Canadian Bluegrass (Poa A grass of small economic value, found quite generally over the Northern States and in Can ada. It is of some value as a sand binder, and, when kept closely mowed, it forms a smooth, even sod in lawns. In parts of Virginia and States to the north it is valued as a pasture grass on sandy loam soils.
Crab Grass (Panicum is not, strictly speaking, a cultivated grass. It springs up in cornfields, and after small grain crops in late summer, and frequently furnishes a considerable crop of hay, which is of fair quality. It is universal in the South and ex tends northward to the Missouri and Ohio rivers.
Fodder Under this term we may include the coarse-growing grasses such as the sorghums, Kafir corn, Milo maize, teosinte, etc. On account of their large size, they require to be handled in a different manner from the com mon hay grasses. They are usually cut and shocked after the manner of fodder corn, though most of them may be handled by haying machinery if they are sown quite thick.
The sorghums (saccharine sorghums) were introduced into this country about the middle of the last century, and were extensively grown for syrup making before the now universal adulteration of this class of food materials de stroyed the market for all farm-made syrups. At present little sorghum syrup is produced, but the sorghum plant is much grown for fod der. Its most valuable characteristic is its ability to withstand protracted drouth. It is therefore especially adapted to the western edge of the humid region. where it is exceedingly popular. Sorghum is also very generally grown in all the Southern States, where the fodder is particularly valuable as a feed for the planta tion mules. In all the cotton-growing States, as well as along the edge of the great plains, sorghum is a much more certain crop than corn (maize). Kansas is the leading State in the production of this crop. Some varieties are grown as far north as Minnesota and North Dakota. In the South two or three cuttings may be made in a season.
Several varieties of Kafir corn (non-sac charine sorghums) have become established in this country in recent years. The plant re sembles a low-growing, branching, very leafy sorghum. It is cultivated either for fodder or for grain, of which latter it yields abundant crops. The grain is inferior to corn, but its more certain yield in dry seasons renders it a valuable crop in the same sections where sor ghum is grown. It is rather more distinctly a southern crop than sorghum, being grown most largely in Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas and New Mexico. Milo maize is not very widely
known in this country, but it is gaining a foot hold in parts of Texas, where it is grown after the manner of sorghum and is said to furnish large crops of valuable fodder or hay. Teosinte (Euchlenea mexicana) is a tropical plant some what resembling sorghum, but in reality more closely related to corn (maize). It does not produce seed in this country, but on rich allu vial soils in the Southern States it produces enormous yields of green fodder much relished by cattle. It is of no account on poor thin soils. Near the cities, where dairying is an im portant industry, this crop is of great value in the South. It may be cut several times in a season, and there is no waste in feeding it, as the stalks are readily eaten.
Pearl millet may be classed with the sor ghums on account of its manner of growth, but botanically it is quite different from them. It is a native of Africa, and was introduced in this country about 30 years ago. It has been tried very generally over the country, but has never gained favor. The seed is frequently un reliable, and the stems are inclined to be woody when approaching maturity.
A large number of our wild grasses have more or less economic importance. In fact, a majority of them furnish food for domesticated animals, while some are important for other reasons, as will appear in the discussion below. Only a few, however, are of sufficient import ance to warrant their mention here. It is some what remarkable that none of our wild grasses have been domesticated during the past hundred years. This is perhaps due to the fact that the best of them were brought into cultivation very early in the history of the country. The more important genera of our wild grasses are: Andropogon.—This genus is particularly well developed along the eastern edge of the Western plains, where several species form im portant constituents of the immense acreage of wild hay cut in that region; also in the Southern States, where it constitutes the major part of the growth of grasses in open woods and aban doned fields. A. virginicus is one of the most abundant grasses from Maryland southward. These grasses are large and coarse, and are not much relished by stock except in the early stage of their growth, whence the common practise of burning over the prairies to start a new growth of tender grass.