ON CALIFORNIAN THISTLES

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVI, Issue 2165, 14 April 1908, Page 4

ON CALIFORNIAN THISTLES

METHODS OF ERADICATION. (By “Agricola.”) .Tlicro siro fow noxious woods which giro tho earoful farmer more trouble or worry than tho Californian (thistle. It is an exceedingly strong weed, of amazing vitality, and is very diflieult to eradicate when oueo .it- has taken hold of a farm. Tho majority of farmers know only too well tho baneful oll'cets of this thistle, but there is, at tho same time, 'a small minority who are either too careless to trouble, or who, rejoicing An tho old maxim, “ wliero ignoranco As bliss,” etc., do not think it necessary to acquire information as ito what treatment tho thistlo must bo subjected to to socuro its eradication. The thistlo question is not, as some appear to think, a light ono, and tllio man who carolcssly. anti foolishly leaves tho thistlo to grow unchecked on his land .is thereby doing bis neighbors a serious injury. Tho thistlo, if neglected, spreads .with amazing rapidity, both by socd and by root, and no farmer who has tho slightest consideration for his neighbors’ welfaro or an intelligent interest in his own, will allow tho weed to grow to seed. Constant cutting with the soy tho is to be strongly recommended, and this, together with the inexorablo demands of Nature, will so weaken the weed that it will die out in the courso of a few years. This method, howovor, is too slow for many farmers, particularly thoso who have large patches of the wood, and other moans of eradication aro tgsorted to. The best mode, undoubtedly, is to constantly lcoep turning over tho ground infested, so as to prevent any thistles appearing abovo tho surface. They cannot then breathe, and tho want of air, together with the gradual bleeding of tho roots caused by the continual cutting with the plough will kill them. This will bo found to bo n sure and effective remedy. Another good method is as follows : —Choose a. time when tho stalks of the thistle are hollow (usually when it is coming into flower), and then cut them with a backdelivery. Then givo them a liberal sprinkling of brine, which, getting into the hollow stalks, rots the roots, or, at all events, does much to weaken their strength and vigor. Should the season ho wet, tho brine is unnecessary, as the falling rain will fill the hollow stalks. With small patches of thistles, an effective method is to raiso the turf, put down, a thick layer of agricultural salt, and then replace the turf. Should stock bo running in the paddock it is essential that those patches be fenced off, for as soon as tho stock discover the presence of the salt they commence to lick the turf, which lias, of course, a salty taste, and tho result will probably he a fow deaths caused by accumulation of soil in .tho stomachs of the animals. The methods of eradication above detailed aro all considered sure, the least certain of the three being the second one. The farmer desires to kill his thistles in as short .a period as possible, and, to the mind of tho .writer, no mode is quicker or safer than the ono first mentioned. The great secret is never to let the tliistle appear above the ground, thus depriving ft of air, and the farmer .who adopts this method, and who does the work thoroughly, .will- find that in three years at the outside his Californian thistles will bo practically “non est.”