The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1914-05-19
Of Salt Will Kill The Trouble
some DandeIlOn
That Ruin The Appearance
OF The Lawn

washington, II. u, May 1.-THE |
best way TO kill individual dandelion |
plants is to cut off their tops and put |
q pinch of salt (about thimblefu) |
on the surface OF each exposed root. |
This will kill most Of them As salt |
If generally applied ruins soil the |
salt should be used sparingly and ap- |
piled only to the roottops of the dan
delion The U. s. Department Of Agri- !
culture has for some time been test
ing various poisons to discover the
most efficient means Of eradicating
this troublesome weed from lawns, but
although others have been found salts
factory, the common salt is best for
general use as there is no danger ac-
companying its application.
The departments specialists say
that much effort is wasted in merely
cutting OFF the dandelon top without
applying some poison to the root that
remains. The dandelion has a tap
root that grows deep into the soil and
es the dandelion to come up in thick
er growth.
The time to eradicate dandelions is
in the spring before the plant has had
! time to form seed. The seed spreads
rapidly, blown by the wind. The bios
SONS should be close mown before
| hot IN, col CI,
then be applied to each root man
may be very diligent in caring for his
| own lawn and yet have seeds blown
in from neighboring lawns. This is
of such importance to those desiring
fine lawns, that it might be made a
matter for community action.
If the lawn is very full of this weed
it is too tedious process to treat
each plant by the salt process. In this
case two possible methods of eradica-
tion may be recommended. The first
method is to thicken the stand of grass
| to tend to crowd out the dandelion
The grass should be put into vigor-
our condition by top dressing with
well-rotted manure or fertilizer in the
! fall and by reseeding in thin places.
The second method, advised in ex-
treme instances, is to start all over
again. Plow up the lawn first (or
spade it up if the area is smalD. A
generous amount of well-rooted man.
ure should then be worked into the
soil but not fresh manure for that is
full of weed seeds ready TO germinate.
In case manure is not available, COM
mercial fertilizers may be used. Many
lawn soils are in need of lime and it
is often wise plan to use it, especial
ly if white clover is to be sown. AT
ter blowing, the land should be har-
rowed or raked frequently to reduce it
to a good seed bed condition. This
will encourage the early termination
of weed seeds with the subsequent eX-
ough cultivation at this period will de-
stroy the dandelion plants, both those
that come from roots and seeds. AT
ter following either of the two plans
sketched here, the lawn should be
maintained in good condition by care
ful moving, rolling and watering.
Spraying with iron sulphate solution
to kill dandelions without killing the
grass is not recommended by the de
Lpartnent, although il has been trieC
by some who consider it successful
Experiments do not seem to establish
it as a practical method.
The dandelion is not native Ameri
can plant, having been introduced
from Europe several centuries ago. Ii
was first introduced in the East ant
has spread westward with our emigra
tion, The weed is common all ovel
Europe and has gone into other lands
: with settlers from the older country
, always being found near the communi
es of man.
The name dandelon" is said +,
come from the French, Dent de Lion,
which means tooth of lion and refers
to the tooth shaped edges of the lea
y of the plant
o The dandelion is widely useC
throughout Europe as truck crop
(, Certain foreigners recently arrived il
S America have continued to use tn,
plant as vegetable and Italians in thu
0 neighborhood of large cities hav'
= made considerable profit by gatherin,
= and taking it to market.
Several places around Boston nov
grow the dandelion as a truck crop
The seeds are sown in July or Angus
in rows 12 inches apart and although
the plants are of good size in the fal
? they are not generally gathered 70
! the market until early in the spring
As soon as the snow is off the grount
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