Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1914-07-22

.sCut out the weeds and the savings will
,,ore than pay the farm taxes in Maine,i .
as,srtling statement but true one, said
protessor osler, in lecturing on .iweeds
ND Their Control. He further says;
s.vaeds may be indicted on the following
counts.
4 They remove plant food and deplete
che soil water content.
. They crowd out useful plants.
They detract from the appearance
and value OF the farm.
Desirable systems OF rotation OF
crops have to be changed to plan for their
control.
4. The cost in terms OF labor, use Of
ulant food, aud soil water, and decreased
value OF property is excessive.
The profit from the increase in yield Of
crops by preventing the growth OF weeds
would be sufficient to pay the taxes.
systematic study OF losses due to weeds
has shown that the losses for one season
In one crop amounted to ss,o00,o 900 for a
single state. The total loss in the United
States is very great.
Much Of this could be prevented by
better care in handling pastures and hay
lands and in the application of better
methods OF cultivation. Undesirable
plants not only remove the natural plant
food and part of the fertilizers applied,
but draw heavily on the water content OF
the soil. They grow rapidly and cut off
the light from the more slowly growing
plants. When dry times occur they do
their greatest destruction. They crowd
out the useful plants, and are source OF
cultivation and more careful attention to
harvesting.
Desirable systems OF rotations must be
changed in order to keep them under con-
troll. They detract from the appearance
and value of farm. Their presence may
induce better soil cultivation. They act
as cover crop, and retain soluble plant
food and they may be plowed under and
add humus to the soil, but this should
never be done after the seed ripens.
Certain weeds are characteristic OF GER
tain parts of the farm, as along roadsides,
III hCioa hha AZ Naotc R.hSSns
Their periods of life may be one, two or
three years or longer. A knowledge OF the
length OF life and the manner of growth is
necessary forinteliigent systems OF control
In determination, check their spread by
preventing seed formation, by care in APP
plying manures and by cultural methods.
Some plants, like the witch-grsss and
orange hawk-weed, propagate both by
seeds and underground stems. The seed
Of many plants retain their vitality for
long periods of years. The mustard will
terminate after being in the ground from
ten to twenty years or longer.
Annual weeds can best be controlled by
proper crop rotation. Continuous crop
ping increases the number OF weeds.
Continuous growing Of oat and fax in the
northwest left the fields so full of mus
tard and wild oats that these crops had to
sections, the tillable land was converted
into pastures and hay land and the weeds
have ceased to be so troublesome.
Seed formation in annual weeds, such as
mustard or chariock and the wild radish,
which is wrongly called ksle, and others
OF this class, destroy many OF the weeds
when they are young. Some extra labor
IN the spring may save considerable labor
later in the season. Sprays may be used
but are not always successful unless the
methods Of mixing and applying the
proper chemicals are well understood.
Rteuuioie rr vUaade rrrpfripu tuo vaara
to produce seed, are not nearly SO numer-
Gus as the ANIMALS or perennials and are
much more readily destroyed than the
latter BY keeping the tops cut, no seed
Will be formed. In the case OF the bull
thistle, dock and carrot, il the top is re-
moved below the crown with a spade,
during the latter part Of the first seasons
growth, they will not shoot up in the
second season.
Perennials are nearly always difficult to
control. This is on account of their root
system and methods OF propagation; for
controlling, cultural methods are best.
summer Towering and smothering crops
can be used to advantage. Rape and
millet are good, II plenty OF plant food is
available. The control will be more
economical IL the work can be done by
machinery.
Weeds in hay-land can be controlled by
moving, grazing and rotation. In grain
neids' by clean seed, early fall blowing
ana allowing sheep to clean up after har-
Vesting the grain. The weeds Of the road
SIDE and yards are usually annual and can
DC controlled by cutting when in the
bloom. Never allow any to mature seeds.
summer following and intensive cult
Walton may be the only means OF complete
eradication in some cases. The orange
nawk weed and king-devil propagate both
oy seed and creeping stems. The latter
Is the most persistent, and both spread
rapidly when once introduced. The root
stalks are usually shallow and can be con-
'foiied by short rotation and shallow, in
.ensiye cultivation. Both OF these are es-
pecially bad in Kennebec and Penobscot
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