Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1893-12-14
as an agricultural course.

as an agricultural course.
RECOMMENDATIONS.
Place Russian thistle in each school
house, so that the pupils may become
familiar with it, and teach them TO kill
it whenever they find it as they would
kill rat.lesnake.
Permit no Russian thistle to 90 to
seed. The plant is an annual; the seeds
are evidently short-lived; hence if no
plants are permitted to go TO seed for
two years the weed will in all probility
be exterminated.
Let no man break up more land than
be can take care of or more than he
can properly cultivate.
Let each farmer first keep down all
the weeds on his own farm and then
insist that his neighbor do likewise.
A little careful legislation that will
touch up the careless farmer, the non
resident landowner. and the railroad
companies would aid considerably IN
the solution of the question.
Be careful that all seed sown be as
pure and clean as the modern tanning
mill can make it. Use especial care in
gard to faxseed and millet or any Of
the smaller and lighter seeds.
NOTES
DAMAGE DUE TO THE RUSSIAN THISTLE.
In the badly infested area in Dakota
more than $1,000 acres are devoted to
wheat raising. The average loss on
this land that may be attributed to the
Russian thistle alone can not be less
than FIVE bushels per acre, and $780,
900 bushels of wheat at the minimum
price of so cents per bushel (Which is
considerably less than the average
price, indicates a loss to the farmers
in the two Dakotas of Sl,000,000. The
loss in other crops, the injuries caused
by the spines and the fires caused by
he plants jumping tire-breaks will
bring the total loss to something more
than 81, 100000 for the year 1892.
These figures may seem alarming,
but they are based on conservative esti-
mates. II they are alarming to the
farmers it is well, for it is only when
alarmed that most men will take effec-
tive measures to avoid danger.
An article recently appeared in
Farm, Stock and Home, written by
Prof w. NJ. Hays, of the Minnesota
Experiment Station, which still further
emphasizes the magnitude of the calam-
ity that has come to us in the introduce
ton of the Russian thistle. In this are
ticle Prof. Hays says LAST year
(lS92) when MIR. Dewey was investi-
eating it, the season was rather I'M
fayora Die for its growth and the farm
ers were generally not so much excited
concerning it as they had been durin 2
the proceeding years. The present
season 1S93) being dry in the early
part, causing light growth of grains,
thus allowing the thistle room in the
fields TO make much more growth, it
has alarmed the people much more than
ever before. Mr.. Dewey estimated the
damage from this weed in 1892 at two
million dollars. | dare say it is double
that in 1898"
Considering the probability of the
Russian thistle dying out of itself, Prof
HAYS says: "Such hopes are false and
fearfully dangerous. The results Of
the pre- sent season have again aroused,
excited, and in very MANY cases, dis
couraQed good men who have under
taken to build up their homes in the
DakCtas The Russian thistle knows
no bounds and with the winds and rail-
roads to help it. this weed win thor
oughly infest dozen states" Prof.
Hays very sensibly proposes that a
thistle convention be called late in
December in Minneapolis or St. Paul
as means of calling special attention
to congress and TO state legislatures to
the calamity that is upon US. Get a
bulletin. \ line or two on a postal
will bring one to your address.