592 REPORT OF STATE GEOLOGIST. 



Purslane. Portulaea oleracea L. 

 Burgrass. Cenchrus tribuloides L. 

 Beggar's ticks. Bidens frondosa L. 

 Prickly lettuce. Lactuca scariola L 

 Crabgrass. Syntherisma sanguinalis (L.) Nasb. 

 Jim son weed. Datura Stramonium L. 

 Smartweed. Polygonum Persicaria L. 

 Bracted bindweed. Convolvulus Sepium L. 

 Corn cockle. Agrostemma Githago L. 



The above list is well considered, and contains, perhaps, the worst 

 weeds infesting our area. Their relative rank will, of course, vary with 

 the character of the soil, amount of soil moisture and intensity of cul- 

 tivation. The first of the weeds in the list, Ambrosia artemisicefolia, 

 is regarded by many farmers as not only not injurious, but as posi- 

 tively beneficial to the land. This belief is especially prevalent in the 

 northern part of the State. As yet, I have been unable to discover 

 the reasons for this belief, and am of the opinion that it has no basis 

 in fact. In many parts of the State the velvet leaf or butter-print, 

 Abutilon Abutilon (L.) Busby, is regarded as the worst of our weeds. It 

 multiplies with extreme rapidity, the quick germination of the seeds 

 and rapid growth of the seedling giving it a great advantage over the 

 plants with which it is usually associated. It is extremely difficult to 

 eradicate and has some real claims to a high rank among weeds. The 

 prickly lettuce, Lactuca scariola is not regarded as especially trouble- 

 some even where found in abundance, since it yields readily to culti- 

 vation and is readily eaten by stock, especially in the early part of the 

 season. Where it has taken possession of a field it can be practically 

 exterminated by converting the field into pasture. 



Chicory, Cichorium Intybus L., while not widely distributed 

 throughout the State, is locally abundant and very difficult to eradi- 

 cate when it has once found a foothold. It is especially abundant in 

 the southern counties of the State. 



The common burdock, Arctium Lappa, is by very many reporters 

 considered entitled to the first rank. It is eradicated with extreme 

 difficulty and its seeds germinate readily in a wide range of conditions 

 touching soil, moisture and temperature. The best treatment is a fre- 

 quent cutting during the growing season as indicated earlier in this 

 section. 



A series of weeds of the lawn also should have place in this connec- 

 tion not so much because of the actual loss they cause as because of 

 the labor needed to protect lawns from their invasion. Among the 

 most persistent are dandelion, common mallow, shepherd's purse, the 



