HomeMy WebLinkAboutZurich Herald, 1925-09-10, Page 7POISON WEEDS
BY WOODS -HUTCHINSON, IVZ,D,
colored petals, cause or spread hay
fever, for the simple reason quittiheSq
' are fertilized by bees or other insiects
and have,no >ieed to•flieg theie,polleti
abroad.
W'eede are peaky things, NO one a.ily members of• our own household—
who has ever 'lived on, a farm has not •wild men of the e woods, like ivy
the slightest affection far them. They and briers and nettles. Indeed, the
are the visible sign end 'aftermath of first •shocking accusations invole d
the fall in the Garden of Eden- two plant friends always re.arded,as
"Cursed is the ground for thy sake; beauty rind innocenceersonified—
in toil shalt thou eat of it all the ;days' the red,. red rose of our cotta agar -
of thy life; thorns also and thist',ee dens and the new -mow .. n hayof o
shall it bring forth to thee; and , . , meadows. our
in the sweat of thy face shalt thou s At first 1.
ac -
eat bread.' s '�' e xepe.Ied,the absurd eiisations with scorn, even resentment
and indignation. The scent of the
rose, the most ravishing perfume of
all times, worshipped by . lovers; the
fragrance of new -mown hay sungby
every poet!
For there's nothing on earth
Like making love
Except making hay in fine weather.
We can understand the upstanding,
open and above -board prickly kind of
pests and even have "a sort of grudg-
ing respect for them. They stand
right out, with a:1 their" bristles up,
and give us -battle.
Also we can make some all'ow'ance
for the regular "professional" weeds,
which boldly try to "jump the claims"
of our precious crops. They know a
'.good thing when they see it.
Many of' them indeed, like parsley,
lamb's -quarters, dandelions and chic-
ory, were garden vegetables or pot-
herbs in Europe, though we must re-
member that they will eat .:almost
anything as potherbs in Europe --
they have to!
,The dead bodies of these weeds are,
in fact, beneficial when plowed under,
while the work required in their de-
struction tears up andsloosens the
ground i iagnificently to.let in the
deep soil bacteria.
- ENEMIES IN DISGUISE. .
• Yet when it conies to weeds which.
attack the cultivator .instead of the
crops, we lose patience entirely, espe-
cially when :they deliberately try to
lure us into striking distance by imi-
tating friendly and harmless plants
and by putting on lovely calors. Oar,.
Iike the ragweed, having no dagger to
stab or colors to attract, some launch
That these twq most 'ethereal de-
lights should be insultinglyt and pro-
saically linked with colds in the head,
snifflings, sneezings and asthma! But
ti'nromantic scientists, blind to beauty
or charm, proceeded calmly and ruth-
lessly to dub one form of summer
catarrh as rose cold and another as
hay fever. And the worst of it was
the names stuck.
But the cold-blooded scientists
showed that both rose and grass were
actuated so'ely by the worthiest and
highest possible motives—the per-
petuation of the species by the spread
of their pollen.
Broader studies revealed that they
were by no means the only innocent
offenders in this regard; indeed, quite
a number of plants were literally
broadcasting their pollen for purposes
of fertilization. Perhaps it would be
more correct to describe them as
launching smoke screens of millions
of tiniest pollen granules upon the
)•iteral gas clouds of sneeze pollen on winds.
the evendng breeze. ! Some of the pollen reaches its pre -
The chief 'camouflaged Borgia of destined: mark, and all is; well. But
some of it, with apparently more of
original sin than predestination,
reaches a. much less romantic mark
in the back of a nose—and all is far
from well. .
But the question arises. Why does
one human nose tune in. with the
broadcasted pollen of only one flower
or plant, while another proboscis
chimes in with meadow -hay radio and
is deaf to ragweed melody?
our fields: and pastures is our ancient
and far -too -familiar enemy, poison
ivy. He is a fakir from start to fin-
ish, called ivy, but really a sumac.
When he grows like a shrub we call
him oak, and when like a vine, ivy,
but he's "pizen" all the time.
