Milford chronicle., 1919-07-11
TALL FESCUE GRASS
HAS ITS ADVANTAGES
Produces More Feed Than the
Common Meadow Variety
Only Apparent Objection to It Is That
1t Does Not Produce Seed Album
dantIy-eood Plan to Sow
After Wheat or Oats.
prepared by the United States Depart

prepared by the United States Depart
ment Of Agriculture.)
Tall fescue, an upright, perennial
grass, has advantages over the more
commonly grown meadow fescue,
which it resembles closely. Tests with
the two grasses conducted by the Uni
ted States department of agriculture
indicate that the tall fescue produces
more feed and is in general more hardy
or robust. 1t does not appear to he
susceptible to attacks of Oat smut
which frequently damages the seed
crop of the meadow fescue in Kansas,
Nebraska and Missouri. While some
what cOarser it appears to be equally
palatable and nutritious. Apparently
the only objection to it is that it does
not produce seed as abundantly as the
meadow fescue, and the principal rea-
son why it is not NOR generally grown
is the high price of tie seed. Because
the seed is scarce and expensive it is
frequently poor in quality, which is
accountable for the difficulty expert
enced by some growers in getting
good stand.
Tall fescue has the undesirable hab-
It of. ripening its seed very unevenly,
and this fault, with the fact that it
sends up few seed-producing stems,
makes the yield light. Fields in. north
eastern Kansas which ordinarily yield
II to IS bushels Of meadow fescue
seed produce only three to seven BUSH
els an acre of tall fescue. Tests at
Pullman, Wash, indicate that in east
ern Washington seed can be produced
more successfully than in eastern Kan
sas. Planted in rows 18 inches apart
and cultivated, yields as high as "a
bushels an acre have been obtained.
In eastern Kansas and Missouri fall
seeding Of tall fescue seems to give
the best results, but in sections where
the winters are more severe, and
where there is considerable freezing
and thawing, causing the ground to
heave badly, spring seeding is prefer
able. It is a good practice to SOW on
ground that has been previously in
wheat or oats and which has been
plOwed in July or early August. Tall
fescue is also sown successfully in fall
wheat or Bye. Seed may be sown Ell
ther broadcast or with a press drill,
the latter method giving the best re-
suits. When a drill is used it is well
to sow one-half of the seed each way,
so as to cover the ground more evenly. |
A perfect stand is sometimes secured /
with about fifteen pounds of seed an
acre, but 20 to 25 pounds are recon-
mended under most conditions.
When the meadow is intended pri- |
marily as hay crop the grass is cut |
with a mower just as it is coming into |
bloom. The processes of curing and /
stacking are similar to those for tim
pthy and other hay grasses. In har-
Eesting the seed crop the grass must
be cut as soon as it begins to take
on yellowish color, otherwise consid-
erable seed will be lost through shat
tering. It is cut with a grain binder
and placed in small shocks to cure,
and the thrashing ordinarily is done
directly from the shocks in the field.
An ordinary grain separator can be
used for thrashing by cutting off most
Bf the blast from the fan. Special
screens are Of value, but are not neces-
sary, as a wheat riddle does fairly sat
work.