The Bossier banner., 1891-10-29
FARMER AND PLANTER.
ABOUT JOHNSON GRASS.
A Texas Farmer who DespaIrs of Downing
a-t.a. the Pest.

of Mr.. Geo. w. Walling. In general [
agree with Mr.. Walling. johnson grass
must be destroyed, or at least prevent
ed from spreading any further, or the
best lands of our country will ere long
be entirely unfit for agricultural pur-
suits. When l am asked how john
son grass can be destroyed, l answer
that it is practically indestructible.
dig it out" some will say. That is
good enough if only a few punches are
in field, but if a field Is once
we'll rooted with it, l think it
would be far more sensible to
pull stakes and leave. for new
home where King johnson is yet un-
known. Let the advocates of, the dig
ging process do little ciphering for
us. How large piece of ground do
they think can be cleaned of Johnson
grass in one day? Considering the fact
that the roots will go down some three
feet, l believe man will do quite
good job if he digs out four square
yards per hour, or 40 square yards per
day of ten. hours. An acre contains
4,840 square yards. 1t would therefore
take a man 121 days.
Some say it can be very easily killed
by covering it one inch high with salt.
All right; one inch of salt over an acre
of land would consume about 1900
bushels of salt. At 25 cents per bushel
this would be cheap at $725. Salt
may be bought cheaper than that, but
you will never kill Johnson grass with
less quantity per acre.
Some say kerosene will kill it. tried
kerosene in this way: Ipoured it on the
land with a watering-pot at the rate of
one gallon per square yard. This is
cheap way to kill Johnson grass. At 20
cents per gallon it would cost you but
S96S to kill all the johnson grass on one
acre of land. But will anything grow
on the land afterward? That is another
question. have now given the reader
an estimate of the amount of money it
would take to kill King Johnson by
the different methods; but now I will
tell them that none of the above
methods killed the johnson grass on
my place. Shallow blowing, with the
intention to kill it, will help Mr.. John
son grass over dry spell more than
anything else. l have tried it; there
fore l know what 1 am talking about.
Digging out will help little if the roots
are all carefully gathered and burned
or fed to hogs, but you have to watch
it the next spring, for some roOtlets
that you have not found will be ready
to reset the field with Johnson grass.
Digging out is about the quickest,
cheapest and surest way to kill it.
As to the killing with salt, l must say
that the Johnson grass is growing much
nicer now on all the places that Gov
cred with one inch of salt. Salt is a
very good fertilizer for johnson grass,
but not so for many other plants. Corn
did not grow on the land on which l
put the salt BE it therefore resolved,
That all those who say they
can kill Johnson grass with salt,
give this process a trial and report the
result. Kerosene did not kill my john
son grass. Maybe a gallon per square
yard was not enough. The grass looked
very sickly for some time, but after all
it is nice and green now.
Covering it with hay will help more
than any other metl cd if you can af-
ford to buy enough hay or straw to
cover the whole Johnson grass patch
| three feet high and let the land lay for
two years at least with the straw on. l
covered a piece in this way not long
| ago. and will tell you the result after
three years. Meanwhile | should like
to hear the opinions of your other read
ers on this subject.-Louis Biedeger, in
| Texas Farm and Ranch.
| Another Farmers Experience which Indi-
Gates Success.
l see an article in your paper of July
Is from Geo. w. Walling on the subject
| of the destruction of johnson grass.
He claims that it can never be de.
stroyed. beg to differ with the gen.
tleman, and will give him and all my
other brother farmers what has come
under my observation, and my own ex.
| perience in the total destruction of this
! tenacious pest to the farming class OF
| Texas.
Several years ago one of my neigh.
bors (now deceased) sowed about one
acre of this grass on his farm as
an experiment, as many farmers
tried it to their sorrow at that
time. He soon found out that it had
come to stay with him. Finally he
fenced it, and turned his horses and
cSws on it. They kept it cut down close
to the ground, and at the expiration o1
the third summer there was not sprip
of it left
J. Now for the experience: At the same
time it was growing with my neighbor.
by the birds or some other means, a
small patch of it got on my farm, about
two yards square. discovered it be.
fore it seeded, and that summer l cut il
down close to the ground three
times before frost, just before
blooming. t. persisted in this fol
three years, and the next spring fol.
lowing it failed to appear; nor has il
ever appeared again. Mr.. Walling is
right when he says that shallow plow.
ing will not kill it, and he admits his
error. have had another experience
with 1t on my tillable land "a small
patchl. When / came to it with the
/ YNI0vy 7 r11O Jao~~ !,