122 Weeds. 



grain fields should be gone over before 

 harvest to prevent the thistles from blos- 

 soming, and the meadows and fields sown 

 with grasses should be similarly dealt with 

 after harvest. To spud thistles before their 

 blossoming season will not in itself be 

 found of much service in destroying them ; 

 but when they are cut with the spud an 

 inch or more below the surface of the soil 

 at that stage of their development, and are 

 again cut in the same way later on, the 

 effects as regards tlieir destruction are very 

 beneficial. In the experience of the writer, 

 when thistles have been thus cut two or 

 three times a year, they have been found 

 to disappear entirely from pastures, fence 

 borders, lanes, and waste-places generally. 



y. Removing thistles from permanent 

 pastures. In removing thistles from per- 

 manent pastures, our mode of procedure 

 must be governed largely by the character 

 of the soil and subsoil. In stifif clays, two 

 or three mowings a year for as many years 

 will cause them to disappear, but on lands 

 with open subsoils the spud will also have 

 to be resorted to. 



Observation. The facts relating to an 

 experiment in removing Canada thistles 



