The Dickinson press., 1903-04-11
Austrian Bronze Grass.
(Bromus Inermis,)

The seed OF bronze grass is usually
sold by the hundred pounds rather than
by the bushel, but it generally weighs
about fourteen pounds per bushe.
There is no sure way of telling the
growing strength and consequent value
OF the seed except by counting out one,
two or three hundred Of the seeds and
trying their sprouting and growing
strength in shallow box of sand or in a
germlnator, which should be given the
temperature OF a common living room.
II the seeds seem chaffy and poorly filled
it is sufficient ground for suspicion.
GOOD LAND FOR BRONZE GRASS.
Cool, strong heavy wheat land seems
best adapted tor bronze grass but it does
we'll in comparison with other crops up
on light land. Supt. Mckay of the AS
slnlbola Experimental Station reports
having had good success with it upon
land sufficiently. alkaline to prevent
wheat from making crop.
Land which is in good condition for
wheat is we'll prepared for bronze grass
and the seed Of it can be sown as early
as the soil is in good condition, as it is
not sensitive to frost. The Station has
sown it with good results as late as Aug
ust first upon land which has been kept
free from weeds, and upon land which
the molstore has been preserved by fire.
quent cultivation.
HOW TO SOW BRONZE GRASS.
1t can be put in with an ordinary drill
by running the drill shallow and by max.
ing shaker or agitator to cause the seed
| to feed through the force feed arrange
! ment of the drill.
An agltator consists Of strip of board
| with spike driven through it over each
| cup in the drill. Fill the drill box halt
/ full of seed, remove the lid and have
/ boy sit astride the box and move the
! agitator from end to end of the box as
the drill is driven through the field. The
agitator will cause the seed to feed down
even and regularly.
Bronze grass does not usually succeed
with nurse crop but upon land which
is inclined to blow or drift-a light seed
ing of oats at the rate of a bushel of oats
per acre-will prevent undue drifting
and at the same time it will not shade
and rob the young bronze grass enough
to hurt it badly. Cut the oats for hay
when the blossoming stage has passed,
as it is during the time of filing that
small grain is hardest upon the grass
crop seeded withit. Bronze grass seeded
alone should have the weeds cut above
it with the sickle bar set high as often as
/ the weeds shade it badly or threaten to
ripen their seed.
THE AMOUNT OF SEED PER ACRE.
Seed it at the rate OF fifteen pounds
per acre il it is put in for hay, and at the
| rate OF twenty or even twenty-five pounds
per acre if pasture is desired at the earl
lest possible time. Bronze grass will
| usually make no crop of hay the first sea-
son and will furnish very little pasture.
! 1t often looks like meagre stand the
first summer and fall but it will thciken
up in surprising way the second year
| and frequently field of bronze grass
| which seems but half a stand the first
year will make good crop the next sea-
son.
Three distinct head appearances, in
color may be seen in a field of bronze
gr ass during the time following the head
ing stage. AT first the heads are green,
little latter they turn purple in color
at which time it is ready to cut for hay.
and later the heads turn brown. When it
has changed about two thirds of the way
from purple to brown it should be cut
for seed, as the seed will shell badly if it
| is allowed to stand long after it has
| reached the stage of ripeness described
above.
HOW TO CUT AND THRESH 1T.
1t is cut for seed with the common
grain binder and the shcaves are placed
| in medium sized shocks and allowed to
\ cure. 1t may be threshed with the or
dinary grain separator by using the oat
sieve and by shutting the wind off to pre-
vent blowing the light chahy seed out
with the straw.
Run the seed twice through tanning
mill and it will be ready for market.
Bronze grass is a heavy yielder of seed,
the quantity ranging from one hundred
fifty to five hundred pounds per acre.
IT GETS SOD BOUND.
Bronze grass thickens up rapidly and
on that account field produces only
about four crops of hay or three success
full crops of seed before it becomes too
badly sod-bounl to be valuable for any
purpose aside from pasturing. The
length of time that it remains valuable
for pasture seems much greater as tlelds
of it are found to furnish good grazing
when they are six or seven years old
To destroy the sod cut the grass in
ample season for hay and break the sod
at once in shallow manner just as prairie
sod is usually broken. Backset it in
late summer or very carly fall, as is the
custom with prairie sod, and it will he in
good condition for wheat or flax crop
J. H. SHEPHERD,