New Series, October, 1905. 



343 



It seemed very strange to me the first time I saw a large field of 

 teasels so carefully cultivated in straight rows. I learned to know the 

 teasel when I was a little boy in Indiana, but there it is always a weed. 

 It grows along the roadside and the thrifty farmer hastens to cut it down 

 before it goes to seed. I have often seen it growing as a weed along the 

 roadside in this State. 



There is some slight difference between the teasel that the farmer 

 cultivates and the one that usually occurs as a weed. Get one from the 

 roadside and one from the field and see whether you can find the differ- 

 ence. Probably the cultivated teasel was at first wild, — a weed. But 

 man has cultivated it so long that it has become in some ways quite differ- 

 ent from its wild relations. 



Now I think you can see how a plant where it is not wanted may be 

 regarded as a weed while in other places it is often cultivated as a very 

 useful plant. Many of our weeds, like tlie teasel, are foreigners which 

 have come to us in various ways. In their own home they may be valu- 

 able cultivated plants or at least harmless, growing in places where they 



are not in the way. 

 weeds almost 

 and they seem to 

 If, however, you 

 good qualities of 

 surprised to find 

 valuable to some 

 Alany of these 

 plants, aside from 

 to man. Our teasel 

 about the stem at 

 formed by the 

 leaves which are 

 a long time after rams these 

 keeps animals, as ants, snails and 

 reaching and destroying the 

 little lake which they cannot 

 interesting things 

 haps you will find ^^^_ ,_^vild 



'easel. How does it 



A few plants are 



everywhere they grow 



be entirely worthless. 



began to look for the 



weeds, you would be 



how many are really 



one, somewhere. 



weeds are interesting 



any use they may have 



has peculiar little cups 



each joint. They are 



bases of the two 



grown together. For 



basins are full of water. This 



other crawling creatures from 



flowers. You see it forms a 



cross. There are many other 



about the teasel. Per- 



them out for your- 



selves. 



differ from the cultivated teasel ? 



A Fezv Suggestions 



1. Carry a teasel plant into the schoolroom. Are there blossoms on 

 the plant or has it gone to seed ? 



2. Count the number of seeds that you find on one teasel head. Why 

 do you think this plant is a nuisance to the farmer when it is a weed? 



