The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1911-05-20
BOTANTlST ADVISES
WEED DESTRUCTION
Pests Which Destroy Crops
Should Be Eradicated.

Lafayette, Ind, May 2O-A. G. John.
son, assistant botanist at the Purdue
university agricultural experiment sta
ton. in a newspaper bulletin on weeds
says:
THE loss due to weeds on Indiana
farms is each year very great, indeed,
This source of loss should be general
ly recognized and every effort put
forth throughout the year to check it.
To fight weeds most successfully re-
quires the very best attention and
management. Because of the fact that
many weed seeds have the ability of
lying dormant in the soil for q, num-
Der of years before terminating. it re-
quires careful. persistent attention for
several successive years to clean up
a weedy farm. Yet such cleaning up
should be planned for and carried out
as far as possible. 1t is worth while.
wherever there are weeds in the
fields there can always be expected
corresponding lighter crops. The
weeds take plant food and moisture
from the soil which should be con-
served for the crops. and in many 9th
err ways they are detrimental.
I'm order to fight weeds to best ad.
vantage they should be studied and
their habits understood. When one
has an enemy of any kind it is always
desirable to learn it's name and as
much about it as possible SO as to be
able to take advantage of any weak
point. Just SO with the weeds. They
are our enemies. We should know
their names SO that they may be dis
cussed intelligently. Their habits
should be we'll understood so that ad-
vantage may be taken of their char
acteristics in combating them.
, Classes Of Weeds.
According to natural duration there
are in general three classes of weeds
viz, ANIMALS, biennials and perennials.
Annuals-Annual weeds are those
that live naturally but one year. /. e.
the seed terminates. the plant grows
up. flowers and ripens seed and dies
all within twelve months. Common
examples are: Foxtail. field mustard,
smartweed. cocklebur, ragweed, ETC.
Observation-Disclosures weeds are those
that live naturally two years. The
first year after the seed terminates
the plant produces some sort of rosette
of leaves on the ground above the
root, and the second year a Towering
stalk is sent up which bears the flow
ers and ripens the seed. Then the
whole plant usually dies. Common
If thio -
primrose. mullen, wild carrot, teasel,
cts. With but few exceptions the an
nuals and biennials depend entirely on
seed production for the perpetuation.
weeds are
those that live a number of years or
an indefinite period from the same
root. Common examples are dock.
buckhorn. Canada thistle, red sorrel.
etc. These not only spread by means
Of underground root stalks as we'll.
making them by far the most difficult
to control when once introduced.
I'm fighting weeds it is not only i'm
portant to avoid introducing their
seeds into the fields with seed grain
which is always to be guarded against
with the greatest care, but it is impor.
tant as well to avoid other sources of
weed introduction such as from weedy
barnyards. fence rows, roadsides.
bitches and waste places in general.
The weeds should be kept Welt cut
throughout the season as far as posi-.
bic and thus prevented from ripening
seeds to be carried to the fields by
wind. water and animals. AS far as
possible these places should be cleared
and cleaned up and good clean grass
sod established. Weed seed infested
manure is another source of weed in
PRODUCTION that should be guarded
against Such manure should be. well
composed before being applied to the
fields in order that the weed seeds
may be killed.
Aside from avoiding weed introduc.
ton in these various ways which is