RAGWORT.

Press, Volume LXIV, Issue 19317, 23 May 1928, Page 11

RAGWORT.

TO the editor op the PRESS.' Sir,—ln the General News column in The Press of May 16th, a paragraph appeared referring to remarks made by Mr A. McKenzie, of the Department of Agriculture, in an address to the Auckland Agricultural Sciences Club on the subject of . "Ragwort." Mr McKenzio remarked that "the farmer does not regard ragwort seriously enough, possibly because he does not Know that •the familiar weed with the yellow flower has a poisonous action, producing a disease which takes a considerable time to develop." It is perfectly true that the farmer does not take ragwort sefit ously enough, but whether it is poison-, ous or not appears to be open to doubt. About 15 months ago, when on a. visit to Southland, I passed through hundreds of acres of apparently nrstclass agricultural lands, completely ruined by ragwort, and to my astonishment no one seemed to make any effort to eradicate it. _ In the Bruce County in particular 'this was very evidently -on account of the fact (so I was informed) that that County has exempted ragwort under the .Noxious Weeds Act. In- conversation with a man who had had years of experience with it, I commented upon the tact or its being poisonous and a very great danger to stock. He assured me, however, that it was not poisonous. I then asked, if that was so, what property the plant contained that killed stock. He informed me that the mam staJk of the plant contained many grubs which, when eaten by stock, particularly cattle and horses, adhered to their Intestines and perforated the stomach, the beast • ultimately dying, even though it might take a year or perhaps two to do'so.' Out of curiosity, 1 cut a stem, which I sliced with mv pocket knife, and found it contained very many grubs. Thus my informant proved substantially correct in his assertions. , He also told me that as the grub matures, it eats its way through the stalk—similar to Hessian Fly m wheat —and falls in the grass in great numbers where it is quite visible, and in this'way also it is eaten by horses and cattle. He assured me that when the plant is young and a few indies high, sheep eat it erepcfilv and relish it, and it in no way affects them. In view of the above infofmrtion thus imparted about ragwort being non-poisonous, nnd mv informant's J?nowledee : of the fact, that the grubs/the nlant contained are the real cause of mortality amongst stock, it is somewhat difficult to reconcile Mr Mckenzie's statement

in Auckland that it is poisonous. It would be interesting to know the opinions of others who hare had experience with this weed, as to whether they consider it poisonous or not. Possibly many people are not aware that the plant contains grubs, and naturally conclude it is poisonous. But whether poisonous or not, it is a noxious weed of the very worst type, and every farmer who has a plant on his property should eradicate it at once. This weed must not be confused with tree groundsell, to which it is very similar. One only has to travel through Southland, about February or March,'and from Milton to Lawrence to realise how ragwort has completely ruined hundreds of acres. Californian thistle is harmless in comparison because it is not a menace to stock in the way that ragwort is, and so it thus behoves every farr to take ragwort very seriously and in no way neglect it.—Yours, etc., L. H. ORBELL. Winchester, May 21st.