378 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



PRACTICAL METHODS OF DEALING WITH WEEDS IN 

 NURSERY CULTURE. 



W. S. HIGBIE, EDEX PRAIRIE. 



Nature abhors bare ground as surely as she abhors a vacuum. 

 The Creator in His infinite wisdom has provided that myriads of 

 plants, comprising hundreds of species, should spring up as if by 

 magic wherever the conditions are favorable, to cover the face of 

 the earth. Thus we find some kind of vegetation growing on the 

 greater part of the land surface of the globe. When any of these 

 plants grow to interfere with the plans of mankind, they are termed 

 weeds, and man is wont to look upon them as a curse. The task of 

 combating undesirable plants forms a large part of the work of the 

 agriculturist. 



No cast-iron rules should be laid down to govern the actions of 

 one who is engaged in any occupation, and the nursery business is 

 no exception. Each person must work out to a certain extent his 

 own salvation, varying methods to suit conditions. 



To obtain the best results the land intended for nursery pur- 

 poses should be handled, at least one year previous to planting, 

 with a view to killing as many weeds as possible. Growing a 

 crop of corn or potatoes, taking special care to keep them clean, or 

 alternate plowing and harrowing until July ist, then sowing to 

 buckwheat, will help very materially in cleaning land. 



Arrange the nursery so that the rows will be as long as possible, 

 leaving enough space between to allow a horse and cultivator to 

 pass without injuring the stock. In good nursery culture, how- 

 ever, the chief aim is not the destruction of weeds but cultivation 

 that is frequent and thorough enough to maintain a dust mulch, 

 which will conserve the moisture, produce a good growth of the 

 stock and incidentally kill all weeds before they get in sight. 



At our place we use the following list of tools: an 8 in. plow 

 for one horse, a harrow tooth cultivator, a five shovel cultivator, 

 hoes, garden rakes and rake hooks. The first implement to be used 

 in the spring is the little plow. By swinging the device that is on 

 the end of the beam to one side and inserting a block of wood be- 

 tween it and the beam to hold it in place, we are able to get so 

 close to the nursery rows as to leave only a thin comb of earth 

 standing, which is easily and quickly levelled by using the rake 

 hook. The plowing is immediately followed by the harrow-tooth 

 cultivator with which we are able to keep the ground in good con- 

 dition until it gets packed by a heavy rain, when the other cultiva- 

 tor mentioned is brought into use. 



