60 MISCELLANEOUS PAPERS. 
YIELD OF SEED. 
The yield of seed is so variable, depending on the climate, soil, lay 
of the meadow, and other factors, that it is difficult to estimate the 
average quantity produced to the acre. From 250 to 350 pounds is, 
however, a conservative estimate. Records of the Saskatchewan 
experimental farm show the yield of brome-grass seed there to range 
from 250 to 600 pounds. Experiments conducted at the Manitoba ex- 
perimental farm indicate that the harvesting of a mature crop of seed 
materially lessens the yield of either hay or seed the following year. 
On account of the close sod formed by the grass after the first vear 
there are very few weeds present in the fields, and consequently the 
seed when harvested is practically free from impurities and in very few 
cases are there seeds of any other grasses in it. There is occasionally 
a very small amount of seed of the grain used as a nurse crop and a 
trace of cheat (Bromus secalinus) and slender wheat-grass (Ag7ro- 
pyron tenerum). The seeds of Bromus inermis are very similar to 
those of the above species, the seeds of chess, especially, often being 
mistaken for brome-grass seeds. (See Pl. VII.) 
STRAW. 
When cut with a binder, the straw after thrashing is generally — 
stacked and used for feed. The quality varies largely with the 
height at which the grass is cut, the length of time it stands in the 
shock, and the care with which it is stacked after thrashing. If all 
these conditions are favorable, brome-grass straw is about equal to 
oat straw. At any rate, it makes very fair feed for wintering cattle, 
horses, and sheep. 
USE IN ROTATION. 
One of the objections which farmers have to brome-grass is that 
it is comparatively short lived and will not remain productive for 
hay in a meadow more than three or four years. This objection is 
not serious from the standpoint of crop rotation, but, on the other 
hand, is slightly advantageous, since there is a general tendency to 
grow one crop on a field for too long a period. Bromus inermis, 
however, is not looked upon by farmers as a valuable constituent in 
a crop rotation. This is due to the fact that it is considered difficult 
to eradicate, and when ordinary methods are employed it takes about 
two years to get it out of the field. Farmers desire something that 
can be disposed of easily in one year or with one plowing, and con- 
sequently are favoring slender wheat-grass (Agropyron tenerum), 
which is now coming into popularity on this account. 
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