Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-08-09

xIor1 mead not venture fer aheld in agfi-
u culture to make the acquaintance OF
weeds n you pot plant or start window
box a host OF unweicome little strangers will
bob up to greet you. AdoIphus Commuter
taking his first crack at gardening, begins to
learn In the latter weeks Of June that there
| is an amazing multitude Of seeds and root
growths in the soil that he did not put there.
Generally, he just rolls up his sleeves and
goes after them, remarIsng the while
| Occasionally he is bit brash in his method
Of extrpation and up come his crops with
the weeds In the course Of decade or so
he is able to discriminate with some small
degree of skill.
There are oodles OF weeds. Darwin never
got the run Of more than fraction OF them
In the course OF centuries ell the legions of
botanlsts the world over have listed only
about $4,000 OF them. II is estimated that
there are easily twice that number and more
crosses and hybrids appearing all the time,
Yes, the weed family is large and varied,
and, to many, pestiferous. You will never
get along smoothly with them until you learn
to deal with them philosphically. You will
never get them all out, and IL you should
(by some miraculous method Of maniouring)
you may count on q fresh host Of them blow
ing over from your neishbor's garden.
Sweet-warblinF birds will visit your prems
ises, no matter how small or humble, bearing
presents of more weeds. Rodents CANNES
and felInes carry them to you. The balmy
breezes Of spring are as replete with them
as they are crammed with microscopic and
ultra microscopic germs.
A Curious Oversight Of Nature
Mean germs and mean weed seeds browse
along in the air currents hand in hand. You
inhale the weed seeds as you inhale the
germs, but owing to lack of sunlight and
plant food and other benign essences in your |
midst you do not break out with rash Of |
bull nettle or priclSly lettuce. 1t is a wonder
that trarnps do not sprout some OF the hardy
varieties Of weeds but there is no record of
such an occurrence in the botanical archives,
though did read once of hermit who grew
a fuzzy coat of moss.
There are good and bad weeds Just as
there are good and bad germs. AS matter
Of fact there are differences of opinion here
and there as, to just what weeds are Some
call them plants out of place, or butters-in
among your pure breds, whereas others Just
set their teeth and refer to them as con-
sarned pests. The common dandelion and
'x-eyed daisy have high place in the popu-
ar fancy because of their decorative quail
ire not SO charming Italians are extremely
ond of dandelion green's and you will see
hem going about in the springtime digging
hem up and filling canvas bags with them.
have small lawn and invite all the dan
lelion lovers who come by to help them
elves. but when they have filled their bags
md gone on their way 1t seems that they
lave left scandalous quantity of dandelions
'ehind them.
Decorative Poison Ivy
Really the best thing to do In the case Of
veeds is to accept them as inevitable. There
re human weeds just as there are weeds in
liant life If We can subdue our egotism
we can see pretty clearly that we
re all weeds one way or another. We con-
ne some of our more insidious weeds in
risons and our sociologists are forever try
lg to do something with the seed of these
reeds. The whole theory of eugenics is
ased upon the theory of haphazard weed
II we study each garden weed ,
70 pull up we need not strain the imagina- /
on to find some human analogy. There {
the sprawly purslane or pusley which ,
rows like a tangle Of worms. Mean as pus- !
"" is common simile in many farming
and there are few of us who ,
ave not in the course of years had some :
elghbor Pusley. :
When you get right down under the skin '
It, weeds are a whole lot like folks. The I