NIGHT-FLOWERING CATCHFLY— COW COCKLE 19 



they can be set back or destroyed by harrowing even after the grain 

 is up. The seeds can be removed from seed grain by screening. 

 Thorough surface cultivation of intertilled crops and short rotations 

 in which grass crops are raised will hold this weed in check. 



Night-Flowering Catchfly (Silene noctifiora L.) 



Other common name. — Sticky cockle. 



Description. — Night-flowering catchfly was introduced from Eu- 

 rope. It is an annual or a winter annual and is found in waste places, 

 cultivated fields, and lawns throughout the State but is not considered 

 a very serious weed pest. It belongs to the cockle family and is a 

 very close relative to the common white cockle. The plant is erect, 

 stout, leafy, sticky, and somewhat branched, and the entire plant is 

 covered with soft, spreading hairs. The leaves are from two to five 

 inches long and are gradually narrowed down from a rounded sum- 

 mit. They are several times as long as wide. The few large, showy 

 flowers generally appear late in June, in July, or early in August. 

 They are of a delicate creamy white hue or sometimes purple. The 

 shape of this flower is somewhat like that of the morning-glory, but 

 the five petals are not united into a tube. The flowers are quite 

 fragrant and are open only at night. The seeds are found in oblong 

 pods, each containing a very large number of seeds. The seed is a 

 dull gray with a somewhat roughened surface. This plant is com- 

 monly propagated by seeds. 



Eradication. — Avoid sowing the seed. It is not troublesome on 

 well-kept farms where good cultivation is given and crop rotation 

 is followed. 



Cow Cockle (Saponaria vaccaria L.) 



Other common names. — Cow-herb, cow basil, cockle, and china 

 •cockle. 



Description. — Cow cockle is an annual plant which was intro- 

 duced from Europe and is a very close relative to the ordinary corn 

 cockle so common in this State. This plant grows from one to three 

 feet high. The leaves are very smooth and succulent. The blossoms 

 appear in July and seeds are ripe in August. The pale red and rather 

 showy flowers are often an inch broad, although their average width 

 is only about half an inch. The seeds are produced in a five-angled 

 pod. They are dull black in color, slightly roughened, and almost 

 spherical. Cow cockle seeds are often found in the seeds of the 