You can tell .him by his beautiful
shiny trefoil, or three -pointed leaves,
polished mahogany in the spring,
-vivid metallic green all summer, end
crimson and gold in the fall, .his livid,
greenish white cluster of flowers and
ashy -whits berries.
A MATTER OF TASTE.
It. fleetly all comes down to a ques-
tion of individual taste or, rather,
But he is not so deadly black as he susceptihi ity. All sorts of olIens
`is painted. He does not spread -his I are radiated far and wide everywhere
venom abroad pen the breeze. Yours.- in their` season, and all sorts and con -
is "the skin he loges: to touch, The; ditions of men inhale them The vast
poison or toxin is a tough oily resin,' majority pronounce them all harm -
and can no more evaporate into"the less.
airethan cou:dlinseed oil. .People who 1 But it is just as strawberries are
declare theuise:ves to . have been pois- i poison to:one man, clams . to another.
ned by. walking past ivy vines 'thirty' The overwhelming majority cause no
yards away:may haye kept that lis. -1 trouble to anybody. But when a small
tante from all the ivy they saw. But ,group of pollens get ,snuffed up into
you never: know what you tough with j an even smaller group of touchy noses
out noticing it when' you go into the —probably not over 1 per cent.
woods, especially if' you have your trouble begins at once:
attention fixed on something besides It, is simply an instance' of "what
the brush you brush up against. is one man's meat is another man's,
Ivy's second redeeming feature is poison."
that he's slow to take hold, like nius The hay fever, or summer catarrh,
tard gas in war. A thorough scrub- though caused by' such tiny, infini-
bing with soap, hot water and a nail � tesimal trifling, is anything but a
brush any time within. half an hour or trifle.
even an hour after the encounter will Even in the milder forms, the
wash off all the thick, slow -welting, sneezing, burning, running at the
' oil resin before it has had time- to eyes, the "red-hot' headache, the
dissolve and penetrate the skin. .1 wheezing, the swellings of nose and
ni- It's a .good. idea, if you ,know you lips serevely interfere with both corn -
are susceptible to ivy and have been: fort and working power; and when
in woods or pastures where it they have grown into the full-blotvn.
abounds, to scrub your hands thole ! haw asthma, and we have added to all
eughly., with sand or mud instead of , these a constant wheezing and gasp-
soap at' the first stream or pond you +mg' for breath, which makes sleep im-
come to on your way home. This will i possible at night and only to be
preevent nine -tenths of all possible snatched in cat naps during the day,
poisonings. 'well, there comes a time when the vic-
The third. redeeming feature of ivy , tim begins to almost regret that the
is that the worst poisonings blamed malady never ends fatally.
en him sire really due to "huge"' The -number of snifflers attacked by
scratched into the ekin by exasperat-, this milder spring form of hay fever
ed finger nails trying to dig out the is small. -
intolerabe itching of his bite. Of I 'Usually all.,that need be done is to
course, he is accessory before the fact, I keep out of the woods and orchards
but he's not the principal offender. - las much as possible and to wear pled -
In other words, those• terrible in- gets of absorbent cotton in the nostrils
flammations that spread right up the' and goggles over the eyes to keep the
-lymph chains of the arm• and make: pollen oiit. A few cases are more
swollen and sore the•"glands in. the! severe and must be treated by inject -
arm pits are really secondary info- : ing extracts of the criminal pollen to.
tions with our ,,pld friend, Strepto-1,produce immunity. "
coccus .4, 1 The next crop of the disease, in hay,
If you don't discover that you've time, is lnore severe and increases hi
been "sumaeked" till you feel the virulence and number of victims,
itching and - see the rash, the cure is� probably because the number . of
the satire es 'the prevention.. Scrub': pollen -broadcasting plants increases
thoroughly with soap and hot water, with the season.
and finish off with some form of de -1 Broadly speaking, there is little
natured alcohol suitable for wound use trying to escape autumn hay
use, or some mild antiseptic like' fever, -
iodine, boric -acid, orlon of the new' What then is to be done. First go
coal -tar dye antiseptics which your to your doctor and ha can ghee you
doctor can suggest. 'various sprays and washes and direc-
If by; bad luck you have both the tions for the use of goggles and cot -
ivy ;iind4tho infection, there is no use: ton plugs in"the nostrils which will
to' scrub; it's• a• doctor's job then .and ,give. great relief and often tide you
S a big one. Oo see him at once. fever for the season.
