THISTLE. 



the corn fotu-thi/lle, wliicli is a very troublefome weed in 

 arable land, flowering in July and the fucceeding month. 

 See SoNCHUs. 



And the common or fcU-thi/lle, which has many provincial 

 names in different places, as the horfe-thijlle, the cltrfed 

 thyile, &c. This is a tliiftle which is more general in its 

 growth than any of the others, being found not only by the 

 fides of roads, bnt alfo in arable and pafture lands, and it is 

 remarkably prickly, growing from two to three feet in 

 heiglit, but the heads of the flowers are fmall, and of a 

 purplifli colour, though fometimcs white ; it flowers in 

 July, or about that period. See Carduus and Seura- 



TULA. 



It is obvious, from what has been faid, that the annual 

 and biennial forts of thiftles may be readily removed, by 

 preventing their rumiing to feed and difleminating them- 

 felves over the land ; wliich is bed effefted probably by 

 carefully eradicating them, or frequently mowing them over 

 clofely by the furface, and rolling. But in the perennial 

 forts, from their roots continuing in the earth, increafing 

 and throwing out new flioots or Items every year, there is 

 mTich more difSculty in extirpating them, and they, perhaps, 

 can be no other way completely deftroyed than by rooting 

 them out on arable land by trench or deep ploughing and 

 frequent harrowings, or by fallowing or laying the land 

 down to pafture ; for the firft of thefe forts feldom appears 

 in pafture lands. But for deftroying the common thiftles, 

 the beft method is perhaps by cutting them over in the 

 bleeding feafon frequently by proper implements. The 

 writer of the Berkfhire Agricultural Report, who thinks 

 tliem particularly noxious, troublefome, and inconvenient 

 among the corn and grafs crops, propofes drawing them up 

 by an implement of the forceps kind, fomewhat fimilar to 

 that defcribed under the head noticed below, efpecially the 

 fort which is termed ferratula arvcnfis ; or if they be cut 

 over about an inch above the furface of the ground, it is 

 believed they will be liable to rot, on account of the ftem 

 being filled with water. They alfo frequently bleed to 

 death when cut over in this way about the month of Au- 

 guft, as hinted at above. See TmsTl.^-Dra'wer. 



Others fuggeft that thiftles might probably be deftroyed 

 in arable land by continued fallowing for one or two fum- 

 mers ; with fuch repeated ploughing and hoeing as wholly 

 to prevent their vegetating : but as fuch a progrefs would 

 be tedious and expenfive, an eafy, expeditious, and effectual 

 mode of eradicating them in this cafe, feems equally want- 

 ing and defirable, as in that of grafs lands. Thiftles are 

 likewife very troublefome in hedges, efpecially thofe of the 

 fow and the large rough kinds, and ftiould conftantly be 

 rooted out and removed as foon as pofFible, as no hedge 

 can go on well that is much infefted with them. See This- 

 TLZ-Cutter, Weed, and AVeeding. 



It may be noticed, that by an excellent regulation in 

 France, a farmer may fue his neighbour who neglefts to 

 tliiftle his land at the proper feafons, or may employ people 

 to do it at the other's expence. And it were to be wiftied 

 that a fimilar law was enafted here, to prevent the wide- 

 fpreading mifchief occalioiied by the feeding of this per- 

 uicious weed ; among which may be reckoned, befides its 

 choaking the young corn, that if wheat in particular be not 

 well thiftled, the reapers take up the grips fo tenderly, 

 left they fhould prick themfelves, that by their loofe hand- 

 ling of them, they fometimes leave upon the ground 

 corn enough to fow the whole field. There is much in- 

 convenience often experienced too in working hay from 

 them. 



Something in the fame way as above has alfo lately been 



done here, efpecially in reg^d to the removal of them from 

 the fides of highways and roads. 



Though the fow-thiftle has commonly been confidered as 

 a troublefome and injurious weed in tillage lands, it has 

 lately been conceived by fome to poflefs no fmall degree of 

 nutrient power ; and on this ground it has been fuggeftcd 

 by the writer of the " Experienced Farmer," that it may be 

 a plant of confiderable fattening properties when properly 

 raifcd and cultivated. When taken young, and cut or 

 broken, it produces fomething, it is faid, like cream ; and he 

 has noticed that many animals eat it in preference to every 

 other plant now in vogue. Sheep, when in clover, &c. 

 v^-jU feed upon it fo greedily as to cat the very roots. P'gs 

 likewife prefer it to almoft any other green food. Rab- 

 bits will breed more fpeedily when fed with fow-thiftles, 

 than with any other food he knows of, except dandelion ; 

 which is of the fame nature : and is now fold in Covent 

 Garden market to the breeders of tame rabbits, to make 

 the does take buck more readily. A man of his acquaint- 

 ance, who was allowed better flcill with ftallions than the 

 generality of people, ufed to fearch for fow-thiftles, 

 and give them to his horfes to make them fer«re mares more 

 readily and effeftually. When he could not get fow-thiftles, 

 he fed them, it is faid, with new laid eggs and milk, or cream, 

 if he could get it ; but he preferred fow-thiftles or dande- 

 lion to any thing. 



And there is, he contends, a well-known and remarkable 

 proof of the nourifhing and feeding quality of the Cow-thiftle, 

 in the fat wether fheep fed to fuch an amazing fize by 

 Mr. Trimnel, of Bicker-fen, near Bofton, upon fen-land. 

 This ftieep, it is faid, was bred by Mr. Hutchinfon, in Hail- 

 fen, from a ram bred by Mr. Robinfon of Kirby, near 

 Sleaford. He never ate any corn, oil-cake, or other fimi- 

 lar dry food, but fed wholly on grafs and herbage. Being 

 turned with many other ftieep into a field of clover, he was 

 obferved firft to fearch for the fow-thiftles, and would eat 

 no other food while any of thefe could be found in the 

 parts of the field that were hurdled off" fucceflively, a little 

 at a time. None of the other ftieep that fed with him, how- 

 ever, ftiewed any extraordinary liking for the fow-thiftle. 

 A fmall hut was built for him in the field to repofe under 

 in hot weather : and when the part that was hurdled off" be- 

 came bare of food, his attendants, on account of his liking 

 for fow-thiftles, gathered a quantity of them for him, which 

 they gave him at particular hours, three times a day, from 

 two to five pounds at a meal. 



It is added, that when ftanding on his feet, he meafured 

 only two feet fix inches high : he was weighed once a 

 month, and weighed ahve twenty-fix ftone, at fourteen 

 pounds to the ftone. He gained only one pound the laft; 

 month : and as it was judged, therefore, that he was quite 

 ripe, and would not increafe any more, but might polfibly 

 lofe weight the next month, he was killed on the 13th of 

 Oftober 1 79 1, by Mr. Ifaac Lumby, of Bicker, being 

 then a four-lTiear, or four-year-old ftieep. 



The writer further ftates, that the flfin, hung up by the nofe 

 part, meafured ten feet two inches from the point of the 

 nofe to the tip of the tail, and was fold for 7^. 6J. in the 

 common courfe of bufinefs. And that the carcafe mea- 

 fured five feet from the nofe to the tail ; the rump or 

 cufliion eight inches and a half in depth ; plate or fore-flank 

 the fame thicknefs ; breaft end feven inches ; and was one 

 yard five inches and a half round the coUar. That the 

 legs were reckoned at 4olbs. each ; but if cut haunch of 

 venifon faftiion, they would, it is faid, have weighed ^olbs. 

 each. Mr. Lumby was offered 2s. a pound for them ; fo 

 that he oc^ild have fold the two legs alone for 10/. when fo cut. 



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