REPORT OF THE ENTOMOLOGIST AND BOTANIST. 185 
SESSIONAL PAPER No. 8a 
Land under grain crops should be harrowed two or three times with a light harrow 
having sloping teeth or with a weeder, from the time the grain is two inches high until 
it is six or even eight inches. Mr. Willing says ‘Stink Weed is decidedly the hardest 
weed we have to handle, and some of it has been found in all districts where farming 
has been carried on to any extent from Manitoba to the foot hills, and from the United 
States boundary to the Saskatchewan.’ 
Witp Oar (Avena strigosa, Schreb.).—Annual. Introduced. Closely resembles 
some varieties of cultivated oats, but ripens its useless hairy seeds irregularly, so that 
many fall to the ground before the grain they grow among is ripe, thus crowding the 
crop and infesting the land with a useless and aggressive weed. Mr. Braithwaite says: 
‘After Stink Weed, the Wild Oat has certainly done farmers the most harm this year.’ 
There are in Canada three kinds of Wild Oats which have been introduced from 
Europe. The kind most abundant in many parts of the North-west and British Colum- 
bia is the Black Wild Oat (A. strigosa). 
Remedy.—The best means of clearing land of this pest is to work it in early spring 
and, when many of the seeds have germinated, go over it again with a disc harrow and 
sow a very early variety of oats or barley, to be cut twice as green feed and then turned 
down. If this land can be used the following year for a hoed crop or roots it will be 
better than sowing grain. 
CaNnADA THISTLE (Cnicus arvensis, Hoffm.).—Perennial. Introduced. The Canada 
Thistle, so-called, is extremely abundant in some of the rich lands of the Red River 
valley and is well established in many spots right across the continent to the Pacific. 
West of Manitoba, however, it is far less troublesome than many other weeds. Mr. 
Braithwaite says: ‘I may say I am more concerned about Canada Thistle and Tumbling 
Mustard than any others of our weeds, The Thistle is spreading rapidly from vacant 
government lands north and east, and the Tumbling Mustard has spread from the 
North-west down through the Souris districts.’ Mr. Willing views its spread in the 
North-west with anxiety ; he says, ‘Canada Thistle seems to have come to stay and 
is very plentiful along the northern branches of the railway, but, it is true, many other 
weeds as yet are giving more trouble to farmers. 
TumsBiing Musrarp (Sisymbriwm altissimum, L.).—Annual. Introduced. This 
. coarse member of 
from Indian 
Head, where it 
was first noticed, 
eastward through 
Manitoba and 
westward to the 
interior of British 
Columbia. Mr. 
Willing says 
‘Tumbling Mus- 
tard is now more 
plentiful thanany 
other weed in 
south-eastern As- 
siniboia.’ Tumb- 
ling Mustard has 
Fig. 16.—Tumbling Mustard : a tumbler with ripe seeds. all the bad charac- 
S the Mustard 
Aw; K \ X CEN . 
SERIA 4 AN Hh ? : H amily was only 
CALAIS ) AR } iy Y) ra Aa ate 
RSI DREN 
Po. RY, SY SSN SE Vy 4 i the wheat fields 
CS OIN INSISTS AY VLAN 
EA SPOUTS SAN Wau Leg } of the West about 
S SNAPS RRP SEM NT \) ten years ago, but 
LAN DANE \ A / Se \ } it has now spread 
a “ S : 4 Bh» ep) 7 ( \ 
