The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1909-05-05
Home Course In
Modern Agriculture
IX.-Weeds and How to Combat Them
BY C. v. GREGORY,
Agricultural Division. Iova State COLLEGE
Copyright. 1902 by American Press Association
'scuI1uroS OSVSSt0n. xodO0 yt0fe Co
Copyright. 1908. by American Press Association


heads appear will not kill the plant,
but II kept up throughout the season
will prevent 1t from producing seed.
In bad cases about the only remedy is
to plow up the field and put it in to
some cultivated crop. Where a regu-
lar rotation which includes the mead
W and pastures is followed this
weed can be readily kept in check. A
point that must be carefully attended
to in preventing the spread Of this as
well as of any other weed is to keep
the roadsides and fence corners from
raising weed seed enough each year
to keep the entire farm seeded.
Another troublesome annual in some
sections of the country is the Russian
thistle. a form Of tumbleweed. BY
rolling across the fields after it ripens
It scatters its numerous seeds very
widely. These weeds are usually not
SO plentiful but that they can be easily
destroyed by pulling before they form
seed. BY doing this they may be kept
from becoming thick enough to do any
serious damage.
Biennial weeds live through the first
winter and produce seed the second
year Of their life. They die as soon as
the seed is ripe. The common bull and
prairie thistle and burdock are con-
spicuous examples Of this class Of
weeds. Biennials are not difficult to
subdue. In cultivated fields they sell
dom live long enough to produce seed.
They seed S 70 late that they hardly
ever ripen seed in meadows. In per-
manent pastures they may be con-
trolled by cutting Off below the sur
face of the ground just at the begin
ming Of poisoning time. Sheep and
goats will rid a pasture Of these and
all other troublesome weeds.
The hardest class Of weeds to COM
bat are the perennials. These do not
depend entirely upon seed production
to spread themselves, but are propa-
gated by means of underground
stems. These stems extend along be-
meath the surface Of the ground, send
ing up stalks at short distances. They
live in the soil from year to year, send
ing up fresh shoots every spring.
Some of the most common and trou-
blesome p%erennials are the Canada
thistle, morning glory, wild %artichoke,
milkweed and quack grass. These
weeds are found on all parts Of the
farm-in cultivated fields, in small
grain and in meadows and pastures.
The only way to kill them is to de-
stroy the roots or starve them by pre-
venting leaf growth. This is much
more easily said than done. Where
the weeds occur only in small patches
the desired result may be accomplished
by covering them with a thick layer
of straw. In a dry season thorough
cultivation will discourage them,
though 1t will seldom exterminate
them entirely. When the ground is
wet cultivation will do more to spread
perennial weeds than to kill them.
The pieces of the underground stems
which stick to the shovels will grow
wherever they happen to fall and thus
start a new center of trouble.
OF all the means Of getting rid of
perennial weeds that have been tried
none Is so effective as turning the field
into a hog pasture. If the fields are
fenced hog tight and the rotation in
cludes the hog pasture the hogs will
get a chance at all parts of the farm