But the best and surest means of But the orae sheet anchor, the only
prevention is to put a note on your permanent cure, is injections of a'.eo-
firm calendar for September, "Get belie and watery extracts of the pol-
len at fault; Theta are gradually in-
creased in amount until they produce
that curious Condition of protection
known as immunity. With patience
and skill, substantial relief and prac-
tical cure can now be hoped for in al-
most 75 per cent, of the cases.
There is nothing• new abeet hay
fever. It has probably been with us
from the time when roan first began
to till thu soil. For it is a farm dist
ease caused chiefly by those '"plants
out of place" ea:led weeds, which live
on and around our plowed Tend.
As will have been noted by Amer
friends,,, very few real flowers, With
after poison ivy amid other' fence -
comet brush and weeds' •That "is a
good time, because „ivy's .in furl blaze
of color and as, easy to detect as a
prairie, fire. While you're at it, you
might take along a so any of the other
bushes or weeds that are making
es -trouble hi year section, such as bar
berries for the back rust of wheat
and wild currants and •gooseberries
for White --lase blister.
Of late yeara we have been diseov-
ering other "urlfriexids" among ohr
plant neighbors whose methods are
even subtler and more distressin ly
cq,`ccti `u, .slid stove of these are liter -
Kitchen Accessories:
One of the nicest things to have
hanging in • the kitchen, near the
range, are several holders to use
handling dishes, pans; etc., and wit
one can buy time ones in .the 'lieu
hold supplies sections of the store
most women will prefer Baking their
own, Every one has odd pieces 0f
materials put away, so it should never
be necessary to buy 'anything to. ma
these holders..
Old ticking makes fine ones usi
,only a double thickness, sewing
small ring at one corner to hang,
up by. These holders may be cut a
size that seems convenient. To mak
them, turn in all the edges evenly a
baste the two parts together, then
stitch all around on . the machine.
They launder more easily when not
made too bulky. Percale, linen, un-
bleached pmuslin, denim—one could al-
most continue indefinitely. Make six
or eight at a ,time, then always keep
them conveniently near, and''use ,in-
stead of taking silver or dish towels.
Some women like holders ala
twenty-seven inches long, and at each
end a sort of pocltetrhaped piece
stitched on. A hand is then , slippy
into each pocket and in that way on
holder wild take . the place of two.
Cheesecloth—the medium-priced
quality—makes good dust cloths, a1-
lowing one yard for each. It is bet-
ter to buy the material and make
them, if your have the time. Pull a
thread to cut by, turn an even quar-
ter -inch heni and stitch on the ma-
chine. Don't forget to fasten'e the
threads. If well mad; -they will last
much longer than" otherwise. If you
want cloths to use with furniture'poi-
ish use the cheesecloth, making the
pieces one-half yard log.
Ironing -board covers are anothe
thing that careful housekeepers Iik
to make. Shrink a rather heavy qua
ity of cheesecloth, then lay a length o
on the board and cut out, being. care- p
ful to allow for the thickness pf the
board, and a good seam besides downs
each side. The materials, should be 2
wide enough to reach to .the under i
side. Then cut pieces for each end— t
making them about eight or nine i
inches -deep for the broad end,. and
deeper for tfie narrow end of the
board. The piece for`the narrow end t
should be hemmed across the bottom
before stitching to the cover, and for p,
thz broad end of the cover, instead'of s
cutting this end piece in one, it should
be cut in two -pieces, and lapped to- ,p
gether at the outer end, finishing the
ends and :bottom with hems. This, will
allow you to slip the narrow end of
the board in place and after the wide.
end is on fasten together with thumb
tacks. Sew small rings: at intervals
each side of the cover and lace to-
gether with fiat and narrow tape.
