Part 3

As to Natal grass, I have already mentioned that this succeeds better on the poorer and drier pine lands than any other grass yet introduced. Thus far it has been exploited purely as a grass for market hay. On this basis many hundred acres were planted in Lake County and elsewhere. Grass culture purely for market hay is a very precarious proposition. The proper agricultural economy is grass for live stock, selling only the surplus to the market. Notwithstanding the very large acreage planted to Natal, I have been quite unable to secure satisfactory data as to its value for pasturage, measured in carrying capacity and satisfactory gains. It seems to me, from the slender data I have been able to secure, fairly probable that Natal will prove a valuable grass for combined hay and pasture on the soils to which it is so well adapted, but of course it can hardly be expected to yield enough to justify the extravagant prices paid for land planted to Natal.

Prairie Lands.

On the prairies of Florida there is much better natural pasturage than in the piney woods, and, indeed, it is on the prairies that the old type of cattle industry reached its highest development. The prairies are in reality wet meadows. Their grass cover is due to water relations, most of them being periodically overflowed--conditions that are inimical to pines and palmettos. On the other hand, the period of overflow is too brief to meet the conditions necessary for cypress and other swamp trees. These prairies stretch from the border of the pine woods and palmettos on relatively high ground to permanently wet swamps. The best natural pasturage consists of various species of paspalum and related flat-leaved grasses on the soils fairly moist during a large part of the year; and maiden cane on still moister land, or even in shallow water. Generally speaking, the moisture relations of the more extensive prairies are nearly ideal for continuous pasturage in the varying seasons. There is grave danger in any extensive drainage operations, as palmettos and pines will quickly invade such drained land, and thus destroy the grass.

For improved pasture on these lands, particularly on those reasonably moist, Para grass offers great possibilities. The remarkably rapid growth and high yield of this grass, combined with its palatability and nutritiousness, make it of prime importance in connection with better live stock. Para succeeds well also on the better uplands, but, generally speaking, it is a grass for moist lands. The farther south, the more valuable it is, as after frost it is of little value.

Another grass that is likely to be very valuable on the prairies, and, indeed, on the flatwoods and better uplands, is _paspalum dilatatum_, native to Argentina. This is perhaps the best of the paspalums, and it is now widespread in the Southern States. Unfortunately, with us the seeds are largely destroyed by a fungus, but good commercial seed is obtainable in quantity from Australia.

Muck Lands.

On the muck lands the problem of pasturage is easy. At least four grasses, namely, Para, Carib, Rhodes and Bermuda, especially Giant Bermuda, yield wonderfully. The enormous area of muck lands in Florida, especially in the Everglades, can, it would seem, be utilized only with the aid of livestock. While there may be some fairly difficult problems to solve in handling live stock on muck soils, especially in the wet season, there can be little doubt that grass and live stock will insure the permanency of these lands. Under continuous cultivation there is a constant shrinkage in muck soils, but with grass and live stock this is nearly, if not quite, counterbalanced.

Carib grass on muck soils is, from limited data, superior to Para grass both in yield and quality. On other types of soil Para will outyield Carib. Rhodes grass does wonderfully on muck soil, and, indeed, on most rich soils. Giant Bermuda is far coarser and more vigorous than ordinary Bermuda. It will succeed wherever ordinary Bermuda will grow, and, in addition, seems much better able to withstand flooding.

Temporary or annual pasture crops are mainly important in connection with swine raising. Various systems of such crops have been devised to furnish successive pastures. Florida has a long list of such crops that can be utilized. Among them are oats, rye, rape, sorghum, peanuts, cow peas, chufas, sweet potatoes, corn and velvet beans. Under certain conditions the cattleman may have to utilize one or more of these crops, but corn and velvet beans is the one that is the most important.

The story of the velvet bean is really one of the romances of agriculture. Introduced into Florida about 1875 from some unknown source, it first attracted attention as a forage about 1890. Until 1914 it was but little grown outside of Florida. In 1915 the crop was certainly less than 1,000,000 acres. In 1916 it had increased to 2,500,000, and in 1917 to about 6,000,000 acres. The explanation of this remarkable increase was the finding of earlier "sports." Three of these appeared independently--one in Alabama, two in Georgia. These early varieties immensely increased the area over which the velvet bean can be grown, so that now it embraces practically all of the cotton belt. These early sports of the old Florida are most grown, but the Chinese velvet bean, introduced by the Department, and the hybrids developed by the Florida Experiment Station, are important. In spite of vigorous search, the native home of the Florida velvet bean yet remains unknown, but it is probably in the Indo-Malayan region of Southern Asia.

