246 SUCCESSFUL FARMING 



field to be seeded and covering them with disk, harrow or other suitable 

 implements. These fragments of grass take root and spread rapidly by 

 means of numerous root stocks or creeping stems. 



Bermuda grass meadows and pastures frequently become sod-bound 

 and fall off in yield. This condition may be alleviated by disking or by 

 plowingand harrowing. After such treatment the growth will become much 

 more vigorous. 



Johnson Grass. — It is a coarse, large-growing species adapted to the 

 whole of the cotton belt. It grows well in the summer as far north as 37 

 degrees north latitude, but usually will not withstand winters in such lati- 

 tude. It spreads both by seeds and rhizomes, and when once established 

 it is difficult to eradicate. It is utilized for both hay and pasture. Two 

 or three crops per season are frequently harvested. 



Para Grass. — This is a rank-growing tropical species adapted to moist 

 loams or clay loams. In the United States it is adapted only to Florida, 

 and the Gulf Coast to southern Texas. This grass is easily propagated by 

 cuttings of the long, prostrate runners in much the same way that Bermuda 

 grass is propagated. It is of value both for pasture and for feeding in the 

 fresh state. It is seldom used for making hay. 



Guinea Grass. — This is a long-lived perennial with short, creeping, 

 root stocks. It generally grows in immense tufts, sometimes as much as 

 four feet in diameter. The culms are large, erect, tall and numerous. 

 It is adapted to tropical conditions, but may be grown in Florida and along 

 the Gulf Coast of North America. Both this and the preceding grass may 

 be cut several times each year. Under strictly tropical conditions, cuttings 

 are frequently made every six or seven weeks. 



REFERENCES 



"A Textbook on Grasses." Hitchcock. 

 ''Forage Plants and Their Culture." Piper. 

 "Forage and Fiber Crops in America." Hunt. 

 "Grasses and How to Grow Them." Shaw. 

 Farmers' Bulletins, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture: 



361. "Meadow Fescue (Its Culture and Uses)." 



362. "Conditions Affecting Value of Market Hay." 

 402. "Canada Blue Grass (Its Culture and Use)." 

 502. "Timothy Production on Irrigated Land." 



508. "Marked Hay." 



509. "Forage Crops for the Cotton Region." 



