10 BULLETIN 545, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



The seed crop has a fair viability, the average for the three years 

 being 27 per cent. The highest germination, obtained in 1909, was 

 35 per cent. On the range this species is reproducing so abundantly 

 that it is very probable that a much higher viability results when the 

 seed is allowed to pass through the usual conditions after maturing. 

 The seed, too, has an effective means of getting into the ground 

 through the boring action of the awn, and this may account largely 

 for the plant's rapid invasion of many situations. It is among the 

 most promising species for restocking depleted ranges. 



Although not to be compared with mountain bunchgrass in pala- 

 tability, porcupine grass is a good forage plant. It begins growth 

 early in the season and continues growing until late in the summer, 

 the leaf blades remaining green until September 1. Although their 

 texture is somewhat harsh and their edges slightly scabrous, the 

 plant is grazed with considerable relish by sheep, cattle, and horses, 

 though considered most desirable for sheep. Both cattle and horses 

 eat the flower stalks, even when the seeds are approaching maturity, 

 and the long, rather bristlelike awns are likely to make sore mouths 

 or even to cause serious trouble in the throat, sometimes resulting 

 in what is termed " temporary lump jaw." Other grasses, however, 

 may be more directly responsible for these bad effects. Sheep do 

 not consume the flower or seed stalks, but graze the leaf blades 

 closely. 



A species closely allied to porcupine grass is little needle grass 

 (S. minor). It is very similar in general characters, ecological 

 requirements, and distribution, and for that reason will not be dis- 

 cussed in detail here. While as widely distributed as S. occidentals, 

 it is not nearly so abundant. The plant is taller and may be dis- 

 tinguished at a glance by observing the awns, which are less than 

 half the length of those of S. occidentals , and which, instead of being 

 plumose, are very slightly pubescent or merely roughened. Because 

 of its sparse growth, the plant is not especially valuable for grazing, 

 though eaten with relish by most classes of stock. (See Plate V.) 



MOUNTAIN TIMOTHY. 

 (Phleum alpinum.) 



The genus Phleum contains about 10 annual and perennial species, 

 most of which are confined to the Temperate and Arctic regions. 

 Among them is the cultivated timothy, generally conceded to be the 

 most valuable forage and hay plant in the United States. 



Mountain timothy is occasionally mistaken for the cultivated 

 timothy. While the two plants have somewhat the same general 

 appearance (compare Plates II and VI), the cultivated species, P. 

 pratense, usually grows from 2 to 4 feet high, while mountain timothy 

 as a rule attains less than half that height; also the spike of the latter, 



