90 



RICHARD FROTSCHER's ALMa:^AO AND GARDEN MANtJAL 



or gravelly soils, it succeeds ad mirablj^ 

 growing two or three feet high. On 

 rich, dry up- 

 land it grows 

 from five to 

 seven feet 

 high. It has 

 an abundance 

 of perennial, 

 long fibrous 

 roots, pene- 

 trating deeply 

 in the soil, 

 being, there- 

 fore, less affec- 

 ted by drought 

 orcold, and en- 

 abled to yield a 

 large quantity 

 of foliage, win- 

 ter and sum- 

 mer. These ad- 

 vantages ren- 

 der it one of 

 the very best grasses for the South, 

 both for grazing (being evergreen) and 

 for hay, admitting of being cut twice a 

 year. It is probably the best winter 

 grass that can be obtained. 



It will make twice as much hay as 

 Timothy, and containing a greater 

 quantity of albuminoids and less of heat- 

 producing principles, it is better adapted 

 to the uses of the Southern farmer, 

 while it exhausts the surface soil less, 

 and may be grazed indefinitely, except 



Tall Meadow Oat Grass. 



after mowing. To make good hay it 

 must be '^ut the instant it blooms, and, 

 after being cut, must not get wet by dew 

 or rain, w^hicli damages it greatly in 

 quality and appearance. 



For green soiling, it may be cut four 

 or five* times with favorable seasons. 

 In from six to ten days after blooming, 

 the seeds begin to ripen and fall, the 

 upper ones first. It is, therefore, a little 

 troublesome to save the seed. As soon 

 as those at the top of the panicle ripen 

 sufficiently to begin to drop, the heads 

 should be cut off and dried, when the 

 seeds will all thresh out readily and be 

 matured. After the seeds are ripe and 

 taken off, the long abundant leaves and 

 stems are still green, and being mowed 

 make good hay. 



It may be sown in March or April, 

 and mowed the same season ; but for 

 heavier yield, it is better to sow in Sep- 

 tember or October. Along the more 

 southernly belt, from the 31^ parallel 

 southward, it may be sown in November 

 and onward till the middle of December. 

 Whenever sown it is one of the most 

 certain grasses to have a good catch. 

 Not less than two bushels (24 pounds) 

 per acre should be sown. Like Timothy, 

 on inhospitable soils, the root may 

 sometimes become bulbous. The aver- 

 age annual nutrition yielded by this 

 grass in the Southern belt, is probably 

 twice as great as in Pennsylvania and 

 other Northern States. 



JOHNSON GRASS 



[Soi^ghum 



This has been called Cuba grass, 

 Egyptian grass. Means grass, Alabama 

 and Guinea grass, etc. 



It seems pretty w^ell agreed now, how- 

 ever, to call it Johnson grass, and leave 

 the name Guinea grass for the Panicum 

 iamentornm, to which it properly be- 

 longs. 



It is true that in Mr. Howard's pam- 

 phlet, as well as in many periodicals and 

 books, and in letters and common usage, 

 this grass has been far more generally 

 called Guinea grass than the true Guinea 



halopense.) 



I grass itself, thus causing vast confusion. 

 j It is, therefore, assuredly time to call 

 I each by its right name. Johnson grass 

 is perennial and has cane-like roots, or 

 more properly, underground stems, 

 from the size of a goose-quill to that of 

 the little finger. These roots are tender, 

 and hogs are fond of and thrive on them 

 in winter. The roots literally fill the 

 ground near the surface, and every joint 

 is capable of developing a bud. Hence 

 the grass is readily propagated from 

 root cutting. It is also propagated from 



