I52 FARM GRASSES OF THE UNITED STATES 
even beyond it. Orchard-grass is popular in this section, 
and for the same reason. Both of these grasses thrive 
much farther south than timothy. Redtop is one of 
the few grasses that remain green the year around in 
the South; in fact, it will stand greater extremes of 
climate, as far as temperature is concerned, than any 
other of our farm grasses, and it is also grown in more 
States than any other. Florida is the only State in 
which it has not been mentioned by correspondents. 
It is of very little value, however, in the central and 
southern portions of such States as Alabama, Missis- 
sippi, and Louisiana. In the hill country of north 
Louisiana, on moist clay, valley soils, redtop is said to 
be the best of all the grasses. This grass occurs in a 
semi-wild state in nearly all parts of the country. 
The map (Fig. 30) shows approximately the dis- 
tribution of redtop as a farm grass. By comparing 
this map with that on page 161, showing the distribu- 
tion of orchard-grass, it will be seen that the distribu- 
tion of these two grasses is remarkably alike. Of the 
two, orchard-grass is really much the best, but red- 
top is more generally grown. It is only outside of 
the limits of the timothy region that redtop becomes 
second to orchard-grass in the preference of farmers. 
Orchard-grass yields a larger amount of, and better, hay 
Cif cut right) and more pasture than redtop, and is con- 
sidered more palatable, but it is surpassed by timothy 
in most of these respects, and becomes prominent only 
where it does not have to compete with timothy. Red- 
top is preferred for sowing with timothy, because it is 
not so early as orchard-grass and makes a moreeven sod. 
Redtop is the most variable of all the cultivated 
