KOADSIDES AND NEGLECTED CORNERS 67 



wind goes down, or when torn to pieces ; for there are few 

 fences or forests to stop its course in the Dakotas." 



Injury caused by the Russian thistle. Where allowed to 

 grow, it takes complete possession of the land and chokes 

 grain and flax. It is injurious to corn, potatoes, and all cul- 

 tivated plants. The rigid bushy plants, closely beset with 

 sharp spines, are very disagreeable to handle. 



Introduction and distribution. " It was introduced from 

 Russia in 1873. During the twenty-two years since, it has 

 spread with greater rapidity than any other weed. Ninety 

 new localities were reported to the Department of Agricul- 

 ture during 1894, and sixty-nine in 1895, previous to No- 

 vember 20. It now occurs in places from eastern Ontario 

 and New Jersey to the western border of Idaho and Califor- 

 nia, and from Manitoba to New Mexico and Missouri, being 

 most abundant in South Dakota and adjacent states. Twenty 

 states and three Canadian provinces are known to be in- 

 fested." J 



Remedies. As the plant is an annual, it should be killed 

 out before it has produced seeds. For a detailed account of 

 this weed, see your State Reports, or " The Russian This- 

 tle," by L. H. Dewey, Department of Agriculture, or Wis- 

 consin Bulletin, No. 39. Is the plant really a thistle ? 



It is very commonly found along railroad tracks, about elevators 

 and railroad yards. How do you account for its presence there ? Do 

 you think the seeds were carried to the Eastern States by wind ? How 

 could railroads distribute weeds ? 



See also on weeds : Farmers' Bulletin, No. 28 ; Weeds, and How to 

 Kill Them ; Two Hundred Weeds, by L. H. Dewey, United States De- 

 partment of Agriculture ; Bulletins Nos. 50 and 57 of the Kansas State 

 Agricultural College (No. 50 contains one hundred and forty-five fig- 

 ures of weed seedlings, and No. 57 figures the leaves of about two hun- 

 dred weeds). 



1 From L. H. Dewey, U. S. Department of Agriculture. 



