46 
beneath the dead bodies of Hindoos, the chief mourner wearing a ring of it on 
his finger. The stout rhizome is used as a diuretic. (Duthie.) 
Eragrostis elegantula Kunth. 
A €— annual grass, 1 to 3 feet high, native of northwest India, growing in low, 
wampy grounds. It ice eee fodder, and in the {central provinces at 
Bala aghat it is used for bro 
Eragrostis frankii Meyer. Short-stalked Meadow-grass. 
A low, tufted annual, 3 to 10 inches high, rather common in the Central and South- 
ern States, growing in low, sandy ground along streams, marshes, or pes 
When fresh it has a very strong, disagreeable odor, which serves at once to dis 
tinguish it. It has no agricultural value 
Eragrostis major Host. Stink-grass; Pungent Meadow-grass. (Fig. 41.) 
A rather showy, much-branched annual, with erect or ascending stems, 6 inches to 
or 3 feet high. This men which i is a native of Europe; has become widely 
distributed in this country, ‘growing chiefly in 
cultivated or waste grounds, especially in light 
soils. When fresh it emits a strong, unpleasant 
odor. 
Eragrostis minor Host. TE Strong-scented 
5 Stink- grass 
This grass closely — 1 Eragrostis major, but is 
sma meS Mick ghout, having narrower, usually fewer- 
we spikelets. It grows in similar situations 
as fhe last, but is less common. 
Eragrostis pectinacea Gray. Meadow Comb-grass. 
An erect perennial, 1 to 2 feet vig with large, widely- 
spreading panicles, 6 inches to a foot or more in 
ngth native grass, common «is dry, sandy soils 
in open grounds and along the borders of fields and 
woods in the Eastern, Southern, and Middle States. 
/ The showy panicles are often gathered for dry bou- 
/ quets. Ofno agricultural value. 
Eragrostis pilosa Linn. Slender Meadow-grass. 
A slender branching annual, 6 to 18 inches high, with 
narrow, flat leaves and capillary, open panicles. 
Ks 
1 
N 
but i 
Fio. 41 e (Eragrostis an excellent fodder grass, and the seeds are eaten 
the natives of Ajmere, India. 
Eragrostis purshii Sehrad. Southern Spear-grass; Southern Eragrostis. 
A native annual, similar in appearance to Eragrostis ens and growing in similar 
situations. It is common from tbe Middle States ward, and extends south- 
|. westward into Texas and Arizona, e it dez in e pesat yariety of tonns, 
E It "ipd to epe height of 1 to 2 feet. 
Dem importan 
Eragrostis reptans Nees. Creeping Meadow-grass. 
A prostrate, much-branched and extensively ereeping annual, common along sandy 
river banks, lake shores, and in marshy places. It sends up e sta 3 
Urra 
