506 COMPOSITAE (COMPOSITE FAMILY) 



Achenes minutely hairy on the ridges with a long, silky, white 

 pappus, by which the wind is able to distribute them very 

 widely. (Fig. 351.) 



Means of control 



Prevent seed production by every means possible. Sheep graz- 

 ing ; frequent and persistent hoe-cutting while young ; cultivation 

 of the ground ; even hand-pulling for small areas. Being annual, 

 the weed must succumb if not permitted to reproduce itself. 



STINKING WILLIE 

 Senecio Jacobaea, L. 



Other English names: Common Ragwort, Tansy Ragwort, Stagger- 

 wort, St. Jameswort, Cankerweed, Baughlan. 



Introduced. Perennial. Propagates by seeds and by rootstocks. 



Time of bloom : June to November. 



Seed-time: July to December. 



Range: Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and 

 Quebec ; locally in Ontario, Maine, southern New York, and New 

 Jersey. 



Habitat : Fields, meadows, pastures, roadsides, and waste places. 



The range of this coarse and dangerous weed is not at present 

 very extensive, and every effort should be made to prevent its 

 further dissemination. When eaten by cattle it causes a fatal 

 disease of the liver (Hepatic cirrhosis), locally known as Pictou 

 Disease, which for many years was supposed to be contagious be- 

 cause of the fact that whole herds were often affected at the same 

 time. But long investigation and a series of careful experiments 

 made under the direction of the Veterinary Director General of the 

 Dominion of Canada have proved that this weed is the cause of 

 the trouble. The Molteno Cattle Disease of South Africa is simi- 

 lar and is due to the same cause. When green, the whole plant 

 emits a most disagreeable, fetid odor, and is disliked by grazing 

 animals ; but when dried in hay it is freely eaten by all kinds of 

 stock and is then a serious danger. Plants that are harvested and 

 cured just before coming into bloom are said to be at their most 

 noxious stage. (Fig. 352.) 



