Sugar planter. [volume] (West Baton Rouge [i.e. Port Allen, West Baton Rouge Parish, La.]) 1856-1925, 1867-07-20
HUNGARIAN GRASS.

The Department of Agriculture having
recently sent to the southern and south
western States a quantity of the hunga
rian grass seed, and inquiries having
been made as to its value, the manner OF
culture, etc, it has been deemed proper
to give the information sought.
Many farmers have kept both horses
and horned stock through the winter with
no other feed than Hungarian grass {; the
animals coming out of winter quarters
in a superior condition. There need be
no fears Of poisoning, as intimated BY
one correspondent the suggestion prob
ably arose from injuries received from
o~ver-eating. -,
This grass is now generally used and
highly esteemed for forage, is used green
or dry, is very productive, Of quick growth
and four;saes well 10 dry soils.
Flint. in his valuable work on grasses,
says: "The Hungarian miiiet has been
cultivated to some extent Id this State
Massachusetts, from seed received
through the Patent Office. 1t u an an
nuai forage plant introduced into France
ii 1916, where its cultivation has become
considerably extended. It terminates
readily, withstands the drought remarka-
bly,, remaining green when other vcgota-
ton is parched up, and if its develop
ment is arrested b. dry weather, the
least rain will restore it to yig0r. It has
numerous succulant leaves, which furnish
an abundance Of green fodder, very
much relished by all kinds Of stock, It
fourishes in somewhat light and dry soils,
though it ~attains its greatest luzuriance
in soils of medium consistency and we'll
MANFRED. It may be o VI broadcast or
in drills and cultivated precisely like any
other variety of miliet."
D. B. Divon, of Muscatine, Iowa, after
experimenting with this grass, remarks /:
" It is luxuriant in its growth, and pro-
duces bay of the finest quality. Horses
and cattle eat it with avidity. A good
crop of Hungarian grass is about three
tons Of hay and thirty bushels of seed to
the acre, while it will often go beyond
and seldom falls below this. The time
for cutting is when the seed is nearly
ripe, and the whole plant is of a fine
yellow color. It may be cured in the
same hi as hay. AS fodder, after
thresing, it is fully equal 10 timothy ;
and when fed out with the seed in, as at
generally should be, it is better than good
sbeaf oats"
William Story, Of jamestown, Fentross
Tennessee, says "I send you
q full account Of ny experiments with
the Hungarian grass. On the 10th Of
June, 1853, ! received a pint Of the seed
from the Patent Office, and on the 11th ]
sowed it on a rich piece Of clay land. |
ploughed the ground with a shovel plough
which left the surface very rough and
/ then narrowed about one
'ourth Of the patch, l%eyeling the surface
smooth. After sowing the seed on
the ground ! again narrowed. The
ground was very dry, and the weather
continued hot for some weeks conse-
it was some time before the seed
came up. | was soon sorry I had not
narrowed all the ground before sowing,
or where / had omitted this operation
few seeds zane up. Notwithstand.
ng the extreme heat of the sun the grass
~" .H'otnSty idsti tidiCileu out
beyond all expectation, and grew about
waist high by the first of August. It was
headed out like millet, though seeming
more vigorous and hardy. By the 10th 1
IT August the heads, which were from !
to six inches in length, were all turn |
ID to a golden yellow color. I cut and
hreshed off the seed, and had sixty-three t
'ints from one pint Of seed sown. I am l
'onhdant that not more than half the q
,eed came up, aud consequently the sixty =,
hree pints were the product of half a /
of seed. In Tennessee it should be {
own about the first week in Nav on j.,
lear and loose ground, narrowed smooth L
'etore and after sowing. One bushel of c
eed will, think, plant three acres. I re- {
ommend the Hungarian grass to be the
'est and most nutritious of all grasses
nd shall rejoice when our State shall
e well supplied with it.n !
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4 REMARKABLE W1sH.-Old Madame G
- hntr4