118 FARM GRASSES OF THE UNITED STATES 
hay, which is readily eaten by stock. This weed is 
evidently worthy of more attention as a fodder-plant 
than it has heretofore received, particularly for moist 
soils in regions where timothy does not thrive. It is 
stri@tly an annual, and is therefore not adapted to per- 
manent meadows. It has been known to yield four tons 
of very good hay per acre on Jand where its seed was 
scattered by floods in the river-bottoms of northern 
Louisiana. A variety of this grass was exploited re- 
cently under the name ‘‘ Billion-dollar grass.’’? The 
sphere of its usefulness seems to be confined to wet 
meadows in the Far West and in the South. 
During the past few years several varieties of this 
group have been introduced into this country from 
Japan, and have been tested by many of the experiment 
stations, particularly in the West. Some of them pos- 
sess considerable merit, but none of them are as yet 
widely cultivated. In Japan and parts of China, espe- 
cially in sections where rice does not thrive, these mil- 
lets are important crops. ‘They have been called Jap- 
anese millets in this country because the principal 
varieties were introduced from Japan. 
TEXAS MILLET (Panicum texanum).—This grass 
is a common weed on rich river-bottom lands in central 
Texas. The name most commonly used for it in that 
section is Colorado grass, since it occurs abundantly in 
the vicinity of the Colorado River in Texas. It is also 
sometimes called Austin grass, having spread down 
the Colorado River from Austin some years ago. Its 
habits are exactly like those of crab-grass. It comes 
up in corn-fields after.the corn is laid by. It seeds 
abundantly, and the seed falls off very easily when 
