4. Tlie eradication of the worst weeds is costly in labour, time and 

 machinery and frequently compels a farmer to change what would be the 

 best rotation of crops for the land, or even to grow crops which are not the 

 most advantageous. 



5. Many weeds are conspicuous and all are unsightly on farm lands. 

 They thus, in a varj'ing degree according to their several natures, depreciate 

 the value of land, a point which may be of great importance, should the 

 owner wish to sell. 



6. Some weeds are injurious to stock, being poisonous as the Water 

 Hemlock, or injurious to their products as burs in wool, or Wild Garlic and 

 Stinkweed, which taint milk. The horny or barbed seeds of some grasses 

 cause irritation or painful wounds by penetrating the flesh and particularly 

 the mouth parts, as Porcupine Grass and Skunk-tail Grass in the North-west. 



7. Weeds attract injurious insects or harbour fungous diseases, which 

 may spread to cultivated plants. It is well known that weedy stubbles or 

 summer-fallows are a breeding ground for cutworms and that the rust of 

 small grains may pass the winter on several kinds of grasses. 



In view of the above, it must be acknowledged that in all parts of Can- 

 ada weeds are a source of constant and very considerable loss to farmers. 

 Indeed, so much is this the case that the great prevalence of some varieties 

 in certain districts of the Dominion must be viewed with the gravest alarm, 

 for they have taken such possession of the land as to seriously affect profit- 

 able farming. As examples of such aggressive enemies, mention may be 

 made of the Wild Mustard, Quack or Couch Grass and Canada Thistle in 

 parts of almost every province ; Ox-eye Daisy in the Maritime Provinces ; 

 Field Sowthistle in the Maritime Provinces, Quebec, Ontario and the Eed 

 River valley in Manitoba; and Stinkweed or Penny-cress, Ball Mustard 

 and Hare's-ear Mustard in all the Prairie Provinces. 



The increase of weeds in a district has frequently been due to the fact 

 that farmers have neglected them from not being aware of their noxious 

 nature and power to spread. 



"Many of our farmers have only a limited knowledge of weeds, and in 

 many cases do not recognize those that are dangerous on their first appear- 

 ance. Hence we have 'One year's seeding, seven years weeding.' There 

 are some weeds so noxious that, if farmers knew their real character and 

 recognized the plants on their first appearance, they would postpone all other 

 business until they were destroyed. • • « Self-interest should 



be a sufficient incentive to farmers to destroy weeds if it is clearlj shown that 

 it will pay them to do so." — H. MacKellak. 



A point of considerable importance with regard to noxious weeds is 

 the adoption, as much as possible, of some one English or common name. 

 The names iised in this bulletin have been selected with miich care as being 

 those which are most applicable and most widely known. When more names 

 than one are given, the first is preferable. The scientific names, of which 

 only one for each plant is recognized as authoritative by botanists all over the 

 world, are here given, so that the certain identity of each plant mentioned 

 may be known. Few farmers, of course, are acquainted with these scientific 

 terms, even in the case of our commonest weeds, biit it would be well if they 

 were; for certainly much confusion exists in different localities in the ap- 

 plication even of the English popular names, the same plant being frequently 

 called by one name in one place and by quite a different name elsewhere, or 

 quite as frequently a single name is applied to a number of distinct plants 

 in different places or 1)y different people in the same place. 



