920 



THE COMPLETE GRAZIER. 



BOOK X. 



green and rough, whereas that of foxtail is silvery grey and smooth; 

 the florets of foxtail carry silky awns, those of timothy are awnless. Fox- 

 tail is an early grass, timothy a late one ; the former will have gone to 

 seed almost before the latter appears in ear, as timothy does not flower 

 till July. The leaves have a greyish-green colour, and they are broader 

 and especially when dried stiifer or more rigid than those of foxtail, 



Fig. 422. Timothy Grass (Phleum pratense). 



hence no difficulty is experienced in picking out the leaves of timothy 

 from a sample of hay. Timothy is a perennial grass, with well deve- 

 loped fibrous roots. Sometimes the base of the stem, immediately 

 above the root fibres, becomes bulbous. 



Although timothy prefers a cool and even damp soil, it yet resists 

 drought very well, but yields in this case less produce. At the same 

 time it suffers less from the cold of winter than do several other 

 cultivated grasses, and hence it is useful upon soils where other forage 

 plants are liable to be killed by the winter's frosts. It succeeds best 

 upon cold clays, and is specially valuable for reclaimed peaty soils. 



