GRAMINEiE. 237 



Avena. L. 3. 2. Oat. 

 Origin of the name uncertain ; perhaps from the Celtic, to eat. 

 Loudon. 



A. sativa. L. The common Oat, so valuable for food for 

 horses and other animals, and forming the material for bread 

 among so many people in the North of Europe, and for some 

 other preparations for food. " Fourteen pounds of grain yield 

 eight pounds of meal." Loudon. Several varieties are culti- 

 vated. One, whose flower-stalks are less diffuse, and somewhat 

 twisted, bearing a greener colored fruit, is thought to yield very 

 abundantly. In Europe some other species are cultivated as food 

 for horses. 



A. sterilis. L. Animal Oat. Cultivated in gardens as a 

 curiosity, as its spikes with their long awns are sensitive to 

 changes in the moisture of the air. Placed in the hand, they 

 creep about, having a remote resemblance to some animal. From 

 Barbary, and quite singular in this hygrometric property. 



A. Jlavescens. L. Yellow Oat Grass. Recently introduced. 



A. mollis. Mx. Wild Oat. A small grass of no con- 

 siderable importance, found in open woods, and along hedges ; 

 flowers in June. 



Danthonia. DC. 3. 2. 



D. spicata. DC. Wild Oats. Named after the French 

 botanist, Danthoine. Loudon. Taken from Avena ; is common 

 in pastures and open woods, a foot high or more ; has some resem- 

 blance to the common Oat, though its flowers are much more 

 compact ; eaten well by cattle, but commonly grows rather 

 sparsely. 



Arrhenatherum. P. de B. Tall Oat-Grass. 



A. avenaceum. P. de B. A tall grass, introduced from 

 Europe, and naturalized in some places. Big. Taken from 

 Avena. 



