MINT. RAG-WORT. MOSSES. 



65 



The seeds produced are very numerous, and the roots are 

 perennial. The only mode of eradication is by top-dressings, 

 and by using sheep as before recommended. 



34. " Mint," or the " Mentha " of botany, is a very com- 

 mon weed in moist pastures. The scientific description of 

 the genus lias ah^eady been given. At the end of the year, 

 when pastures are bare, cows will eat it largely, and then it 

 prevents the coagulation of the milk. The removal of the 

 wetness of the land by draining, is the first step of eradica- 

 tion, and then to be finished by top-dressings, and by using 

 sheep as before mentioned. 



35. " Mouse-ear scorpion grass," or the Myosotis scor- 

 pioides " of botany, is a very common weed on dry sheep 

 walks. The generic description has already been given. It 

 is said to be hurtful, and even fatal to sheep. Being low in 

 growth, it must be eradicated by top-dressings, as before 

 mentioned. 



36. " Rag-wort," or the " Senecio Jacobea " of botany, is a 

 very common weed on good lands. The scientific description 

 has already been given. The herbage is constantly refused 

 by cows and horses, and sheep will eat it only when young. 

 It is a sure mark of good quality of the land. Mowing of the 

 stems prevents the perfection of the seeds, but does not de- 

 stroy the roots. This is best done by eating down the plants 

 when young, with sheep, or pulling the roots after soaking 

 rains ; and they must be raised very carefully, as, the very 

 smallest fibre being left, the roots will strike again. 



37. Mosses," or the " Musci " of botany, are the greatest 

 pests of damp and heavy land meadows, and also on dry pas- 

 tures. They belong to the cryptogamic class of vegetables, 

 and form a very extensive order. Herb leafy. Corolla like 

 a hood, bearing the style, and covering the capsule, which is 

 closed with a hd. Roots fibrous and branched. They are 

 not confined to the base of the plant, but are abundantly pro- 

 truded, in five minutely jointed branched tufts from various 

 parts of the stem, which, no doubt, imbibe nourishment as 

 well as moisture. The stem is often simple, and frequently 

 branched. Leaves invariably simple and undivided, the mar- 



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