Vermont farmer. [volume] (Newport, Orleans County, Vt.) 1870-1877, 1876-09-29

But there is one weed that beats us. II
Is pursane. 1t hasn't spread yet over the
farm, but is confined chiefly to the gardens
near the buildings. 1t starts early in the
spring If the ground is warm, and il starts
after every shower all summer till frosts
come in the fall IL grows best in the hot
test weather after II once gets started. 1t
never willis under tho 6ercest sun, nor docs
it care much whether its roots are in the
ground or out. IL is worth nothing, and il
lies so low that il could not be cut with a
scythe, even if it were worth anything for
cattle food
IL may be killed il it is taken the very
day it sprouts, but, if left for week, it will
be in full possession, and will hold it, too.
Purslane may be kept under If one has moth.
ing else to do, but, with the haying aud
the other work Of the farm, the garden is
apt to be neglected a portion Of the time
during the busy season, aud so it gets ahead
Of us. And after that one might about as
well let it alone, for the chances are that it
will cost more to kill it than the crop is
worth. But, saying nothing nothing of pur-
lane, 1t is as easy to keep farm clear Of
weeds as to let them grow. And this idea
about weeds being ''natura" to some soils is
all nonsense. Weeds are natural to any and
every soil that is rich in plant food, and, If
they are not destroyed while young, will
prove a source of serious trouble after
wards
We have been too careless in our methods
of culture here in New England, aud we
have not, as rule, acquired habits of close
observation. II we had, we should know
that weeds come from seeds, that they do
not come from clean soil, however rich or
however "natural" it may be to their growth
when once fully stocked by them.
Our own soil is poor enough, but it is not
too poor to produce weeds if it is neglected.
Perhaps we may have given a wrong i'm
preston regarding purslane, or 'pusley,"
and led some Of our readers to believe that
it is one of those weeds which can't be killed.
If so, we would set them right before leav-
ing the subject. Purslane can be killed it
is taken while young and the ground cult =
waited every day. Once week will not do
1t. 1t is an unsightly weed In a garden, but
really not half as bad as some others.
The moving machine may be made quite
a help in keeping farm clear of weeds, if
one will use it before the weeds get too old.
A great many weeds spring up in our now
ing fields after hayiug, and also where win
ter or spring grain has been grown. 1t is
but little work to run the machine over such
land, and still less sometimes to gather the
crop with the wheel horse.rake. With
these tools, one can afford to cut light crops
of grass or weeds Some varieties of weeds,
if cut while in bloom, will make good hay
for winter feeding, and for this purpose, they
are well worth gathering, if the work can be
done by horsepower.
Hereafter we shall be tempted to leave
one corner of a field somewhere on the farm
uncutivated, just to show our friends who
may visit US that our land is natural to weeds.
We have had one such spot this year, where
pasture was ploughed last fall to encour-
age the growth of young birch and pine
trees, which frequently come up from seeds
blown upon the land from surrounding trees.
On this field, the wormwood and other weeds
look as thrifty as though were natural to
the SOIL But we did not show this field if
We had we should probably have been allow
ed more credit for the work we have done at
killing weeds in other places.
a clean field, like drained land, does not
show upon the face of it how much work
has been required to bring it into its present
condition. People very often excaim as
they walk over an underdrained field, "Why
this land didn't need drainng!' But these
are things we must a Il bear patiently. 1t is
a real satisfaction to walk over dry fields that
were once quagmires, and to see our rows of
corn and potatoes, or our garden vegetables
occupying the whole ground, even if our
friends do think that such land didn't need
draining or that it is not natural to weeds
N. +. Farmer.