1851. 



THE GENESEE FARMER. 



161 



THE EXTERMINATION OF WEEDS AMONG WHEAT. 



But a short time has elapsed since the idea of hoe- 

 ing wheat, or any other grain crop except corn, was 

 received in this country with perfect derision ; now, 

 however, farmers begin to appreciate the evil of 

 weedy grain fielos better than they once did, and, 

 since the introduction of the drill machines, some en- 

 terprising individuals have really begun to consider 

 ihe expediency of adopting the horse hoe also. Many 

 farmers have tried hand weeding for particular weeds, 

 and with good success. 



Tliilt this proposition, as to the necessity of weed- 

 ing grain, is not ridiculous, can be easily ascertained, 

 and in a manner to satisfy even the incredulous. Let 

 any person take the trouble to look over such fields 

 of grain as lie nearest to his residence : the charlock, 

 the thistle, the yellow dock, the wild parsnip, and 

 many other weeds, will be found abundant in most 

 situations ; while in some sections the Canada this- 

 tle, monopolizes a lion's share, rendering it nearly 

 impossible to bind the grain. 



Npw, in the first place, a great part of these pests 

 might be exterminated by more care in plowing, har- 

 rowing, and clearing the land ; and, in the second 

 place, by caution in applying any description of ma- 

 nure in which large quantities of undecomposed 

 seeds might remain. 



Many weeds may be exterminated quite readily by 

 sending boys into a field, armed with siTch imple- 

 ments as were mentioned above. If stimulated by 

 an offer of so much per thousand, and their ambition 

 excited, there would be no fear of idling. Few far- 

 mers have any idea as to the extent of ground that is 

 occupied by weeds. I remember the case of a ten 

 acre field, in which the wild parsnip became rather 

 abundant. A casual observer would have said that 

 there might perhaps be from 200 to 300 in the whole 

 field. The crowns of the roots were cut off by a 

 straight chisel, and the tops counted; There were ac- 

 tually rather more than 1200 of them. If these 

 could have been all collected, and shown growing in 

 one plantation, no farmer would have questioned the 

 expediency of eradicating the whole ; and yet, grow- 

 ing singly about the field, they were larger, and occu- 

 pied individually more room, than had they been 

 close together. 



It is always to be borne in mind that, when weeds 

 are thoroughly rooted out, a comparatively small 

 amount of labor afterwards vi'ill keep them down. 

 The farmer whose fields are infested, whose crops 

 are almost smoothered in weeds, looks upon the work 

 of exterminating them as entirely beyond his means ; 

 he wishes that they were away, and still cannot quite 

 muster courage enough to attack them But if he 

 commences clearing each field thoroughly, taking 

 care not to stock it again by impure seed or foul 

 manures, he will soon find the labor decreasing. — 

 After the business is accomplished, little more tlian 

 vigilance is necessary to keep down the first strag- 

 glers that appear.. A year or two of neglect will 

 soon renew the old difficulties. I have seen large 

 farms in England and Scotland where weeds were 

 scarcely to be found at all, and some few in our own 

 country that also approached to this condition. The 

 amount of labor required to keep such farms clean is 

 not by any means equal to that expended on other 

 farms, in vainly struggling against weeds which have 

 obtained such an ascendency as to threaten the exist- 

 ence of everything else. It is now ten years since 



the field which I' mentioned above was thoroughly 

 cleared of wild parsnips, and to this day they have not 

 reapp.eared in any number. A single one occasion- 

 ally shows itself, but is pulled up at once. 



On our plowed land the most obnoxious weeds are 

 the Couch grass (Triticum repens,) the Knot grass 

 (Arrhenatherum arenaceum,) and the annual meadow 

 grass. The leek, or wild onion, is excessively 

 troublesome on certain light soils. We have, in 

 short, imported nearly or quite all o'^ the w£)rst for- 

 eign weeds, and have reinforced them by various 

 specimens of native growth, such, for instance, as 

 the Canada thistle (Cirsium arvense,) which hold 

 their ground, as natives sh^u.a, even more obstinately 

 than the foreigners. 



Our roads are too often nurseries for weeds, and 

 frustrate all attempts at clearing the adjacent fields. 

 Every farmer who means to be entirely triumphant, 

 must see that this source of supply is cut off. The 

 weeds around the margin of fields, in the angles of 

 fences, and in the sides of ditches, should also be 

 carefully kept down. 



There are in many places laws intended to enforce 

 the cutting of weeds by the roadsides, but they are 

 too generally allowed to become a mere dead letter. 



Daises can be driven out by enriching meadow 

 land, and even the Canada thistle will yield to an 

 obstinate course of cutting. It must not be left long 

 at a time, but kept cut, so that it may never have an 

 opportunity to gain strength. — From Prof. JYorton^s 

 J\''oles to Stephens'' Farmers' Guide. 



Cattle Fairs. — It seems to me that, in this re- 

 spect, we might learn a good lesson from the Eng- 

 lish farmer. We have nothing analogous to the 

 numerous county and village fairs which are held at 

 stated periods in all parts of Great Britain. If a 

 farmer here wishes to buy a lot of sheep or cattle 

 for fattening or other purposes, either in the fall or 

 spring, he is obliged, after purchasing what he can 

 advantageously in his own vicinity, to wait for a 

 passing drove from which to make a selection. This 

 may not come at the right time, and may not suit 

 him as to price or quality when it does come ; he 

 may, therefore, be either disappointed altogether, or 

 forced to buy what does not exactly please. If he 

 wishes a pair of working cattle, or a horse, he must 

 leave his work, and drive about the country often for 

 days, before finding anything fit for his purpose or 

 within his means. I might go on to mention many 

 other inconveniences connected with the present 

 system, but every practical farmer kaows them bet- 

 ter than I. 



That thf>re is a growing feeling on the subject, is 

 proved by the numerous attempts now making in 

 various parts of the country to connect sales of stock 

 and implements with the county and other fairs. 

 This is an excellent way of making these fairs still 

 more important, and more popular, than they have 

 ever been. If they could be made places to which, 

 at certain times, stock of all kinds will congregate 

 for sale as well as for exhibition, the interest of the 

 masses in them would augment wonderfully. Buyers 

 and drovers with stock would be drawn together from 

 a distance, more or less great, according to the 

 importance of the fair. By one influence or another, 

 the people of a whole county or district would thus 

 be gradually gathered in to take a part in the fair, if 

 not for the sake of improvement, at least as buyers 

 or sellers. — Prof. JVorton. 



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