The importance of the velvet bean to the live stock industry now developing in the South can scarcely be over-estimated. Grown with corn, it increases the corn crop year after year, and besides furnishes a large amount of nutritious feed to be eaten by the animals when the grass pasture season is over. It reduces greatly the cost of finishing of beef animals for market. This year the velvet bean has been no small factor in helping out the great shortage of foodstuffs, quantities of them having been shipped to Texas. Finally, it has resulted in a new industry for the South, namely, the manufacture of velvet bean meal, which has already won for itself a large demand.

Hay Plants.

The problem of producing hay in Florida is made particularly difficult by frequent rains, except in the fall of the year. The bulk of the hay now produced is from the crab grass that volunteers in cultivated fields. In recent years much Natal hay has been grown for market. Para grass hay is of good quality, and Rhodes grass of very fine quality. Other hays are made from cow peas, cow peas and sorghum mixed, Mexican clover, beggar-weed, oats, millet, etc.

The subject of hay, however, is vital only to the city market. To the live stock man it is of minor importance, as silage furnishes so satisfactory a substitute.

Ensilage Crops.

Corn is, of course, the standard crop for ensilage, and its relative importance in Florida is not far different from that in other States.

Under certain conditions sorghums will yield greater tonnage than corn, and the resulting silage is but slightly inferior.

Florida possesses, in addition, a unique silage plant in Japanese sugar cane. The perennial nature of this plant and its high yielding capacity make it a cheap fodder to grow. It may be utilized as green feed, as silage, as dry fodder, or for pasture. Your own experiment station has published the best information we have on this forage. As a feed for dairy cows there can be no question of its high value, either green or as silage. There still seems to be question, however, as to the relative value of Japanese cane silage as compared with corn silage. In Southern Florida the cane stays green all winter, as a rule, so that there is no necessity for ensiling it for winter feed. It may well prove, however, that a supply of Japanese cane silage will prove good insurance against periods of shortage even in South Florida.

You may have noted that all the pasture plants I have mentioned are grasses. Very unfortunately we have not as yet any good perennial pasture legume adapted to Florida. I say "unfortunately" because, as is well known, the true grasses are nutritious in proportion to the fertility of the land. That is, the better the land the more nutritious the pasture. But with legumes no such relations exist, because legumes are not dependent on the soil for their nitrogen supply.

While we have no satisfactory perennial pasture legume, we have one summer annual, lespedeza, that helps to some extent in North Florida. There are also two winter annuals that reproduce themselves in which I have considerable confidence, namely, burr clover and narrow-leaf vetch. I believe that on many of the better pasture soils, especially in North Florida, that these legumes can be established and that they will re-seed themselves year after year. Of course due care must be taken to secure inoculation, preferably by the soil method.

The Outlook for New Forages.

What the future may hold in store for us in the way of new forages does not assist at the present time, but it is worth considering. It is well to bear in mind that the agriculture of the North, with the single important exception of corn, is mainly a direct inheritance from European agriculture. Substitute root crops for corn and you have in essence the European practice. Southern agriculture, on the contrary, is almost purely an American development--cotton, corn, tobacco, sweet potatoes, from the American Indian; cow peas, Rhodes grass, Natal grass and sorghum from South Africa; soy beans, lespedeza, Japanese cane from Japan; carpet grass and Para grass from the West Indies; Bermuda from India; velvet beans from Southern Asia.

Northern forage plants have been pretty thoroughly studied both in Europe and America, because European conditions are fairly like those of our Northern States. But there yet remains hosts of grasses and legumes adapted to sub-tropical climates concerning which we know practically nothing.

Out of very numerous grasses and legumes at present under test are several that possess promise, and these I shall discuss briefly.

Kudzu.

Kudzu is not particularly new, but it seems to me destined to a much greater importance than at present. It is the only perennial forage legume that has in any sense made good in Florida. It is much better adapted to clayey soils than to sandy soils, but it also succeeds remarkably well on the limestone soils about Miami. On the better sandy soils it would also seem to be valuable, but on the poorer sandy soils and poorly drained lands it is doubtful if it has a place. On clay soils at Arlington Farm, Va., we have consistently gotten two cuttings, totaling five tons of hay per acre--double what we can get from cow peas or soy beans. I believe kudzu is entitled to a fair trial by every Florida cattleman.

Napier Grass.

