Warren sheaf. [volume] (Warren, Marshall County, Minn.) 1880-current, 1916-12-20
BANDIT CROP OF THE FARM

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
shCAld 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 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 $500 100000
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 it's 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-
educe us many as 10000 seeds; squirrel
tail produces 300 to 1000; plantin may
bear 5000 seeds per plant; fOxtail,
from 1000 to 5000 seeds; stinkweed
10000 seeds; the Russian thistle from
100000 to 100000 seeds, and one mus
gard 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
2species are fixed. They are hardy vet
Horans able to withstand the extremes
sof heat and cold, or drouth and Excess
ssiye moisture without injury.
Our worst weeds are not the species
which were found in this country when
abe first settlers came. They had not
learned to adapt themselves to all con-
Glltions. Few of them are here now.
zs.ative weeds being unaccustomed to
a5he hot sun, persisted. When the
marshes were drained. the pioneen
weeds disappeared with the water.
When the prairies were cultivated the
prairie weeds fed. They We're not bred
ITO endure the tramp Of feet, and when
scivilization came bringing with it the
i+,,S e Il.
Some Of the Bad Weeds.
But there are other Weeds-milk.
weed, smartweed, Spanish needle, mus
lard, peppermint, ta1sy, poison hem
dock jimson, morning-glory, ragWeed,
velvet leaf, purslane, quack grass, wild
;ssarlick, Canada thistle, ox-eye daisy,
tbindweed, orange hawkweed, Johnson
grass, sorrel, wild oats and fifty others
ahat are common wherever man is.
Most of these have been brought to
AIS from Europe. More than 600 species
>pf weeds have been introduced into
New England since the first cutting of
s4he forests.
Weeds are classified as to length of
Aife as:
Annals, those that spring up, grow,
Droduce seed and die the same year.
Examples: Foxtail, ragweed and
ssmartweGd.
Biennials, those which spring up and
produce leaf growth one year, live
through the winter, and the next spring
send up stem shoot which flowers
land 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
eof these are quack grass milkweed,
{horse-nettle and the dandelion.
How Weed Seeds Are Spread.
Weeds seeds are spread chiefly by
anan 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. r
Every weed that is allowed to ma
fure produces hundreds Of thousands,
SAnd even millions of seeds. Having pro-
sduced a large quantity of seed, the
next step is to distribute it. And in
fthis task the weed has many helpers.
First: A large part of the weed seed
as distributed by the sower who soWs
1 Impure seed. Imported grains and low
grade grass seed contain a large pro-
portion Of weed seeds.
Much of the seed which cannot legal
I ~ be sold in Canada and in European
countries is sent irto this country to
states which do not have a pure seed
law, so there IS a large possibility Of
atmlolted seed being i,>pure.