4 Farmers' Bulletin 1126.

Sudan grass when seeded broadcast or in drills grows about 3 to 5 feet high and has stems about three-sixteenths of an inch in diameter

(a little smaller than a lead pencil). If grown in rows and culti- vated, it reaches a height of 6 to 8 feet, and the stems are about one- fourth of an inch in diameter. (Fig. 1.) The panicle is loose and open, very much like that of Johnson grass, but a little larger and a trifle less open. The hulls, or glumes, are awned and when in flower are often purplish in color. This color usually fades to a pale yellow when ripe. The awns are broken off in thrashing, so that the com- mercial seeds rarely have awns. The leaves are broader and more numerous than those of Johnson grass, giving the grass a much more favorable appearance as a hay plant. The most important differ-

FlG. -Outline map showing the forage value of Sudan grass in different

parts of the United States.

ence, however, is that the aggressive underground stems, or root- stocks, with which Johnson grass is equipped, are entirely absent in Sudan grass. This striking difference is shown clearly in the accom- panying figure illustrating young seedling plants of the two grasses.

(Fig. 2.) Sudan grass, like the cultivated sorghums, never develops anything but fibrous roots, therefore it can not become an obnoxious weed as the perennial Johnson grass does. Furthermore, it has shown no tendency to persist in fields as an annual weed through

volunteer seedings. When it has plenty of room the grass tillers very freely. It is not uncommon to find over 100 stems arising from one crown. This decided tendency to tiller is most apparent after the first cutting, and usually makes the hay from the second cutting of finer texture than that from the first.