216 



WEED FLORA OP IOWA 



Fig. 126. Indian Mallow, Velvet Leaf, or Butter-print (.Abutilon theophrasti) . 



Common in corn fields, waste places, barnyards. 



(Photographed by Colburn.) 



flower. Wallace's Farmer suggests the following treatment: "It 

 has been seriously thought of by some persons as a substitute for 

 manilla or sisal in the manufacture of binder twine. It is an an- 

 nual, and if not allowed to go to seed, the farm can in time be 

 cleared of it. But it will be a long time. The seeds have a most 

 astonishing vitality. We have known cases where it has been pulled 

 up for fifteen years, not a plant allowed to go to seed, and yet it 

 makes its appearance every spring. Fortunately, it grows only on 

 rich land, and is therefore found in evidence largely in hog yards 

 and feed lots and other places where the land is exceedingly rich. 

 In fact, in sections of the country where it is being introduced, it 

 may be found in almost every farmyard. Why farmers allow it to 

 mature seed passes our comprehension. It goes variously by the 



