ON THE MIXED HERBAGE OF PERMANENT MEADOW. 
1237 
Avena pubescens. 
Avena pubescens has short, creeping, underground rootstocks, and fine thread-like 
roots, generally superficial, but having the power to descend to a great depth under 
favourable circumstances. Its tufted culms are few in number, 1 to 3 feet in height. 
The leaves are narrow, downy, especially on poor soils, but on richer ones the plant 
becomes glabrescent. It reproduces itself abundantly by means of its short under¬ 
ground stock. It begins to grow early, flowers in June, and ripens an abundance of 
seed. 
The favouring conditions are its hardiness, tufted habit, free seeding tendency, and 
power of reproduction by its slightly creeping stock. Its degree of prominence is 
shown, in the usual form, in the subjoined table. 
Table XLIL—Relative predominance of Avena pubescens. 
Avena pubescens 
Was First, Second, or Third, 
Yielded 5 per cent, and over, 
among the total Grasses, as under. 
to the total Mixed Herbage, as under. 
1862. 
1867. 
1872, 
1877. 
1862. 
1867. 
1872. 
1877. 
f 2 . . . 
3 
10-28 
7-68 
3 . . . 
3 
9-65 
t B 
4-1 . . 
3 
9-42 
4-2 . . 
, , 
7-38 
5 . . . 
, f 
7-31 
Plots * 
6 . . . 
2 
14-54 
7 . . . 
1 
13-81 
8 . . . 
1 
12-68 
9 . . . 
, , 
10-22 
10 . . . 
2 
10-64 
12 . . . 
2 
3 
9-87 
5-64 
1 
LlS . . . 
5-48 
j' First . . 
2 
0 
0 
0 
1 
Total < 
Second 
3 
0 
0 
0 
7 11 
1 
1 
1 
1 
L Third . . 
2 
1 
1 
0 
/ 
Thus, this plant only twice assumed the first place, theu only in the first separation- 
year, and on plots where no nitrogenous manure was applied, and where, therefore, 
there was no general luxuriance of other grasses. It was three times second, but 
again only in the first year of separation, and again only on plots characterised by 
limited general growth. It was third twice in the first, once in the second, and once 
in the third separation-years; in each case without, or with deficient manuring. 
In the first year of separation it yielded more than 5 per cent, of the produce on 
11 plots, but on each succeeding occasion on one plot only. 
Avena pubescens has, in fact, gone down under almost every condition of manuring 
MDCCCLXXXII. 7 T 
