﻿410 
  Transactions. 
  — 
  Botany. 
  

  

  tliey 
  grow, 
  and 
  make 
  tliem 
  improve 
  in 
  condition 
  quickly, 
  tliey 
  may 
  tlien 
  be 
  

   regarded 
  as 
  a 
  useful 
  and 
  good 
  addition 
  to 
  our 
  fodder 
  plants, 
  but 
  as 
  I 
  never 
  

   think 
  much 
  of 
  any 
  plant 
  until 
  it 
  has 
  had 
  five 
  or 
  six 
  years 
  testing, 
  it 
  is 
  too 
  

   soon 
  yet 
  to 
  say 
  much 
  in 
  favour 
  of 
  this 
  plant. 
  

  

  The 
  Prosopis 
  piihescens, 
  or 
  screw 
  bean 
  tree. 
  As 
  soon 
  as 
  I 
  heard 
  this 
  

   plant 
  was 
  considered 
  to 
  be 
  a 
  useful 
  one 
  for 
  fodder, 
  I 
  procured 
  specimens 
  

   and 
  seed. 
  The 
  seeds 
  vegetated, 
  and 
  the 
  plants 
  are 
  growing 
  slowly, 
  so 
  thafc 
  

   in 
  a 
  few 
  years 
  we 
  shall 
  be 
  able 
  to 
  learn 
  Avhether 
  it 
  will 
  grow 
  freely 
  in 
  this 
  

   country. 
  I 
  read 
  of 
  a 
  strange 
  test 
  which 
  was 
  applied 
  to 
  try 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  this 
  

   tree. 
  A 
  horse 
  was 
  given 
  all 
  he 
  liked 
  to 
  eat 
  of 
  the 
  pods 
  with 
  the 
  seed 
  in 
  

   them, 
  and 
  he 
  liked 
  them 
  so 
  well 
  that 
  ho 
  ate 
  about 
  four 
  pounds 
  of 
  the 
  dry 
  

   husks 
  or 
  screw 
  pods. 
  The 
  result 
  was 
  what 
  might 
  have 
  been 
  expected. 
  The 
  

   horse 
  was 
  found 
  dead 
  the 
  following 
  morning. 
  No 
  doubt 
  the 
  same 
  event 
  

   "would 
  have 
  occurred 
  had 
  the 
  horse 
  been 
  fed 
  with 
  any 
  other 
  such 
  dry 
  

   material, 
  and, 
  although 
  the 
  horse's 
  death 
  was 
  attributed 
  by 
  the 
  writer 
  to 
  

   the 
  poisonous 
  effect 
  of 
  the 
  screw 
  bean, 
  I 
  think 
  it 
  was 
  rather 
  to 
  be 
  ascribed 
  

   to 
  tlie 
  large 
  amount 
  of 
  dry 
  husk 
  swallowed, 
  as 
  a 
  horse 
  has 
  often 
  killed 
  him- 
  

   self 
  by 
  eating 
  too 
  freely 
  wheat 
  chaff, 
  bran, 
  or 
  even 
  whole 
  wheat 
  itself; 
  so 
  the 
  

   death 
  of 
  this 
  animal 
  does 
  not 
  prove 
  that 
  the 
  screw 
  beau 
  is 
  poisonous, 
  but 
  

   that 
  too 
  large 
  an 
  amount 
  of 
  dry 
  food 
  becomes 
  injurious 
  to 
  any 
  animal 
  

   partaking 
  too 
  freely 
  of 
  it. 
  But 
  there 
  are 
  better 
  trees 
  of 
  this 
  Prosopis 
  genus 
  

   than 
  the 
  screw 
  bean, 
  and 
  some 
  of 
  them 
  are 
  found 
  most 
  excellent 
  fodder 
  for 
  

   horses, 
  and 
  other 
  live 
  stock 
  where 
  they 
  grow, 
  and 
  I 
  intend 
  to 
  get 
  them 
  as 
  

   Boon 
  as 
  possible 
  and 
  try 
  them 
  here. 
  

  

  There 
  are 
  also 
  among 
  the 
  plants 
  that 
  are 
  worthy 
  of 
  culture 
  as 
  annuals 
  

   by 
  farmers 
  for 
  fodder 
  to 
  cut 
  green, 
  or 
  to 
  dry 
  and 
  make 
  into 
  hay, 
  several 
  

   of 
  the 
  millets 
  that 
  will 
  do 
  well 
  here, 
  and 
  yield 
  a 
  large 
  crop 
  of 
  herbage 
  and 
  

   seed, 
  and 
  that 
  are 
  readily 
  eaten 
  by 
  horses, 
  cattle, 
  and 
  sheep. 
  

  

  A 
  millet 
  from 
  Queensland 
  I 
  tried. 
  It 
  began 
  to 
  grow 
  in 
  the 
  spring, 
  

   coming 
  up 
  very 
  quickly; 
  by 
  the 
  autumn 
  it 
  had 
  ripened 
  its 
  seed; 
  the 
  herbage 
  

   is 
  tender, 
  succulent, 
  and 
  relished 
  by 
  all 
  stock 
  ; 
  it 
  grows 
  about 
  three 
  feet 
  

   high, 
  shooting 
  out 
  thickly. 
  

  

  A 
  millet 
  from 
  France 
  much 
  resembles 
  the 
  preceding, 
  but 
  bears 
  a 
  

   larger 
  and 
  more 
  abundant 
  seed 
  ; 
  it 
  sends 
  out 
  branches 
  from 
  the 
  joints, 
  

   which 
  also 
  seed 
  ; 
  from 
  the 
  large 
  quantity 
  of 
  seed 
  and 
  its 
  succulent 
  green 
  

   stems 
  and 
  leaves, 
  it 
  proves 
  itself 
  a 
  useful 
  fodder-plant* 
  

  

  Milium 
  effiisum 
  is 
  another 
  plant 
  that 
  gives 
  a 
  large 
  quantity 
  of 
  seed, 
  and 
  

   as 
  it 
  will 
  grow 
  under 
  trees 
  or 
  bush, 
  it 
  might 
  be 
  sown 
  there 
  in 
  the 
  place 
  of 
  

   other 
  kinds 
  not 
  suitable 
  ; 
  it 
  also 
  does 
  well 
  if 
  grown 
  with 
  tares 
  or 
  vetches, 
  

   and 
  when 
  cut 
  together 
  can 
  be 
  used 
  as 
  a 
  fodder 
  with 
  great 
  advantage. 
  

  

  Hungarian 
  millet 
  also 
  does 
  well 
  here, 
  and 
  ripens 
  its 
  enormous 
  heads 
  of 
  

  

  