36 COMMON WEEDS 



in a final ploughing between mid-May and mid-June, 

 when the drill may deposit rape and mustard. These 

 crops grow rapidly, and largely tend to smother weeds, 

 which can be ploughed under with them later in the 

 season, thus giving a good green manuring. Or sheep 

 may be fed on the crop with cake, the plough following, 

 when many deep-rooted plants may be destroyed. A 

 heavy crop of winter vetches may then be grown and 

 be cut, with the contained weeds, in the succeeding 

 spring, the following crop being late turnips. Some 

 such procedure will both enrich and improve the soil, 

 and eradicate or immensely reduce the weeds. Useful 

 catch crops are lupins, vetches, rape, mustard, serra- 

 della, green rye, and trifolium. 



(c) Mowing, Spudding, &c. It is a useful practice to 

 run the mowing machine over grass land where Thistles, 



FIG. 4. Thistle and Bracken Cutter (Allan & Sons). 



Knapweed, and other weeds prevail, and this may be 

 done two or three times during the summer months. 

 Special machines, e.g. the Thistle Cutter (Fig. 4), are 

 sold for a similar purpose. Many of these are very 

 useful, and can be easily managed by a lad. 



The spud is extremely useful in many cases, for by 



