Capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1893-1895, 1894-10-24
ACROSS THE CONTINENT.
No. 8.


land of the Dakotas and the Ojibways
is becoming the land Of the Russian
thistle. Two thirds Of the grain ele'
yators over areas hundreds OF miles 10
extent are closed. Fall plowing IL
abandoned and all ordinary grain farm
ing methods are suspended. The far
ner has been attacked by an enemy
that puts grass-hoppers, droughts, cy-
clones and billiards in = miuOr place
in the list Of calamities.
Two weeks spent at the abandoned
grain fields, at empty granaries AND
amid disheartened thrashing crews that
labor In vain will give some conception
Of the wide spread effect Of the RussiaL
thistle on farm crops in the Dakotas
Carefully collected Gata conYince one
that this nOxious weed has become the
most serious problem which confronts
agriculture In the ten prairie states OF
the central northwest. The Dakotas
are at present the home of this pest Of
agriculture, but it is equally we'll If not
prairie commonwealths. There is no
apparent reason why 1t will not spread
as completely over Iowa, Nebraska,
Kansas, Illinois, Minnesota, parts Of
Missouri, Indiana and Michigan a. it
has over the Dakotas. All it requires
to spread is partially rainless and
treeless region. Freight cars and mer-
chandise packages will do their part TO
make it a national plague, which can
only be subdued by the most tireless
energy and all the inventive skill Of
American enterprise.
MAY BE A. BLESSING IN DISGUISE.
The Russian thistle plague, as the
matter now stands In the two Dakotas,
Is an interesting study for American
and Canadian farmers. The north
western provinces of British America
are as much the home Of this devastat-
ing pest of grain farming as the Da-
kotas. II this scourge shall result In
forcing grain acreage down and mixed
farming up 1t may prove blessing in
disguise. II cultivated crops become q
necessity Of agriculture as the only
means Of keeping down the thistle 1t
may not have been sent In vain, in It's
career Of devastating bonanza wheat
farming.
Ordinarily one half Of this country is
plowed by Oct. Is. There has been al
most no fall plowing done In the Da-
kotas this year On account OF the this
tie. Spring pIowing is found TO be IN
favorable TO the thistle and far more
productive and the grain cut this year
was of newly broken prairie or spring
plowed land. Still better crops were
reaped where the thlstle-lnfested fields
last spring were dragged, the dead
weeds burned la winTows and the
seed disked In With q rotary harrow.
But one man can farm only small
area in this way. Burning the thistle
of seems 10 impoyerish the land. The
reason 10 little land Ia plOwed Is be-
cause, unless the soil 10 very wet, IL
will not hold the thistle under The
strong winds blow away the loose soil,
which IL held up by the stih thistle
foliage. The thistle will not down, II
cannot be easily buried, and when II 10
Il will not rot, The only successful
wPy Of determination yot found 10 ~
lot II grow 30 rank II will choke ilSslf
70 death, That II will do lp fge ysaTs'
HOW THK THlsTLE sEED ls s0ATTERED,
The seed ofa thistle placed under q
glass looks like little, green gIahs'
snake cooled ready for spnng, ~ al
Ways stays green aud daes not dIy Ike
other seed, its germ lp llled gllb ap
eSleTnsl pa0istuTe ever ready ~ sprns
into vegetable lie. This peculiar
splral foIm 70 lhe foundation " 10 go
laIy m0ll0p shen ths fpll'sTosp plRpi
stats 0p ils allegations ln oetolisl
1he bgsnehes NJ ihe plspl hsYs =
lwlsilnR gIoeih ff0m lhe spliRl
hsea sna twlslipg branches ihsls v
ialmea ibs Nylng sheel ~ llls plsllis,
leRllng lieipge llls sale nllls pslppls
Rna sesiifllns sseag ~ Y kuts. a
pleni Blll gpll 100 gllles Nv = dsg tbs
Nsssls elll us 3 DAP w yssli lsRaS ~
slagl shep lhf spll u lopshsd slih .
plew aus nRllge psllls sill sai 500
lnlnais llle sad hl phfieFel .
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all, apaly iesa HlpF sea R,slpif ,
Nfap VI lhlsllfs ihai plN gppa $40
heleas llDle sseA slag N lllf eeAlfl sNg
plaaue , efpp M $3.50 iisi sNl fpplaf
~ lsAa $50 $3.50 ~ plllss N lbf
lsnd a.lula " assles sssb gssi lhf
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