ORNAMENTAL GRASSES. 73 



the grower has the advantage of the beautiful panicles 

 for a longer period. 



Clumps of the Sugar-grass (Holcus saccharatus) form 

 desirable objects in a landscape garden. This grass was 

 introduced into Belgium from Shanghai, and thence 

 into England a few years ago. It is extensively culti- 

 vated in the United States, attaining there a height of 

 from eight to sixteen feet, but in Europe it seldom ex- 

 ceeds eight feet, and a dull or cold season dwarfs it greatly. 

 The culm is straight, the leaves flag-like, flexuous, droop- 

 ing and bending most gracefully in the manner of those 

 of the Zea Mays. The panicle is cone-shaped, the flowers 

 densely crowded ; the flowers are green at first but soon 

 become tinged with purple, and very elegant. It can 

 bear the frost very well after the flowers are expanded, 

 but if the frost come before, the sap is still flowing, and 

 the culms perish as certainly as those of the male Pam- 

 pas grass. But with care in early sowing there is no 

 danger of this, as it attains its growth quickly, and in a 

 favourable season two crops may be obtained. 



The Maize is well worth cultivation for its beauty and 

 unique habit of growth ; its more sterling qualities are 

 enumerated in the chapter on Cereals. 



The Panick -grasses include a number of very beautiful 

 species, some of considerable size and fitted for distant 

 grouping, and many of smaller stature, well adapted 

 for flower-borders, pots in the conservatory, and bou- 

 quets. 



Panicum miliaceum resembles a Zea in its stout culms 

 and broad overlapping leaves, each sheath enfolding 

 the base of the next; it is a very rich-looking grass, 

 and stands out well in contrast with the light feathery 

 ones. 



