WORK IN THE GARDEN

Southland Times, Issue 24547, 23 September 1941, Page 10

WORK IN THE GARDEN

GARDEN WEEDS

By

RIWHI

In continuance of the article that appeared in this column a fortnight ago, some of the more serious garden weeds are here briefly described and some points as to their control are noted. DAISY-LIKE WEEDS A large number of weeds belongs to the daisy family of plants and among those commonly found in the garden

t are groundsel, rayless chamomile and * thistles of various sorts including Cali- > fornian thistle. Groundsel is a persistent 8 weed where it is allowed to seed. It has > soft lobed leaves and grows to a height J' of 8 or 10 inches with flowers incon- > spicuous, yellow and always half closed. 1 Seeds ripen while the plant continues ■ to flower. The flower heads are often ■ fed to cage birds. Two enemies of this > weed are the woolly bear caterpillar of r our native magpie moth, which also at- ■ tacks ragwort in the fields, and a * rust disease which sometimes kills the , weed out altogether. ■ Rayless chamomile is known by various names such as pineapple weed * and bachelor’s button. It is found on 1 roadsides as well as in gardens. Its , leaves are very much divided so as to be similar in texture though not in shape or size to those of the carrot. The flowers have no ray florits like those of a daisy and are like the remains of a daisy flower after all the white florets have been pulled off. The scent referred to in the common name is rather typical and completes information necessary for identification. Both of these weeds must be controlled by hoeing them out in the leafy stage before flowering begins. The thistles are well known to all gardeners so that no further description is necessary. Californian thistle, however, is troublesome in some gardens but only because it is neglected; the creeping roots must be carefully forked out and no green leaf must be allowed to develop above ground. CRESS | There are two kinds of cress that are sometimes troublesome in the garden because they develop their seed with such rapidity. One is twin cress. It ■ has long trailing stems growing close to the ground and fine carrot-like leaves; the flowers are microscopic and develop into little paired seed cases—hence the name. The second is garden cress which grows in rosette form throwing up one or more flowering stems bearing tiny white flowers. The weed will root repeatedly after being hoed out unless the weather is very hot and dry. Even in such case it will often manage to develop and ripen a few seed heads. A close relation of these cresses is shepherd’s purse, so called from the shape of its small seed cases. This weed is also of the rosette type and its flowering stem rises to a height of 8 or 12 inches bearing a pyramidal cluster of small white flowers. Where cultivation is thorough none of these three should ever be troublesome. DOCK AND SORREL Dock and sorrel are placed together because although they are very different in appearance they are close relations and also because both are so well known as not to need description. Docks thrive best on the heavier moist soils while sorrel is usually most troublesome where soils are light and dry. Docks, once they have reached the stage where a thick taproot has developed, are troublesome to get rid of because each and every small piece of root is capable of forming a new plant. Sorrel spreads by twitchy underground stems that root and sprout at regular intervals. Its presence is considered to be an indication of lack of lime and it seems to flourish best on worked out garden soils. Careful forking and the building up of fertility are the methods of control advocated. FAT HEN AND YARR Fat hen and yaiT are bracketed, not because of relationship, but because of similarity in conditions of spread. In both cases we have annual weeds that require warmth in the soil before germination takes place, and in both cases the seeds are very long lived, remaining viable over periods of ten, fifteen or | more years, and only germinating under warm surface soil conditions. Infested garden plots should be fallowed and turned over and hoed alternately during the summer months. Fat hen is an upright branched > plant with leaves smaller but similar in shape to those of prickly spinach to which it is closely related. It also has a similar green crowded flowerhead. Yarr hardly needs description; it is of a sprawling habit with firm clustered needle-like leaves and small white flowers. The seeds are black and shiny. The disagreeable odour of the decaying plant in autumn has earned it the name of stinkwood. REDSHANK AND WIREWEED

Again we have two closely related species, although quite unlike each other in general appearance. Redshank grows where the soil is moist and often in partial shade. The stems which grow to a foot or more in height are reddish while the closely clustered small flowers are pink. The leaves are simple with a dark blotch and where they join the stem it has a knotted appearance. Wireweed has small green leaves and long wiry stems sometimes several feet in length. These stems spread hori- | zontally keeping close to the surface of j the ground. They are typically wiry and will ripen their seed even after hoeing. Wireweed is probably more common along roadsides than in gardens; but when it does invade the garden it is very troublesome to get rid of. Once again the treatment appropriate to annual seeding weeds is the only control. SPEEDWELL Speedwell, a typical small veronica, is common in gardens as well as in pastures. It has a growth habit similar

to that of chickweed, but is not _ so sappy. The leaves about half an inch long are shaped somewhat like those of a violet, and from each node one small bright blue flower typical of the genus, with its four petals and two stamens, develops. Each flower is carried on a long stalk. TWITCH There are numbers of different twitches, but none of them is commonly troublesome in the garden except long twitch. It is known by many local names, including old man twitch and couch grass. The underground growths are white and will travel up to several feet before appearing again above the surface. The flower is rather like that of ryegrass except that the arrangement of the flatish seed heads on the stalk is side on. Being a true perennial this pernicious weed must be carefully forked out and its remnants must not get a chance to re-establish themselves for one whole season. Where the weed is bad only annual crops should be grown with a preference given to those that demand much cultivation. There is no more hopeless position than a bed of perennials or a shrubbery infested with old man twitch. Frequent forkings and thorough general cultivation will always bring twitch under control in the garden; on the farm, of course, the problem is a much more serious one. The weed convolvulus—a twining climber requires similar treatment, for its underground stems are similar. A spade should not be used in digging it out as the long growths are thereby cut into pieces each of which will develop afresh. Many more weeds could be listed, many of them occurring locally or more commonly in pastures and agricultural land. The most important species, however, have been listed and the problem of control is usually more one of type than one of species.