IMPORTANCE OF GRASS

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 188, 10 August 1936, Page 3

IMPORTANCE OF GRASS

"Grasses and Mankind" was the subject, of an address given by Mr. G. H. Holford at the Auckland War Memorial Museum yesterday afternoon. '

"Grass is the most important living thing, being next in importance to _ air, water and light," said Mr. Holford. "Grass is nature's method of turning sunshi"e into food. It converts inorganic materials into a highly complex form whicli maintains life on the earth. Man lias developed along with grass. The highest type of man is dependent on grass products, but primitive man, for instance, the pigmy race, is found chiefly in forest regions. A curious fact is that - man depends on cereals, but cereals depend on man for production." Lantern slides were shown by Mr. Holford depicting the effects of soil erosion following tbe denudation of grass. To illustrate the dependence of man on grass, Mr. Holford showed a film of the movements of Persian tribes in search of grazing.