CHAPTEE V. i 



BERMUDA GRASS. 



Bermuda grass (Gynodon dactylon) is also known by 

 the names Dog's Tooth grassj Scutch grass, Wire grass, 

 Reed's grass, Bahama grass, and Indian Couch grass. In 

 Australia it is called Couch grass and in India Darva 

 grass. The name Dog's Tooth grass is a literal rendering 

 of Cynodon, the first word of the botanical designation. 

 The name Bermuda grass has doubtless been applied to 

 it from the abundant growth which it makes in the Ber- 

 muda islands, although it did not originate in these. Dr. 

 Phares says it is the same as Creeping Dog's Tooth grass 

 in England, Chiendent in France, and Doob or Durva in 

 the East Indies. Some writers claim that it is the Sa- 

 cred Durva grass of the Hindoos, celebrated in the sa- 

 cred vedas as the shield of India, in the absence of which 

 the cattle would perish, but the evidence in support of 

 this view is not regarded as entirely satisfactory. 



Bermuda grass is a creeping perennial, the creeping 

 stems of which produce nodes or joints at short intervals. 

 Each node is capable of producing a new plant, though 

 completely separated from all the others. These stems 

 have been known to extend 12 to 15 feet in a single sea- 

 son under the most favorable conditions for growth. 

 When the joints come in contact with the earth, they 

 send down fibrous roots into the soil as do the run- 



