VII 



THE BLUE-GRASSES 



KENTUCKY BLUE-GRASS {Poa fraUitsis) 



"Ever smelt Kentucky grass. 



Or heard about its blueness ? 

 Seems as if the whole blamed world 

 Was bursting out with newness. 



" Skies and folks alike all smiles — 

 Gracious ! you are lucky 

 If you spend a day in June 

 Down in old Kentucky." 



— Alfred Musson. 



f^^^|LUE-GRASS (June grass, Kentucky blue-grass), 

 I ~M Fig. 1 8, is the standard pasture-grass of the 

 RfeBH country — at least, in those sedlions where 

 tame pastures are mostly found. When the 

 American farmer speaks of grass he usuallj- means 

 blue-grass. It is the one grass celebrated in song and 

 storj- . In the Blue-Grass Region of northern Kentucky , 

 and in many parts of Missovui, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, 

 and Ohio, blue-grass pastures are the pride of the 

 thriftj- farmer. Its palatability to all classes of stock, 

 the evenness of the sod it forms, the beautiful color of 

 its verdure, and its increasing produ<fliveness with 

 age, if properly handled, all conspire to make blue- 

 grass the king of pasture-grasses. 



It is iu the Blue-Grass Region that fine horses and 

 90 



