NOXIOUS WEED

Manawatu Standard, Volume LVI, Issue 63, 12 February 1936, Page 3

NOXIOUS WEED

GOATSRUE IN MANAWATU. At the instance of the Ma.nawatu Rabbit Board, the Manawatu County Council yesterday decided to take the necessary steps to have goatsrue declared a noxious weed within the Manawatu county. lbs question was raised following rea letter from the Manawatu Rabbit Board, stating that as it considered the time was duo for occupiers of land to take effective means to destroy and prevent the spread of goatsrne, the board asked that it be declared a noxious weed within the Manawatu county. The letter added that if the weed went on as it was at present the time would soon come when it would be impossible for landowners to cope with it. The chairman (Cr. W. E. Barbar) said tho matter had come before the council many years ago, but on account of the source of the weed being on the banks of the upper Manawn.tu River, the council had taken no action ponding steps being taken by the other local_ bodies concerned. Since then the Kairanga and Horowhenua County Councils had declared goatsrue a noxious weed, and perhaps the Manawatu County G’ouncil could now take action.

Gn the immediate river bed sections, continued the chairman, there was no nope of keeping the weed down, but in other parts constant attention to it would keep it. in check and on this account the speaker thought the council would be justified in taking action. It and already declared lupin noxious, and no hardship had been inflicted on ‘•ettlere, and the same would apply to goatsrue. It would shnplv give the settler who was trying to keep the weed ■n check the right to force another settler to clear his land. C.'r. A. N. Moroom asked how many the county roads ivere affected, the chairman replying that only an odd patch of the weed was showing in various pla.ces. Cr R. A. Wilson observed that goatsI’uo was an infinitely worse weed tlia.n lupin, which had already been declared noxious. Lunin did not poison stock, but goatsrue did.

Cr. Moroom said be would support a motion declaring goatsrue noxious provided it did not cause hardship to settlers. Cr. J. Boyce considered some hardship would lie inflicted if the council took action as suggested. In the river area the growth of the weed was tremendous, and it required an immense amount of work to keep it down let alone destroy it.

The chairman said that no hardship would be entailed. The only alteration would be that one settler would he aide to make another, whose goatsrue was troubling him, take action against the weed.

Cr. Bovoe questioned the attitude of the rabbit inspector over the matter. If lie proved arbitrary in the matter it would go hard with some farmers. The chairman replied that there was no suggestion of this in the board’s request. It had given the proposal •engthy consideration before it sent the request on to the council.

Without further discussion, it was decided, on the motion of Crs. Mor-

com and Wilson, to ta.ke steps to have goatsrue declared noxious within the county. -