WEEDS. 



tcrnate husbandry are introduced in 

 the regular cultivation. W'lien tiio 

 grass is ploughed up, it" the sods are 

 not covered suincienlly so as to rot, 

 lulls of grass remain, which greatly 

 increase, to the injury of the ne.xt 

 crop. However carefully the lanil 

 may be ploughed, if it be sown im- 

 mediately, the roots of grass will be 

 raised to the surface by the harrows. 

 The only remedy is to have them 

 carefully forked out, and carried to 

 some corner or waste spot, there to 

 form the foundation of a dung heap 

 or compost. When the land is plough- 

 ed up before wmter, and the seed 

 sown in spring, the grass will be 

 rotten and have lost its vegetative 

 power. 



"The bearded wild oat (Arena fa- 

 tiui) is a very troublesome plant, and 

 sometimes almost exceeds the true 

 oat in quantity ; but this can only be 

 the case with very slovenly farmers. 

 It ripens sooner than the corn, and 

 sheds its seeds before harvest. Crops 

 cut green for fodder, such as rye, 

 winter barley, and tares, repeated if 

 necessary, soon destroy this weed, 

 which has no perennial root. 



" These are some of the most 

 common annual and biennial weeds. 

 They may all be easily destroyed by 

 weeding at the time when they have 

 pushed up their seed stems and the 

 flower is about to expand ; if they 

 are cut up at that time they seldom 

 recover. Hoeing them when very 

 young, unless the weather be dry 

 enough to scorch the roots exposed, 

 often increases them instead of kill- 

 ing them. But the last-mentioned 

 weeds are easily got rid of in com- 

 parison with those which have peren- 

 nial roots, and some of which in- 

 crease the faster the more the roots 

 are divided. It may be proper to ob- 

 serve, that too little attention is paid 

 to the weeds in our upland meadows 

 and pastures. One would imagine 

 that every plant which increases the 

 "weight of the hay or covers the 

 ground in spring is wholesome for 

 cattle, whereas many are detrimen- 

 tal when they are eaten for want of 

 better food. Of this kind are the ra- 

 842 



I nil nculi, commonly called butter- cups, 

 ' which, far from deserving this name, 

 I are never touched by the cows, so 

 long as they can find other food. 

 Vv'itliout going the length of ascribing 

 to the butter-cups the power of caus- 

 ing epidemic diseases in cattle, and 

 even in men who eat of the milk and 

 butter of cows who have eaten them, 

 there is no doubt that where the 

 cows are forced by hunger to eat 

 many of them, they may be very in- 

 jurious to their health, and to the 

 production of good milk. As these 

 plants have strong perennial roots, 

 they take possession of rich, moist 

 soils, to the exclusion of good grass- 

 es. When not very abundant, the 

 plants may be weeded out by means 

 of a sharp spud or hoe, and the ex- 

 pense will be well repaid in the qual- 

 ity of the hay or pasture. Where 

 they are very abundant, the only 

 remedy is to break up the grass in 

 autumn, let it be exposed to the frost 

 in winter, take a crop of corn next 

 season, and lay it rough again the 

 winter after. In the succeeding 

 spring the land may be inoculated 

 with good tufts of grass, and before 

 the next year an improved pasture 

 will have been formed ; or, if this is 

 too much trouble, it may be summer 

 fallowed, and sown in August with 

 pure seed of the best grasses. This 

 is expensive, as a whole year's prod- 

 uce is lost, but the subsequent pas- 

 ture will be so much better, that the 

 expense may be considered as a prof- 

 itable investment. The most com- 

 mon species of butter-cup are the 

 Ranunculus acris, repcns, and bulbo- 

 sus : the R. flammnla is highly poi- 

 sonous, but not common, except in 

 marshy pastures. 



" Senccio Jacohcca, or rag wort, is 

 another troublesome weed ; but as 

 sheep eat it readily when young, it 

 is easily kept down by pasturing and 

 folding. In moist weather, also, it 

 is easily pulled up by hand. 



" Tussilago far/ara, colt's foot. By 

 its large leaves it kills the finer grass- 

 es under it. As moisture is essen- 

 tial to Its luxuriance, draining tends 

 to diminish its growth ; careful ma- 



