OCR Text |
Show I THISTLES IN DRY COUNTRY Ev'ent Which This Pest Prevails Its Positively Alarming Farmers Should Fight It. The extend to which t tilt pest pre-vnlls pre-vnlls In dry avearf Ih positively alarming alarm-ing Where gr.'iln crops are grown very year, the fiilstles come In and take possession of the crop In a dry year. The possession h so complete in many Instances and th thistles grow so closely thai they cannot make a rank growth. They not only smother the grain, but they crowd each nrher to such an extent that they caniiiot possibly make a strong growth. In some urea this In true of whole ileitis ami of every Held In which grata Is grown In a dry year such as the present, says a writer In tho Iakot Farmer. I speak not from hearsay, but from observation. What Is to be done to meet the evil? Of coin so where every farm grows lUisslan thistles In an tinfeticed country, it will lie Impossible to keep any farm absolutely free from the thistles. It should be possible, bow-ever, bow-ever, to prevent them from doing great damage. Tho summer-fallow .will remove tbem from the surface sotl for the time being, providing Uio work Is thorough, but ot course they niay roll over the land and strew seed on It the following follow-ing autumn or winter. Land may be plowed Immediately when the grain Is removed. This will prevent much seed from maturing that would otherwise mature, and It will prevent the plants from being carried elsewhere by the wind. The objection to this lies lu the difficulty found In doing this work at such a time. Winter rye may be profitably grown on such land. 1'reparlng the land for rye will be hard on the thistles. The following spring the rye may be harrowed har-rowed two or three times. This will be hard on the thistles and good for the rye. If winter wheat can be successfully success-fully grown, similar results may bo made to follow. Growing a crop of corn and caring for It properly will go far toward cleaning a piece of land thus Infested In a single season. Home of the seeds may live over until the spring, but the seeds of ItiiHslan thistles seldom live more than two years. Much may also be accomplished by harrowing spring grain. The grain may be harrowed two to four times with much profit to the grain e.n-1 with great Injury to the thistles. It Is not the purpose In this paper to discuss the exact methods of harrowing. This is a very effective way of destroying these plants. If all farmers were to fight the pest as outlined, It would ceaae to bo seriously harmful. |