DESCRIPTION OF IMPORTANT GRASS FORAGE PLANTS 133 



plant is perennial, there are biennial forms and tall annual forms. There 

 is also a great range in the time of blooming. 



Seeding. The customary amount of timothy seed to sow, if used 

 alone is 15 pounds, or one- third of a bushel per acre. If red clover is used 

 with timothy, then the usual amount of timothy seed is 9 pounds, or one- 

 fifth of a bushel per acre. It has been found by trial that better results 

 are obtained by sowing the above amount than twice that quantity. The 

 Rhode Island Agricultural Experiment Station recommends for meadows, 

 the following per acre : 



Timothy seed 15 pounds 



Fancy red top 7.5 pounds 



Red clover 7.5 pounds 



Rotations. The farmers of the North Atlantic and North Central 

 states use timothy in nearly all of their rotations. The most common 

 rotation consists of maize, oats and wheat each one year, followed by 

 timothy and red clover for two or more years, the clover disappearing 

 after one or more years. Timothy may be sown either in the fall or in the 

 spring with any small grain that is sown at the time. A good stand will 

 be obtained more frequently by sowing hi the fall except in the dry prairie 

 states of the northwest where the best results are obtained by spring 

 sowing. As timothy is a late grass, the usual time of cutting is in July, 

 and this is an advantage, because during the summer it cures more 

 quickly, than if cut earlier. 



Yield. The total yield of dry matter per acre of timothy in Connecti- 

 cut, when in full bloom, was 3,300 pounds, in Illinois 3,285 pounds, in 

 Pennsylvania 2,585 pounds. When the seed was nearly ripe the yield 

 per acre was in Connecticut 3,615 pounds, in Illinois 4,065 pounds, in 

 Pennsylvania 3,065 pounds. Timothy generally produces between five 

 and twelve bushels of seed per acre. The grass is most conveniently cut 

 with the self-binder and is threshed with the ordinary threshing machine, 

 using special sieves to clean the seed. Timothy hay contains about 

 6 per cent, protein, 45 per cent, of carbohydrates, 2.5 per cent, of fat and 

 29 per cent, of crude fiber, of these substances about half are digestible. 



Kentucky Blue Grass, June Grass (Poa pratensis). This useful grass 

 is perennial with an extensively creeping rhizome, which produces leafy 

 stems in bunches at intervals along its length. The stem of blue grass 

 grows from 18 inches to 2^ feet tall. The basal leaves are longer than 



