116 
GRASSES, MEADOWS, AND PASTURES.-NO. 3. 
Egyptian or Syrian Millet or Guinea Grass, 
(Sorghum halepense,) known by various other 
names, is a'native of our southern states, in many 
of its varieties, although it has been imported from 
abroad. 1 have seen it growing in profusion on 
Long Island, Charleston, S. C., and in Southern 
Mississippi., It grows like a very slender, minia¬ 
ture cornstalk, from four to six feet high, with a 
strong stem, and large grassy leaf, and bears a 
stately seed stalk, tufted with flowerets, which, how¬ 
ever, so far as they have come within my knowledge, 
do not bear a fully-ripened seed in this country. 
That imported from the Mediterranean, grows with 
great vigor. Its roots are tuberous, large and pro¬ 
lific ; and equally with the rich, succulent leaves 
and stalks, when the latter are young, they are at 
all times greedily devoured by stock. Dr. Bach¬ 
man, of South Carolina, considers it a stock-sus¬ 
taining plant, far superior to any other grown at 
the south. It is difficult to remove when once em¬ 
bedded in the soil, and the cotton planters look 
upon its introduction into their cultivated fields, 
with unmingled apprehension. 
[It is to be understood that this is not the Guinea 
grass of Cuba and Jamaica, ( Panicum jumentorium.) 
which was introduced into the falter island, in 1774, 
from the following circumstance :—A cage of Af¬ 
rican birds had been presented to Chief Justice 
Ellis, with which was sent a small bag of their na¬ 
tive food, the wild grass seed of the coast of Guinea. 
The birds died and the seeds were carelessly thrown 
into a hedge, where they quickly grew and spread ; 
and from the eagerness of the cattle to reach it, at¬ 
tention was called to its vegetation, having since 
become one of the most valuable productions of 
the West Indies.— Eds.] 
Bermuda Grass, (Cynodon dactylon).—This is 
considered by Mr. Spalding, an experienced planter 
in Georgia, who examined them both critically, from 
specimens which he raised together, as the Doub 
grass of India , so much commended by Sir William 
Jones, and so highly prized by the Bramins. It 
is by the agriculturists of the south, deemed an in¬ 
valuable grass, yielding four or five tons per acre 
on good meadow. Mr. Affleck, of Mississippi, 
states the yield of three cuttings, at five to six tons 
per acre on common meadow, that it loses only 50 
per cent, of its weight in drying, and is conse¬ 
quently the hardest grass to cut. It is one of the 
most nutritive grasses known, and is of great value 
to the river planter. It loves a warm and moist, 
but not wet soil. 
Crab Grass is considered, (unjustly as I think,) 
a pest by the cotton planters, for equally, perhaps, 
with the Bermuda, it is a rich and nutritious grass. 
It comes up after the crops are laid by, (received 
their last plowing and hoeing,) and grows rapidly 
as the cotton or corn matures and dries; and by 
the time they are ready to remove from the field, 
has frequently attained so large a growth, as to af¬ 
ford a crop of hay. Even considered as a fertilizer 
alone, it is a valuable assistant to the planter. 
When the corn or cotton is young, the ground re¬ 
quires working to an extent sufficient to keep down 
this grass, solely with a reference to preserving its 
porosity—its dew-condensing, dew-absorbing pro¬ 
perties. When the crop is sufficiently matured to 
need no further care, the grass shoots forward rap¬ 
idly, and absorbs largely from the floating elements 
of the air. 
Winter Grass is known on the low, moist, fertile 
soils of Mississippi and the adjoining states. It 
springs up in the autumn, grows all winter, and 
seeds in the spring. It fattens all animals that feed 
upon it. 
MusJceet Grass, found growing on the plains of 
Mexico and Texas, is considered one of the best of 
the indigenous grasses. I have seen it growing on 
the plantations of Louisiana, where it has been 
successfully transplanted. 
Grama is held in the highest estimation by the 
Mexicans. It attains a medium height, and is 
deemed the most nutritious of the hatural grasses 
in our southwestern, frontier prairies, in California, 
and parts of Mexico. It grows on dry, hard, gra¬ 
velly soils, on side hills, the swells of the prairies, 
and the gentle elevations in the valleys. The 
principal value is found in the numerous seeds, 
which are retained in the pods with great tenacity, 
long after they are ripe, serving as a luxurious 
food for all the graminiverous beasts and fowls of 
the regions where it is known. 
Buffalo Grass is found intermixed with the grama, 
and seldom grows more than a few inches in height. 
It forms a thick, soft herbage, on which the traveller 
walks with ease, and reposes, when weary, with de¬ 
light. It yields a rich sustenance to countless 
herds of wild horses and cattle, buffaloes, deer, and 
antelopes. 
Tornillo, or Screw Grass .—This grows in great 
profusion in the region of the two last grasses: but 
is most conspicuous on the table lands, and be¬ 
tween the rivers and creeks, the tall grass of the 
lower levels, giving place to it as the surface as¬ 
cends. It is taller than the buffalo, with broader 
leaves. It bears a seed stock eight or ten inches 
high, surrounded by a spiral-shaped pod, an inch 
long and one fourth of an inch in diameter, 'which 
contains ten or twelve roundish, flattened seeds. 
The herbage is not relished hy animals, but the 
ripened seeds yield a food of great richness, on 
which innumerable herds of wild cattle fatten.for 
slaughter. Horses, mules, and most other animals 
and fowls subsist upon it. 
The Prairie Grasses abound in the western prai¬ 
ries, and are of great variety, according to the lati¬ 
tude and circumstances under which they are found. 
They afford large supplies of nutritive food both 
as pasturage and hay. They possess different mer¬ 
its for stock, but as a general rule, they are coarse 
when they have reached maturity, and are easily 
injured by the early frosts of autumn. Some of 
the leguminosae, or wild pea vines, which are fre¬ 
quently found among them, yield the richest herb¬ 
age. We are not aware that any of these grasses 
have been cultivated with success. 
Pony Grass may be mentioned, as one of the 
best of the winter grasses in our western states. 
It grows in close, thick, elevated tufts, and con¬ 
tinues green all winter. It is easily detected under 
the snow by animals, from the little hommocks 
which every w T here indent its surface. 
Wild Rice , which lines the still, shallow waters 
of the streams and small inland lakes of many of 
the western states, affords a palatable forage when 
green, or if early cut and dried; and the grain, 
