The weekly tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1891-1894, 1894-03-30
The Russian Thistle.

As the wheat growing and agricultural
interests of this section of Montana are
yet, as we might say, in their
infancy, and as the farmer is DESTROYS OF
keeping his land as clear as possible OF
all obnoxious weeds, perhaps it would
not be amiss at the present time to say
something about the pest now making
inroads upon the farmers of our adJoln-
ing states. We refer to the Russian this
tie. The facility this weed has for
spreading is marvellous, and when 1t
once gains a foothold in a farming COM
munity it is almost impossible to eradl-
cate it. Acres and acres of this weed
now exist in Dakota, where, a few years
ago, it was unknown. This is a stand
ing testimony of its rapid growth and
propagation. Thus far the thistle has
not appeared in Montana, and it there
fore behooves the farmer to act upon the
old adage, IAN ounce Of prevention is
better than a pound of cure" In the
first place be sure that your seed wheat,
barley. etc, is obtained from a section
where the thistle has never been known
to exist. Should the thistle by any &C
cident appear on your land weed it out
and burn it. By no means let it run to
seed as it is very prolific in seed, and the
latter, being light, the wind can easily
distribute the product of one pint over
a vast area.
These remarks are given simply as a
preface to an article written by the bot
anist of the agricultural department of
the United States, which says:
Complaints about the plant were first
received by the department of agricult
ure during the fall of 1891, and during
the dry season of 1893 the weed reached
unusual development, and the farmers
became thoroughly alarmed at the stu
alton. A single plant of average size, Of
two or three feet in diameter, and weigh
ing two to four pounds when
dry. bears about twenty thousand
to 10000 seeds. Plants have been
found six feet in diameter, and esti-
mated to bear 100000 seeds. At this
time all the counties of South Dakota
east of the Missouri river, and 20 coun-
ties in North Dakota are infested with
the weed, and the plants have crossed
from the west side of the Missouri river
to the east in four places in those states
Two counties in western Minnesota,
three i'll northwestern Iowa and four in
northwestern Nebraska are thoroughly
i%mpregnated with the weed. Altogether,
this makes one almost continuous area
of about 10000 square miles which has
become more or less covered with the
Russian thistle in the comparatively
brief period of 20 years, There are be
sides. many isolated localities along the
railroads, as far east as Madison, Wis,
west Of Denver, Col. and south to the
southern border of Nebraska. whore the
plants have been introduced. The rapid.
ity with which the Russian thistle has
spread far exceeds that of any weed
known in America.
The most active mode Of distribution
of the Russian thistle and the one fur.
nished by nature, is the wind, and fax
seed continues to be, in the absence of
good tanning mills, the chief artificial
agent of distribution. Railroads form a
third and most important means of
transportation for the seeds over long
distances. There is good evidence that
the railroads have carried them in the
bedding of stock cars. These are sent to
the stock yards at indianapolis, Chicago
and Sioux City, and ~unloaded, but they
are seldom cleaned until they are again
sent out and have reached their desti-
nation to be reloaded. The plant is an
annual, easily killed at any time during
the growing season; it produces no seed
before the middle of August or the first
of september, and the seed is short lived.
1t therefore offers exceptionallylgood op-
%portunities for being checked3or even
exterminated. For any effective meas
ure, however, there must be concerted
action throughout all the infested area.
Sheep are very fond of the Russian
thistle until it becomes too coarse and
weedy. By %pasturing on the young
plants, they may be kept down and the
only known valuable quality Of the plant