Ragwort and Californian Thistle

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVII, Issue 7764, 16 March 1905, Page 3

Ragwort and Californian Thistle

I At u meeting of the GiHbonie branch of the Farmers' Union 1. h- ' sub-committee recently appointed to | go into the matter of the eradication of ragwort and Culiforninn thistle presented their report. The coinmittee strongly urged the farmers of the district to combine and make a united ell'ort to exterminate these weeds. At present both weeds were in the district, but were scatercd, and could bo held in check it farmers attended to thein directly they appeared. The committee collected ail the information they could, and had arrived at ] : several methods, leaving farmers to adopt whichever suited them. As to 1 I ragwort, the committee stated that j the best and only sure way tq eradicate it) was to have it pulled up 1 before it flowered. After it had flowered, pull it up and burn it. If not burnt, the seed will mature on J the stalk after being pulled up. Rugwort should not be cut, for the smallest particle of root left in tile ' ground will grow. Califorman thist'e spreads slower than ragwort, giving farmers more time to cope .villi it, ' at the samo time ibeing more dillicult to eradicate. The committee suggested four methods. The lirst which was thought the surest', was by a process of bleeding |. -V cither 1 continually cutting or pulling up a« * .it matured. The second mel!ii;d is ' to allow the plant to fully cevelop 1 j but nipping oil the flowers, thus ul- 1 lowing water to get down the stem, c I \vljich causes the plant to rot and 1 'die. The third way is to cover the affected parts with sacking, saluratjinj? the latter with coal tar and' grease. The fourth method is to cov- .' w ,h - ! s l»>t where the thistle is growing with either boards or gal- ? vanised iron, and to exclude light ' and air. Mr Thompson, stock inspectator, suggested another method, ' wh;ch was atlopted by the union. This was to place dry soit or brine ' on the plants, in order to kill them. Cutting was not necessary in this case.