THE SELECTION OF GRASSES.

Manawatu Herald, Volume VII, Issue 246, 12 March 1889, Page 2

THE SELECTION OF GRASSES.

(Sutton's Permanent Pastures.) (Continued.)

Anthoxanthum Odoratum, (stoeet 'c&niS* FaroaJ),— This very distinct species i 8 grown chiefly'forlhe pleasant odo. ur & uaparts to the hay orop, and i« fe the grass is dry that the fragrance ™ ±ull y distinguishable-, Bv lt tlie B raßS possesses an agricultural yaiue V"te ajpart from the purposed as a condiment for cattle. Ifc w one. of the earKest grasses, com>S ""*• & 11 flavour in, May, and, .therefore no surprise will be felt tia/^ yields only a small hay crop. \ Tne Pf c*e * sence, however, enhances thY .P r J cc of the hay. It is a true pet^L*"* 1 * exceedingly hardy, and continu' 6 * growing until late in the autumn, 00 that the aftermath is actually much, larger in bulk than the crop trhich i* cat. One characteristic of this grass is its brilliant green colour:' It is well adapted for deep, rich,' .moM soils, where it grows luxuriously, and. on marshy places it throws up fldwerculms all through the summer. In wet peaty land it comes so large and reed-like as to deceive any but an experienced botanist. It also thrive* under the shade of trees, and accommodates itself remarkably to irrigation. Yet, strange to s«ty,sthisgjriiß* is equally at home on this, moors and exposed sandy dunes, and further experiments should be made with it on reclaimed land and sandy wastes near the sea, for it will live xri v*oil which will not feed any other grass, and isolated plants flourish where only rushes and heather have existed before. . Avena Flavescens (yeHow oatgirau), produces forage of good, quality r which is greedily taken by oattW. , It is scarcely adapted for very tenacious land, and is quite unsuitable for low lying moist pastures. Iff prospers in marl and calcarious soil, and in. all light land rich in humus, bnt especially in that which contains, lime. It flowers at mid-summer. Thfi first orop is not particularly large, but the aftermath is abundant. The leaves are pale green, flowers golden yellow, and they show conspicuously. AvenaElatior (Holcut avertaeeow, Arrhonatherum av«nae&um) - Tall oat grass is known by all these names ; and in Dauphiny, where it is very much grown, especially for se&d, it is called fromentcu. Possibly its apme* what bitter taste, and the aversion which cattle at first display tbwarVis it when grown alone, may account for the indifference shown to it in thts country, although when mingled with other grasses the objectionable flavour is not perceived. On. the Continent, and especially in Sweden, it is largely cultivated, and both cattle and sheep take it freely. In the Southern States of North AmeJSfc* it is regarded as one of the finest grasses for producing an immense weight of grass, far surpassing evea. Timothy in the abundance of its crop. The roots penetrate so deeply into the soil as to enable the plant to. withstand the effects' of both cold and drought. This grass is almost indifferent to soil, and maybe grown pretty nearly anywhere. It is seen to least advantage on poof thin land ; but on all good light andmediun> soils, as in all forms of clay, if not too damp, it grows from two to four feet in height, and in warm forcing situations will .produce two heavy crops of hay in ona season. When sown in the autumn a much larger produce is obtained in the following; year than from a spring sowing. Cynosures Cristatus (C*e*tei Dogttail) is one of the chief sheep grasses 'in British agriculture. Combined with Hard Fescue and Sheep's Fescue it' may be said' to compose the best of our upland sheep pastures. It constitutes a valuable bottom grass, and is supposed, to exercise a beneficial influence on sheep in the prevention 1 of foot-rot. Certain it is that sheep show great' partiality for the leaves of this grass, eating them down so dose that there would be a danger of the. plant being exterminated were it not for the fact that the seed-culm* soon become hard, and are then rejected by the animals, with the result;,, that seed is matured, and shed copiqusly almost every season. Superficial observers have occasionally mistaken these stalks for bents,' and have "depreciated the grass accordingly. . TJp to the time of forming seed these stalks do no harm, but the actual production of seed interferes greatly with the aftermath. To prevent this injury, and because it is needless to allow the seed to be shed every year, it is sometimes worth while to put the. mower over the pasture in the early part of July to take, off the rising culms. On lawns and. pleasure grounds the fine evergreen herbage is especially prized, ynosuxus thrives in compaot soil, and it will endure conditions under which few other grasses can exist. .' The roots are hard, and as they penetrate de«p the plant is naturally adapted for dry soils, and can withstand drought. Still I have seen it growing luxuriously on tenacious clays, especially near the sea, and it is singular that a grass which does so well on very strong soils should; also find a congenial home on thin upland pastures. On dry loams with a chalk subsoil it •houldbesownfreely. Fullmaturity is not reached until the second or third year. ! To be Continued.