NOXIOUS WEEDS

Dominion, Volume 19, Issue 253, 9 July 1926, Page 5

NOXIOUS WEEDS

WORK OF ERADICATION DUTIES OF THE LANDHOLDER The only successful method of ultimately eradicating noxious weeds was pointed to by the Minister of Agriculture (Hon. O. J. Hawken), tn reply to a question on the subject in the House of Representatives yesterday. “The Government realises,” said the Minister, “the iiriportance of the nox-lous-wecds menace, and no effort that will assist in bringing this very costly nuisance under control will be lacking on its part. It desires, however, to point out that the control and ultimate eradication of noxious weeds is not primarily a matter for legislative action by Parliament or administrative action "bv the Government, but is one for sustained and timely work by the occupiers of the land on which the plants are growing. It is futile to expect that a widespread infestation of a noxious plant can be effectively coped with bv Parliament or by the Government unless their action is fully supported by an enlightened and thorovghlv earnest public opinion throughout the district concerned, and by landholders as a whole clearing then own weeds and using their influence to induce others to do likewise. It is intended to introduce a measure r» improve the working of the Noxious Weeds Act, but the principal desideratum must continue to be that occupiers of land will give practical support to the inspectors in their too olten thankless endeavours to cope with the nuisance.” After some discussion had taken place in the House, the Minister said he was afraid no proposal would ever be carried by the farming community to set up boards to deal with the trouble. It had been found practically impossible to control the spread of Scotch thistle and Californian thistle. Foxglove, which in the past was in a similar condition, has now apparently died out. Some little good could, perhaps, be done by legislation to help th’ inspectors to make the farmers clear the weeds off their properties Rogront was not a good weed on hill coiiutrv, but in the case of the dairying lands it was a great menace. The eradication of the blackberry was, in his opinion, a matter for the individual farmer to deal with, and the Government reward for a specific remedy was still open. Any expenditure to'clear the pest off the second-class lands, he was afraid, would be almost valueless.