You have doubtless seen some of the numerous references recently in Florida papers to "Japanese bamboo grass" or "Carter's grass" as grown about Arcadia. These names rest upon a misconception. The grass is a native of South Africa, properly known as Napier grass, or _Pennisetum macrostachyum_, introduced by the Department in 1913. This is a perennial much like Japanese cane, and in our tests is found hardy as far north as Charleston. It does well on rather poor soil and yields heavy crops. In chemical analysis it is richer than corn in protein and carbohydrates, but also contains three times as much fiber. It is this high fiber content or woody character that makes me dubious about its silage value, in which opinion Professor Rolfs concurs. When two or three feet high it is greedily eaten by animals, and so may be a pasturage possibility. As a green feed crop it could be cut three or more times each season, when three or four feet high, and I am sure will prove a very valuable forage for the man with one or two cows. Whether it is a crop for the stockman is still doubtful.

In 1916 we introduced a very similar species, _Pennisetum merkeri_, which is perhaps a little superior, though it is hard to tell the two apart.

Metake.

The name "Japanese bamboo grass" leads me to mention a true Japanese bamboo, the _metake_. This is a bamboo that spreads by rootstocks and forms dense thickets ten to fifteen feet high, much like cane brake, and, like our native cane, a valuable winter pasture plant. Mr. P. K. Yonge has grown it with marked success about twenty miles north of Pensacola. It seems to me a valuable plant to furnish a supply of pasturage in winter, when pasturage is practically gone. It is worthy of careful trial on all well-drained Florida soils.

Tripsacum Laxum.

Last year we secured from Guatemala a new perennial grass which, if it proves winter hardy, will, I am certain, be of enormous value to South Florida. This grass grows much like teosinte, but is stouter and very much more leafy. The stem is tender, sweet and juicy, and all the leaves remain green. It is an ideal silage plant. So far as I am aware, our trial at Miami is the first time this grass has ever been cultivated. The few live stock men who have seen it went into ecstasies. It may prove valuable, however, only for frostless regions.

Creeping Pasture Grasses.

At the present time we have under trial five creeping pasture grasses, more or less like Bermuda in a general way. You are, of course, aware that a pasture grass to be valuable should be able to spread naturally and must be able to hold the ground. Naturally it takes time to determine all these facts. The five grasses I refer to are as follows:

Blue Couch (_Digitaria didactyla_). This is much like Bermuda, but produces abundant good seed. For lawns and pastures it promises to be about equally as valuable as Bermuda.

Manilla Grass (_Osterdamia matrella_). This is especially adapted to rather moist sandy lands. It grows very dense, and where it thrives should be valuable.

Lovi-lovi (_Chrysopogon aciculatus_). This furnishes much pasturage in India, the Philippines, and South China. The seeds are very abundant, and each sticks into the clothing like a pin. But about Hongkong it is used generally as a lawn grass. It is well adapted to dry sandy soils. If it proves well adapted to Florida we can, I think, chance its becoming a nuisance, because if it does thrive it will give much pasture.

Nilghiri Grass (_Andropogon emersus_). This is the only creeping grass of the genus Andropogon (which includes our broom sedges) that we have yet found. I secured it in the Nilghiri Hills of South India. It looks promising.

Kikuyu Grass (_Pennisetum sp._). This is native to the highlands of Uganda, in British East Africa, and in South Africa has created great interest. It looks much like St. Augustine grass. At Biloxi, Miss., it has succeeded well. It looked very fine at Arlington, Va., but could not stand the winter. This grass is said to be very nutritious, and I believe that on the better soils of Florida it will prove a real acquisition.

I mention these new things to give you some idea of what we are doing. I might mention several others that look good to us, but it will be time to speak when we have tried them further. In brief, we are scouring the earth to find grasses and legumes to meet Florida's needs. We have faith that the grasses and legumes exist, if we only can find them.

Gentlemen, in closing I must say one thing more. Our country is at war--a war that will tax our energies and resources to the uttermost. No more dangerous idea can be entertained than to minimize the task, or to delude ourselves with the prospect of an early peace.

One important factor is food, especially meat and wheat. Only an unusually favorable season can produce for us as much wheat as last year. Our meat and forage supplies are low, because in times of food scarcity, grass crops are necessarily sacrificed. Gentlemen, you can do much to help increase the meat supply. In developing your ranches to increase your output, I want to urge as a patriotic duty that you increase your good pasturage and your winter feed supply as rapidly as you can. I could not urge this in peace times, because rapid development is never the most economical. But in this time of stress you cattlemen can help the nation most by increasing your output to the maximum. There is no other way for you to give to the nation that will count so much. I therefore urge that you brush aside all questions as to the economically best method of increasing pasturage and forage, and to devote all your capital and all your energy to doing this along any lines that are sure.

FLORIDA AS SEEN FROM A TEXAS STANDPOINT.

