CRESTED WHEATGRASS 3 
enables it to utilize the soil moisture to such an extent as to check 
the growth of other grasses and weeds where the moisture supply 
is limited. 
In thin seedings, individual plants tend to enlarge, sometimes be- 
coming rough and bunchy, especially where there is much soil- 
blowing. The grass is more easily killed by plowing than brome- 
grass, and, therefore, is better suited for growing in rotations. 
ADAPTATION 
Crested wheatgrass is especially well adapted to the northern 
Great Plains, where the temperatures are severe and the moisture 
supply is limited. It is one of the most promising dry-land grasses 
for eastern Oregon and Washington and northeastern Calfornia. 
In Colorado crested wheatgrass is reported to give good results as 
a pasture crop at altitudes of 5,000 feet or more, but it has not 
appeared promising at lower altitudes. At the United States Dry 
Land Field Station, Akron, Colo., it has proved to be the best of 
available pasture grasses, although far from satisfactory for pasture. 
The grass has some possibilities as a seed crop in that locality when 
grown in cultivated rows. 
The results from limited tests with crested wheatgrass as a dry- 
land crop for Kansas have not been sufficiently conclusive to permit 
specific recommendations. In tests at Hays, Kans., it has not ap- 
peared promising, but has given good yields under irrigation near 
Garden City, Kans. In the eastern part of the State, where moisture 
conditions are more favorable, other adapted grasses are doubtless 
superior. Until further information is available regarding the value 
of the grass in Kansas it is suggested that prospective growers test 
it experimentally before sowing any considerable acreage. Crested 
wheatgrass is being tested in pasture mixtures in some of the humid 
northern States, where it gives some promise. As a result of seed- 
ings made by farmers in many other parts of the United States, more 
definite information regarding its limits of usefulness should soon 
be available. 
There are no records of an established stand of crested wheatgrass 
having been killed by cold or drought where the grass is adapted. 
Although it has survived the most severe drought of the northern 
Great Plains the grass is not productive during extreme heat or 
drought. It remains dormant during such periods, growth being 
renewed when rains occur. Available results seem to indicate that 
with 18 or more inches of rainfall properly distributed, bromegrass 
may yield as much as, and alfalfa may yield more than, crested 
wheatgrass. 
Crested wheatgrass does not appear promising for the southern 
half of the United States except possibly at high altitudes. Under 
the more favorable moisture conditions of the Eastern States it is 
not equal to timothy and other adapted grasses. 
The grass does well on productive soils of almost any texture 
ranging from light sandy loam to heavy clay. 
SEEDING 
Crested wheatgrass, being tender in the seedling stage, requires 
favorable conditions for germination and early growth. A firm seed 
