ZACATON AS A PAPER-MAKING MATERIAL. 



and after the rainy season sends up new shoots profusely. These 

 are relished by cattle while the tops are immature. Soon, however, 

 the tops become so tough 

 that stock refuse to eat 

 them. The growth is al- 

 most entirely a wild one 

 from seK-sown seed. The 

 mature panicles are not 

 unlike those of timothy. 

 Unless checked by fire, 

 cultivation, or the har- 

 vesting of the roots, rice- 

 root grass soon covers a 

 field solidly. It is not 

 uncommon to find areas 

 many square miles in ex- 

 tent covered densely with 

 this wild grass. One of 

 the fields harvested by 

 Mr. McEwen was 3 miles 

 wide and 7 miles long, 

 covered almost entirely by 



a relatively pure stand OI yig. 4.— Longitudinal section of a culm, X 343, showing 

 EpicampeS macroura, sclerelds and pith. 



The information that has been secured indicates the possibility of 

 growing this grass successfully in some localities in the Southwest, 



especially for paper-produc- 

 ing purposes. Three allied 

 species grow scatteringly 

 from Texas to California. 



Regarding the climate 

 that prevails in the sections 

 where zacaton-root harvest- 

 ing is extensively carried 

 on, Mr. McEwen states: 



We have no means of determin- 

 ing the rainfall, but there is a 

 considerable quantity of rain, and 

 the morning dew is almost as 

 heavy as the average small shower 

 in the States. In Sayula it rains 

 about three months of the year, 

 the rest of the year being dry, and 

 one of the most beautiful climates 

 that you can possibly imagine. 

 The rains, when they come, are 

 very heavy and in the middle of the day the thermometer registers about 80° F., but 

 it is not uncommon for it to drop to 50° at ni^ht; this is a good average through the 



Fig. 5.— Cross section of a leaf blade, X 80. 



