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Show Grass Seed Turns TurnsWaste TurnsWaste Waste Land Into IntoGreen IntoGreen Green Pastures PasturesThe The need for beef and beef prod products products ucts is so gioat gleat these days that alI alIavaIlable allavailable avaIlable feed must be utilized And Andone Andone one feed is grass Grass is meat- meat meatfor meat-tor meat tor - for our fighting fightmg men mcn tor for clvulans clvulansand civiliansand and for lend lease leaseNative Native gnss seed stands well to tothe tothe the forefront of the feed picture 1\a 1 a 1ative \ Nalive tive glasses are handy economIcal economIcaland economicaland and highly palatable They supply supplyabout supplyabout about 65 per cent of the forage and andfeed andfeed feed for livestock hvestock in m the western westernrange westernrange range states statesAs As a result of the plant explora exploratlons exploralions tlons of the U S Soil Con Con-scrvat Con scrvat - crvat on onServIce onService ServIce among native species spccles grow growing growing ing here m In America specifically speclfica1ly to tofind tofind find better soil conserving conservmg and range fOlage rangefoiage rangefOlage plints phnts a number of grasses grassesnot grassesnot not previously cultivated have been beenbrought , brought ! into lIto useThe use useThe The seed of a number of native nativegrasses nativegrasses grasses could not be purchased any anywhere anywhere where a few years ago The SCS SCSpersona1ly SCSpersonally persona1ly had to collect all the seed seedneeded seedneeded needed for its land rehab lItatIon lItatIonI Ltationprojects I proJects But since smce then the agcn agcncy agcncy cy has carried on an educatIonal educatIonalcampaIgn educationalcampaign campaIgn for the harvesting harvestmg proc process process ess ng and planting of the seed In Interest Intcrest terest in m the importance of the seed seedwas seedwas was spurred Prices went up The Theseed Theseed seed of a number of native grasses grassesis IS now being bemg sold on an Important Importantscale importantscale scale by seedsmen scedsmen The establish establishment establishment ment of a new farm . industry-col industry col industrycollectIon Industry - collection lectIon of wild grass seeds-has seeds has seeds - has been beenthe beenthe the result The SCS can now buy buymost buymost most of its seed from farmers and andranchers andranchers andranchersJust ranchers ranchersJust Justhat Just \ what \\hat hat are the native grasses grasses7Some ? Some of the principal prmclpal ones are but butfalo butfalo falo grass blue gram grama a grass sIde sIdeoats sideoats oats grama various bluestem bluestemgrasses bluestemgrasses grasses switchgrass swltchgrass sand dropseed dropseedtobosa dropseedtobosa tobosa grass western wheatgrass wheatgrassga1leta wheatgrassgalleta ga1leta Ind an grass and various variousw variousv v . Id rye grassesSome grasses grassesSome Some of these native grasses took tookqUIte tookquite qUIte a beating beatmg from expanded dry dryland dryland land farming farmmg in the latter part of ofI ofthe ofthe I the 19th century Farmers kIcked kickedup , up more dust than the thundermg thunderingherd : herd Subsequent drouths and severe severewmter severewinter wmter storms d dn t help elp matters mattersany mattersany any The dust bowl was inevl inevltable inevltable inevltableMuch table tableMuch Much of the range area is erodmg erodingto erodmgto to a certain certam degree On most farms farmsm farmsm m the Great Plains Plams and western westernstates westernstates states there are fields that should shouldbe : be revegetated and the natIve natIvegrasses nativegrasses grasses of the region together wIth witha a few adapted introduced grasses grasseshave grasseshave have proved most suitable for the thepurpose thepurpose thepurposeAlthoigh purpose purposeAlthOlfgh Althoi/gh Althoi gh AlthOlfgh / farmers have come to tothe tothe the rescue of the land by provld provldIng providing Ing grass cover tor for more than 75 75per 75per per cent of the former dust bowl bo.l bol . still stillmore stillmore more native grass seed is needed neededIt neededIt It is needed tor for producing producmg meat for forcurmg forcuring curmg s ck land and for healmg healmguns healinguns uns ghtly gulliesIn gullies gulliesIn In cons denng dermg the particular use useto useto to which a grass grasl known to be ex excellent excellent cellent in m erosion control can be put putIt putit It is necessary first to know where wherethIS wherethis thIS grass will grow If a grass grassthat grassthat that protects and enriches the sOil sOilgrows soilgrows grows on many different types of ofsous ofsoils sous and under a wide range of ofclimatIc ofclimatic climatIc conditions it will rank high highamong highamong among the grasses used in conser conservat conservat vat on plantings plantmgs plantmgsSmce plantingsSince Since Smce artificial arWiclal revegetation re reqUIres requires qUIres planting the seeding seedmg habIts habItsof habitsof of grasses must be studied Some Somegrasses Somegrasses grasses shatter bhatter their seed soon after afterit afterit it ripens some are not reliable seed seedproducers seedproducers producers and some grow only m mscattered inscattered scattered stands or in m locations m maccessIble inaccessible accessIble to harvesting harvestmg machinery machineryOther machineryOther Other native stands produce seed of good quality that can be readily har harvested barvested barvestedImprovements vested vestedImprovements harI I Improvements have been made in inthe inthe the methods and machinery used In Inthe inthe the collection of seed of natIve natIvegrasses nativegrasses grasses As a result unit costs have havebeen havebeen been reduced and the harvesting of ofcertam ofcertain certam species formerly consIdered consIderedeconomically consideredeconomically economically prohibitive have been beenundet"taken beenundertaken undet"taken undettaken " Direct purchase of seed seedfrom seedfrom from farmers and ranchers has been beenon beenon on the increase mcrease mcreaseThe increaseThe The processing processmg of seed of native < grasses has developed rapidly Many Manyof Manyof of our native grasses have awns or orappendages orappendages appendages that require specIal specIaldrJlls specialdrills drJlls Since Smce seed of different spe specles species cles vary m amount of processmg processmgrequIred processingrequired requIred to give a product of stand standard standard ard quality process ng schedules schedulesg g ving vmg durat on of treatment and andm andm m II speed have been determined by byvarIOUS byvarious varIOUS types of mills M llmg llmgcosts Uingcosts costs are arc very low considering consldermg the theImprovement theimprovement Improvement obtained obtamed in m the qual qualIty quality Ity of the seed |