12 
Keport of the Director of the 
Weeds. 
In this same connection we may offer a few reflections concerning 
the weed problem. We will first take a few facts of experimental 
demonstration, as will be seen by an examination of our preceding 
reports. 
1. That where weeds are allowed to grow freely the crops may be 
absolutely destroyed. In the case of corn the plants appear yellow, 
wilted, fail to attain proper size, and fail to form good ears, and the 
same phenomena may be noted with other crops. 
2. The amount of fertility removed by weeds is not sufficient to 
establish the conclusion that the injury comes from the robbing of the 
soil and thus starving the plant. Furthermore, if such were the case, 
the application of additional manures to offset the robbery of the 
weeds would destroy their malign effect. 
3. Weeds are not destructive through shading the ground, as experi- 
ment shows that mulches applied do not produce the same effect. If, 
however, we consider the enormous amount of water evaporated by 
these weeds during their growth, the necessity of additional water to 
the soil in an ordinary season during the hot months, and the appear- 
ance of the crop which indicates suffering from thirst, the conclusion 
becomes almost certain that the ill effect of weeds is largely due to 
their robbing the crop of proper moisture through their draughts 
upon the soil. 
As interesting confirmatory evidence as to this being the true view 
of the weed question, we may quote the testimony of vineyardists, 
some of whom advocate allowing weeds to grow in their vineyards, 
while others advocate clean culture. Personal inquiry demonstrates 
the general fact that those gentlemen who advocate the leaving of 
weeds in their vineyards have lands which are not subject to excessive 
drought, while those who advocate clean culture have usually reported 
their soil as very permeable to water. When we consider that during 
the period of rij3ening of the w6od and of the berry in the grape, dry- 
ness is an important factor both in securing the ripening and in secur- 
ing the qualities, we have at once a plausible explanation. Those 
gentlemen who advocate the allowing of weeds to grow are thus 
exhausting the surplus water of the soil injurious to their interests as 
vineyardists, while on the other hand those gentlemen who advocate 
the thorough removal of weeds are conserving the water to the soil 
which does not contain it in excess of the needs of their occupation. 
Water Table. 
As evaporation during the growing season is in excess of the rain- 
fall, it becomes evident that farming success is only possible from the 
