbs. 

 If these be fed oft', or if the mowings be too much trampled by heavy 

 animals, which doubtless crushes and bruises the bulbs to a considerable 

 extent, the timothy will be seriously weakened. It is not, therefore, 

 well adapted to grazing, and great precaution should be used in pastur- 

 ing mowings in which timothy is tlie principal species. 



iiedlop. — Redtop, next to tinioth}-, is our best-known grass. It 

 reaches its most luxuriant development on deep, rich soils, and the 

 best redtop that the author has ever seen in any part of Massachusetts 

 was produced on the reclaimed salt marshes in the town of Marshlield. 

 Redtop is a sofl-forming grass, but the vigor of its underground stems 

 is considerably less than that of some other species. Close observation 

 has shown that redtop is capable of doing better in soils containing free 