_Address by W. N. Waddell of Fort Worth, Texas, before the Florida State Live Stock Association, January 9, 1918._

_Mr. Waddell started to working cattle on the Texas ranges in 1875, and has been in the cattle business for himself since 1881._

_He was chairman of the Live Stock Sanitary Commission of Texas for four years, and for a number of years has been the Texas representative of the Live Stock Exchange National Bank of Chicago, and of the Chicago Cattle Loan Company._

_After spending a week in Florida during August of 1917, Mr. Waddell returned to the State in November and spent considerable time investigating the opportunities for raising cattle. This address gives his views on the advantages Florida possesses as a cattle-producing state._

In order to understand or to be able to appreciate a proposition of almost any character it is necessary to approach it by comparison, and in making comparisons touching Florida I wish to state that I have traveled over the range of the five northern states of old Mexico; I have traveled over the southern part of the range belt of Arizona; I have traveled over about half of the state of New Mexico and virtually all of Texas, and I find in Florida conditions favorable to the production of live stock that do not exist in any of the states I have named, which constitute the great range belt of the Southwest. In Mexico there is very little water, and water is very hard to get by digging, the wells averaging from 150 to 1,000 feet deep, and in a great many instances no water at all. In Mexico they also have a great many animals that prey on the live stock, such as panthers, lobo wolves, bears, as well as the common, ordinary coyote. None of these have to be contended with here.

In Arizona and New Mexico about the same conditions prevail as do in northern Old Mexico. In Texas we have bears and sundry pests to prey on our live stock. The prairie dog infests a great many of our ranches, destroying the grass, digging holes in the ground, and making it dangerous for the cowboy to ride over in the pursuit of his range endeavors. We have wolves of all species. In Texas we have also the screw worms that are a tax on the live stock producer to the extent of from two to five per cent of the calves born on his ranch, and I am sorry to say that worst of all we have periodical droughts. None of these adverse conditions I find prevail in Florida.

Here I find the country covered with a thick, heavy coat of grass, streams running with plenty of water and I understand where natural water is not available that it is only about from twenty to one hundred feet to an abundant supply of water under the ground, making the proposition of watering the ranches in Florida, where artificial water is necessary, a very simple matter. The climate in Florida is temperate and mild, rainfall is regular and abundant, and, so far as the production of forage for live stock on the range is concerned, your rainfall and your soils all seem to combine in favor of the producer of live stock.

I never was more amazed in my life than I was last summer, when, in company with a committee of other cattle men from Texas, I visited this state. At that time I was shown over the southern middle part of Florida; was shown a great domain of country lying out of doors, as it were and as we term it in Texas, furnishing free range for hundreds of thousands of cattle. I did not believe my ears when I was told those conditions existed here, and I can't understand yet why a state as old as Florida, with as many surface indications of possibilities for the production of live stock, should remain unfenced, unoccupied, and non-revenue producing to the men who own the land.

Another surprise that met us when we came to Florida in the summer was the absolute lack of any improvement in the live stock that we found here. In fact, it is my judgment that the cattle in Florida today, from what I have read of the history of Florida, are not as good as they were thirty years ago, and I am surprised, when I think of the facilities furnished the cattle men of Florida by the land owners for the grazing of their cattle, that they haven't taken any more interest in their cattle than they have and tried to improve them.

Florida today, as never before, is attracting national attention as a possible beef-producing state. The eyes of the investing public are turned toward Florida, and it is my judgment that within the next five years Florida will make greater strides in the development of the live stock industry than it has ever made before. And I want here and now to issue a warning to you gentlemen who are running your cattle on the open ranges of Florida that you had better get busy and get control of what land you expect to use as a cattle ranch, for if I mistake not, outsiders are coming into this state who will buy or lease these lands, put them under fence and inaugurate a system of live stock production on an improved basis as compared to the present methods being pursued in this state.

And in this connection I wish to state that I have discussed this open range proposition with some of the largest land owners in Florida. They tell me that they want to see Florida developed; they tell me they are in line to lend their energies, their time and their money to anything that will develop the State of Florida. After listening to them talk this line of earnest progressiveness, I have put the proposition to them just like it was put to us in Texas, and that is, formulate an equitable leasing proposition, one that will safeguard the interests of the land owner, and at the same time lend protection to the vested rights of the lessee, and advertise that to the world. Let the people not only of Florida, but the people outside of the State of Florida, know that they can come to Florida and at a small rental cost, lease as many acres of good grazing land as they have money to get cattle with which to stock it, assuring the prospective lessee that they will fence the land according to his desires and will build him a ranch house to live in; that they will fence him a horse pasture to keep his saddle horses in; will build him a dipping vat on the land, and where necessary will bore wells and equip them with windmill and pump sufficient to furnish plenty of water for the live stock on the land so leased.