MEADOW FOXTAIL. 225 



experiment station the heads appeared in some seasons 

 before the end of May, or earlier than those of blue 

 grass. In Tennessee they sometimes appear early in 

 April. In favorable situations it grows up quickly 

 again after being grazed and also after being sown for 

 hay, but in somewhat flry conditions as in some parts of 

 the Mississippi basin it behaves differently. 



Meadow foxtail is much relished by all kinds of 

 stock, whether grazed or fed as hay. It is not only pal- 

 atable, but its abundant leaf growth and softness make 

 it grateful to animals which feed upon it. But it is 

 slow to become established, hence it is not well adapted 

 for short rotations. It will rather be grown in pastures 

 and meadows more or less permanent in character. 

 Where the conditions are just right for its growth, it 

 is peculiarly well adapted for permanent pasture. 



Distribution. — ^Meadow foxtail is a native of Europe. 

 It has higher adaptation, however, for those parts of 

 that continent in which the climate resembles that of 

 England. Authorities agree as to its high value for per- 

 manent grazing in Britain, where it forms one of the 

 principal grasses in such pastures. It has long been in 

 favor in that country. In 1824 Sinclair states that it 

 constituted part of the produce of all the richest pas- 

 tures that had come under his notice in Lincolnshire, 

 Devonshire and in the vale of Aylesbury. It also grows 

 in western Asia and northern Africa. It is not indigen- 

 ous to America, nor can it be said that it has obtained 

 a very extensive foothold in any part of the same. 



While this plant is fairly hardy it is not well adapted 

 to extreme conditions of heat or cold, drought or exces- 

 Grasses — ^16. 



