The Hays free press. [volume] (Hays, Kan.) 1908-1924, 1916-10-21
BANDIT CROP OF THE FARM
BY PROF. P. G. HOLDEN, f

Weeds mean waste-a waste of time,
money, labor and land. Weeds rob
our crops of light, food and moisture
occupy land where profitable crops
should be grown; cheaper our farms
injure live stock; harbor insects and
fungus diseases. Weeds are the bandit
crop OF the farm. They knock the cour-
age out Of a mans heart, and drive
many Of the less determined husband
men to the cities in search of jobs.
The United States department of
agriculture estimates the loss to the
American farmer from damage to crops
by weeds, to be more than $3OO,O0O,O 900
every year. This is actual money loss,
due to short crops. 1t does not include
the losses from deprecated property.
If we are to match our wits against the
weed, we must have our heads in the
game. Weeds are with US to stay.
They are right on the job all the time.
The special business of the weed is to
secure nOurishment for itself, to per-
petuate its species.
The weed which is best able to cope
with difficulties is the weed which sur
wives.
Weeds are abundant seeders. a sin
gle plant Of shepherds purse may pro-
duce as many as $4,000 seeds; squirrel
tail produces 300 to 1000; plantin may
bear 5000 seeds per plant; foxtaiI,
from 1000 to 5000 seeds; stinkweed,
10000 seeds; the Russian thistle from
100000 to 100000 seeds, and one mus
tard plant, one and one-half million
seeds.
Soil Robbers.
Compare these prolific soil robbers
with our fOod-producing plants
Through centuries of time weeds have
become adapted to certain soils and
climate conditions. In other words their
species are fixed. They are hardy vet
Grams able to withstand the extremes
of heat and cold, or drouth and Excess
sive moisture without injury.
Our worst weeds are not the species
which were found in this country when
the first settlers came. They had not
learned to adapt themselves to all con-
ditions. Few of them are here now.
When the forests were cleared the
native weeds being unaccustomed to
the hot sun, persisted. When the
marshes were drained, the pionee1
weeds disappeared with the water.
When the prairies were cultivated the
prairie weeds fed. They were not bred
to endure the tramp of feet, and when
civilization came bringing with it the
multitudes Of men they soon died out
Some of the Bad Weeds.
But there are other weeds-milk-
weed, smartweed, Spanish needle, mus
tard, peppermint, tansy, poison hem
lock, jimson, morning-glory, ragweed,
velvet leaf, purslane, quack grass, wild
garlick, Canada thistle, ox-eye daisy,
bindweed, orange hawkweed, johnson
grass, sorrel, wild oats and fifty others
that are common wherever man is.
Most of these have been brought to
US from Europe. More than 600 species
of weeds have been introduced into
New England since the first cutting of
the forests.
Weeds are classified as to length of
life as:
ANIMALS, those that spring up, grow,
produce seed and die the same year.
Examples: Foxtail, ragweed and
smartweed.
Biennials, those which spring up and
produce leaf growth one year, live
through the winter, and the next spring
send up a stem shoot which flowers
and seeds, usually early, then the plant
dies. Examples: Mullen, bull thistle,
wild carrot, black-eyed Susan.
Perennials, those whose roots live
from year to year. Familiar examples
OF these are quack grass, milkweed,
horse-nettle and the dandelion.
How Weed Seeds Are Spread.
Weeds seeds are spread chiefly by
man sowing impure seed; by scatter
ing weed seeds in feeding hay, straw,
screenings and in manure; by winds. |
water and snow; by animals and birds
by farm machines and railroads; by
weeds allowed to flourish in waste |
places.
Every weed that is allowed to ma
ture produces hundreds of thousands, |
and even millions of seeds. Having pro- |
duced a large quantity OF seed, the |
next step is to distribute it. And in
this task the weed has many helpers. |
First: A large part Of the weed seed
is distributed by the sower who sows |
Impure seed. Imported grains and low /
grade grass seed contain a large pro-
portion Of weed seeds.
Much OF the seed which cannot legal |
~ be sold in Canada and in European |
countries is sent into this country to |
states which do not have a pure seed |
law. SO there is a large possibility OF /
imported seed being impure.
~s~~~e@e@1N|~-~-~0~ -~~~-~-N~~-~-~~~~-~~~