ON THE LAND

Kaipara and Waitemata Echo, 22 July 1915, Page 3

ON THE LAND

CALiFORNIAN THISTLE

By E. S. Taylor, in the Journal of Agriculture (N.Z.) :

It having been declared in Southland that cutting tho Californinn thistle is of no avail, it may be pointed out that in North Otago district repeated experience has demonstrated that this method of eradication is entirely successful. Even on farms of rich volcanic land, where the thistle has been cut every year just at the flowering stage, and where it was exceptionally bad five years age, to-day a marked improvement is noticeable. In some paddocks the vitality of the thistle is so weakened where it has not been altogether destroyed that a few hours' work is now sufficient to deal with it, whereas it formerly took several days with the mower and horses. A large number of North Otago farmers will bear me out that cutting the thistle eveiy year when An the flowering stage has done marvels in the way of destroying acres upon acres of the weed in their district.