Little Falls herald. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1889-1950, 1918-04-19
State and Federal Agents Will
Enforce Public Safety Com
missions Order.
PLAN vIGoR( US DRIVE
School Children and Patriotic Citizens
to Cooperate on Arbor Day, April
19-earberry 10 Vicious Ally
of Black Rust.

Japanese (Berberris thunbergiI Ion
your place, whether it be city lot
or farm, prepare to dig them now.
In accordance with an order re-
Gently issued by the Minnesota Com.
mission of Public Safety, barberry
bushes Of all kinds, except the Jap
anese, are to be dug up and Destroy
ed. A. G. Ruggles, state entomolo-
gist, has been commissioned to see
shat the order is carried out forth
WITH" which means right now. He
is already at work
The reason for the order is seen
in the fact that barberry bushes are
the vicious allies Of the black stem
rust of wheat and other grains. This
disease in 1916 caused loss of 3d.
100000 bushels of wheat in Minnesota
alone-aboit $30,00O,000 as wheat
prices stood then, about $60,o00,000
worth of wheat as prices stand now.
That the barberry bushes are allies
OF the black stem rust is seen in the
fact that the winter spores of the
| rust, formed on wheat or grasses at
harvest time and remaining on the
straw until spring, cannot infect the
wheat, oats, or grass plants directly,
but must pass to the barberry plants,
from which they are redistributed to
| the grains and grasses in condition to
| do mischief again. In this way, at
least in part, the rust plague Is re-
peated from year to year, especially
! if the weather conditions are favor
| able.
= Safety Commissions Order.
! The public safety commissions Or
der for the eradication of the bar
| berry was issued in order to bring
the state into close cooperation with
! the federal government in cam
! paign against the black stem rust,
under the general direction of E. c..
Stakman Of the Minnesota experiment
station in the central west, and un-
der the special direction Of E. M.
Freeman, dean of the Minnesota col.
lege of agriculture, in Minnesota.
The order in part reads:
|
species and variety known as Jap
anese barberry (Berberris thunbergi)
are hereby declared to be, and the
same are, public nuisance and a
menace to the public welfare, and
their maintenance, propagation. sale,
or introduction in the state is forbid
den. It shall be the duty of every
person owning or having charge Of
any premises on which barberry
bushes of the rust-producing varieties
are grown, or at any time found grow
ing, to forthwith destroy such bushes.
1.-THE state entomologist is author
lied. to cause all rust-prCduc-
ing barberry bushes within the state
Of Minnesota to be eradicated. .
It shall be the duty of the county board
of every county in this state to order
and cause the eradication of all such
rust-producing barberry bushes within
their respective counties under the
instructions and according to the d.
frections of the state entomologist."
Eradication on Arbor Day.
In compliance with this positive Or
der, arrangements have been made
to interest the schools and communt-
ties of the state in the large eradica-
ton of barberry plants on Arbor day,
April 10.
The spring is chosen as the time
for the eradication campaign, because
it is then that the spores of the rust
pass from the old straw to the bar
berry to gain a fresh lease of life be.
fore passing on to the new crop OF
grains and grasses. If the barberry
bushes are destroyed at this time,
therefore, there will be no new lease
of life for the winter spores developed
late last summer.
Japanese VS.. Common Burberry.
The Japanese barberry is usually
from 2 to 4 feet in height and has
somewhat spreading, reddish brown
stems, while the common barberry
grows to a height of from to
feet. with it's stems mostly upright
and of gray or grayish green color
The spines of the Japanese barberry
are mostly single, while on the com
mon barberry they are usually in
groups of three. The spines on the
former are geneally smaller than on
the latter, also. The buds and leaf
clusters on the Japanese variety are