HABITS OF THE LARGE AND THE SMALL CANE. 103 
forest on the low plains which rise above the water courses and are 
subject to overflow only at the time of high freshets. So conspicuous 
was this formation in the western part of the plain that it is called 
emphatically the ‘‘canebrake region.” At present a comparatively 
small representation of the smaller cane remains. It occupied the 
most fertile lands, and these were claimed for the plow by the earliest 
settlers. Although the growth was so dense as to be almost impene- 
trable, it was easily eradicated, being susceptible to the effects of fire. 
The strips of the large cane which lined the banks of the larger 
streams subject to frequent overflow have for the most part remained 
intact. These two species, which resemble each other so closely in 
habit, differ greatly in their modes of reproduction, a subject of much 
interest.of which but little is as yet known and one which invites the 
attention of the investigator of the ecological relations of plants, and 
no less that of the agriculturist, on account of the value of the canes 
as pasture plants. Arundinaria tecta rarely exceeds the height of 12 
to 15 feet, and the slender culm branched from the base is seldom half 
an inch in thickness. Early in spring, apparently every three or four 
years, the paniculate flowers are produced on naked radical shoots 
scarcely exceeding 18 inches in height, while the tall flowerless canes 
are sent up every season from the long creeping rhizomes. Arundi- 
naria macrosperma, from 15 to 30 feet high and frequently an inch 
and over in diameter, produces the panicles of its flowers in the axils 
of the branches at long and indefinite intervals of time. It is evident, 
therefore, that generations may pass by before the spectacle of sucha 
canebrake in bloom is ever witnessed. For example, in the beginning 
of the summer of 1896 the inhabitants of Russell County were aston- 
ished suddenly to find the large canebrakes bending under the burden 
of their heavy, nutritious grains, which attracted large numbers of 
birds and beasts. The farmers regarded this as an entirely new plant, 
and, finding their stock grew fat upon the seed, stored away quanti- 
ties of it, not only for future feeding, but under the delusion that if 
sown it would constitute a crop of small grain equal in value to any 
previously grown. But in the light of experience it is to be presumed 
that a period of not less than forty to fifty years has to pass before the 
propagation of this plant by sexual reproduction takes place. With 
the maturity of the seed the vitality of the plant is exhausted and the 
cane decays. Inthe succeeding season, from the spontaneous stocking 
of the ground with an abundance of seed, a new crop springs up. 
The seedlings produce no branches during the first year. These 
simple sprouts, which are known as ‘‘mutton cane,” are tender and 
sweet and afford the best of pasturage. They are particularly sought 
after by bears, which find in the impenetrable density of the canebrake 
their securest retreats. 
