OUR NATIVE GRASSES.

Otago Witness, Issue 3338, 6 March 1918, Page 8

OUR NATIVE GRASSES.

There are a great many of our native grasses -which are highly nutritious, and are much sought after by grazing animals, with the result that even on moderatelystocked areas one seldom sees them in flower, they having been cropped close by sheep and rabbits, owing to their palatability and sweetness —rabbits, indeed, in certain localities having killed the plants out entirely. Then, too, we have the craze for imported grasses to contend against, and the result is that our indigenous natural herbage is not half appreciated by those handling heavy wool cheques to-day. The settlers of the early days—the observant ones, and they _ are few in number—w T ere and are keenly" appreciative of the fattening qualities of, say, Danthonia pilosa (hard tussock), or of D. semiannularis (New Zealand oat grass), while having a hearty contempt for such growths as Festuca bromoides (hair grass) and Hordeum murimim (barley grass, which they rightly deem so much ornamental rubbish). These two last-named grasses, with others of like kidney, are to be seen flowering in quantity inland, and nearer home, on the waysides. One may hear at times the unwary one descanting on the luxuriant feed apparent on all sides, Central-ways and elsew r here, quite innocent of the fact that the stock and even the rabbits leave these pastoral weeds severelv alone. We find Professor'-T. W. Kirk, F.L.S., in a leaflet issued as far back as 1898, pointing out the fact that barley grass invades the pastures and occupies large areas, to the entire exclusion of useful herbage. Stock will not touch it, save in a very young state, and then only when driven by hunger. Nothing eats the seeds, and therefore it spreads rapidly. In addition to damaging pastures as mentioned, the seeds, owing to their peculiar structure, damage wool, cause sores on the skin of sheep, frequently piercing right through into the flesh, causing great pain to the animal, besides seriously • affecting the commercial value of the pelts and carcases. In much the same way hair grass may be classified as merely a plant of botanic interest, and useless as sheep feed. We have mentioned but two useful and two useless grasses indigenous to New Zealand; but there are dozens of others, more or less known. The point we wish to make is that far too few settlers have a knowledge as to what are the useful native grasses and the useless kinds, and know the plants by sight. It is here we wish to' see some improvement made and means provided, so that anyone interested might become familiar and see good and bad native grasses of any particular province, and familiarise himself with their general appearance and habits of growth. No large expenditure need be incurred, and the Department of Agriculture—and one naturally looks to the department —might well through the medium of their inspectors throughout the country start a campaign and collect specimens of the indigenous grasses of each province. These could be named, and the utility or otherwise of each species noted. They might well be kept in some apartment, where in the course of time other specimens of interest to settlers could be added—in fact, there should be something in the nature of an agricultural museum established in the orincipal towns in the provinces. No doubt at some of the experimental State farms in the North Island a collection of native grasses can be seen growing, and is of specific value to visitors and the trained observer, who iater on formulates the characteristic features of the grass varieties for the benefit of reading settlers far afield. That is fill very well; but as a means of practical teaching, to, say, the settlers of Otago, it is not enough. "Something in the nature of the Governmental display as seen at the various Winter Shows is what is wanted, and would,prove of immense educative value to settlers, and be, the writer is convinced, of immediate practical benefit. The matter of general appreciation of the value of native grasses is of importance. Witness, for instance, in some cases the permanent depreciation of great areas of Otago lands, due to indiscriminate and icnorant burning, and the rabbit pest being too lightly regarded. For many years, says Professor Kirk, those who have made a study of native grasses urged recognition of their excellent qualities, and of the fact that great wealth was being destroyed annually in consequence of the absurd craze for the clearance of our indigenous natural herbage, and the sowing of so-called " English grasses " regardless of the fact that the latter were in many instances quite rinsuited to the locality and conditions, while the former were specially adapted by Nature to meet those conditions. Now, however, the indigenous species are coming into the limelight, and every effort should be made to familiar ise pastoral *<ettlers with the main nutri tious native grasses, as well as with those of no. economic value.