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BRITISH GRASSES. 



1. Phleum pratense, Linn. Timothy-grass. 



Boot perennial, creeping ; stems upright, smooth, round, 

 from eighteen to twenty-four inches high, joints smooth ; 

 leaves four or five on the stem, flat, rather broad, acute, 

 roughish ; sheaths nearly smooth ; ligule oblong ; panicle 

 cylindrical, compact, two to five inches long; spikelets 

 small, numerous, compressed, situated in pairs on short 

 footstalks; outer glumes about a line long, abrupt, with 

 scarious edges and fringed at the keel, each glume termi- 

 nating in a short, stout, rough awn ; flowering glume ovate, 

 five-ribbed, jagged on the upper part, covered by the outer 

 glumes and closely covering the palea, which is shorter, 

 pointed, and has its margins delicately fringed ; ovary 

 roundish ; filaments long and slender ; anthers rather long, 

 notched at both ends ; styles long ; stigmas feathery. 



The Timothy, or Common CatVtail-grass is conspi- 

 cuous in meadows and pas- 

 tures everywhere, flowering 

 in June, and exhibiting its 

 cylindrical spike-like pani- 

 cles to all observers. It is 

 called Timothy-grass, be- 

 cause it was first extensively 

 cultivated by Mr. Timothy 

 Hanson, in North America, 

 and introduced into British 

 artificial pastures on his re- 

 commendation, and has been 

 held in good esteem, parti- 

 cularly for moist tenacious 

 soils, where it flourishes best. 

 Sinclair found it very good 

 for early pasture, but inferior 



