86 HAY AND FODDER. 
stalk and the restriction of the foliage to its summit make 
a Bracken plot look solid from above but like a minia- 
ture open forest from within. In this respect the Bracken 
is distinct from our other native ferns, and so its habit 
forms an easy means of identification. At fruiting time 
the sporangia are also of value for identification. They 
are borne in a continuous line under the infolded margin 
of the leaflets. 
GRASS FAMILY—Gramineae. 
SKUNK-TAIL GRASS—Hordeum jubatum L. 
Other Common Names: Squirrel-tail Grass, Skunk- 
grass; Wild Barley, and improperly in the Prairie Pro- 
vinces, Foxtail. 
No poisonous compound is contained in this grass, but 
it causes a great deal of trouble to horses, sheep and cattle 
owing to its sharp awns, which break and 
enter the mucous membranes of the mouth and 
gums. Horses are troubled much more than 
cattle, as their mouths are more tender. Inflammation, 
ulceration and formation of pus follow, and in some cases 
the gums are diseased to such an extent that the teeth 
become loose and fall out. A quotation from Dr. S. H. 
Johnson by Pammel, states: “I have seen lips eaten 
through, and tongues eaten almost off by the grass.” 
The plant is a biennial, or winter annual, growing in 
waste places and neglected fields, along roadsides and on 
the open prairie, especially on moist slopes and 
on cut-over sloughs. Its fibrous roots form 
compact, tangled masses. The stems are in clumps or in 
compact formations, from six inches to two feet tall, with 
slender leaves and dense fruiting spikes, turning a faded 
Harmful 
Effects 
The Plant 
