1909.] 



Meadow Foxtail. 



197 



without very close examination ; the rougher and more harsh 

 character of the seed of Slender Foxtail can be felt and seen. 

 Both Slender and Meadow Foxtail are provided with a pro- 

 minent awn, but the soft silky hairs so abundant in the 

 latter species are almost entirely absent from the keel of the 

 other. The seed of the Slender Foxtail is also somewhat the 

 larger of the two, and is darker in colour. 



In comparing Perennial Rye-grass and Foxtail the seeds are 

 found to be widely different ; there is no similarity in value, 

 appearance, or weight, and though the first-named grass is 

 a good one in its proper place and at its own price, when it 

 is mixed with Foxtail in any quantity, either carelessly or by 

 design, it very materially reduces the value of the sample ; 

 this is more readily understood when it is stated that one 

 pound of Foxtail costs five times more than one of Perennial 

 Rye-grass, and, moreover, the individual seeds of the latter 

 weigh two and a half to three times heavier than the Foxtail. 



In most samples we also find varying quantities of Hair 

 Grass (Aira cczspitosa), in others various species of Brome 

 Grass", Silky Bent Grass, Sorrel, and Dock. Amongst the 

 useful grasses found in many samples of Foxtail are the 

 Rough- and Smooth-stalked Meadow Grasses, Hard Fescue, 

 Tall Fescue, Fiorin, Timothy, &c. These, though useful, 

 still constitute impurities if found in what purports to be a 

 pure sample of Foxtail. 



The farmer, in arriving at anything like a true estimate of 

 the real value of any seeds he intends to purchase, bases his 

 judgment in the first instance on the external appearance of 

 the seed and how it feels to the touch as it is passed from 

 one hand to the other, the colour and shape of the seed, and 

 its uniformity of character. Freshness and brightness, in 

 most instances, indicate that the seeds are new, well matured, 

 and presumably of high germinating capacity. In the case 

 of Foxtail seed the purchaser cannot submit his sample to any 

 such standard of excellence ; the brightness of the seed in this 

 instance is usually emphatic evidence of immaturity rather 

 than of freshness and quality. 



When a sample of Foxtail seed is submitted to a critical 

 examination, it almost invariably happens that there are many 

 seeds or grains present which at a first glance are apparently 