Two of these covers should be made
at' a time.
Shrinkage in Harvested Fruit.
Lots of weight' after harvest is an
important factor in the handling of
pears. It 'not only cause decreased
tonnage, but is the main reason for
tvii'ting, and. serious:�y impairs appear -
axles of. the fruit.
Wilthd.pears are dull and unattrae-
tive and do not becgnae aromatic. Loss
in in weight of only 3 to 4 per cent, is
usually sufficient to .cause consider-
"' able wilt, according to investigators.
In extreme cases loss of weight while
in storage may total 15 per cent., it
was found,
Two factors are responsible for loos
l'e .of weight—natural deeompositien and
excessive Noss of moisture: Since Na-
?igi tural decomposition has been found
, to be less than a fraction of 1 per
ttl cent. for an entire storage period, it
22y, becomes clear that loss in moisture is
e i the main reason for poor condition of
nd pears after storage. Relative h.um-
idity is one of the important points
in storage. At' a relative humidity
of 80 to 86, loss of weight was found
to be in the vicinity of less than 1 per
oent., while the low_. humidity of 50
to 56 brought loss of. weight to ap-
proximately 14 per..eent.
Bartlett pears may lose 4 per cent.
in weight if left a few days under.the
tit trees, following picking, but if the
boxes are covered with a wet canvas
is this loss is avoided. The type of
d wrappers has but little ` effect upon
e
loss of weight in storage. Investiga-
tions in the use of oil wraps and com-
mon fruit tissues checked against un-
wrapped fruit showed little of prac-
tical significance.
Time of -picking, however, 'has an
important bearing • upon loss of
weight, which is also, of course, loss
of volume. Fruit picked in an imma-
ture condition, it is well known, wilts
readily. Loss also results very quick-
ly With pears if any degree of, over -
maturity is attained before harvest.
Pressure tests are now used iii
many commercial orchards to 'deter -
✓ mine the time of picking. In the in -
e vestigations in question the pressure
i- test was utilized to determine stage
f maturity and therefore the best
icking Ewe. Bartlett pears testing,
forty pounds on a pressure test lost
mor
e than 90 per
cent. weight ht
g during
64 days in storage, while those show -
ng only twenty-five pounds' resistance
o the pressure have lost 5 per cent.
n the same period under identical
conditions.
Twenty-five to thirty pounds resist
ante to the pressure test is rec
ognized stage for harvesting Bartlett
ears. In malting the pressure test
everai pears should. be used, and the
average taken rather than dependence
taeed upon a single fruit, since there
wiui be some variation due to various
natural conditions.
When putty cracks and drops off
the windows within 'a comparatively
short time after it is put on, itsis be-
cause the wood was not painted
shortly before the putty was put on.'
:The best patty won't stick long on un- I
painted wood, or on old crumbly,
dried -out weathered paint. There- i
fore, it pays to paint the wood first,
let it dry an then put on the 'putty.1
A coat of paint applied on the putty j
after- it has hardened will make it'
last longer—H
After Harvest Tillage.
Only the rich fellows can stand the
losses. Robber weeds. reduced the
grain and pasture yields on many an
acre this season. Conditions becom-
ing worse each year, taking more pro-
fits than would pay the taxes.
Plow the Nand that you intend. to
plow immediately after harvest. Cul-
tivate as frequently as possible with
a springtooth up to the end of Oc-
tober. Rib up the land before freeze-
up in November, This practice �vilI1
help provide that the fence row - and
roadside weeds are cut in proper time
to prevent seed, blowing over the re-
cently cultivated fields.
Two bushels of oats will take the
place of one of corn for beef cattle a
over 800 pounds. If two bushels of s
oats cost less than one of corn, feed a
the oats, for it will be cheaper. For
beef animals up to 800 pounds, oats t
can 'replace corn up to two-thirds of b
the ration.
LACK OF SI'STEMINfl4USE MANAGEN r
BY MRS W. II, KING.
I passed a little house en the out-jone like it, but I finish themending"
ea o 1
skirt of town one warm dayl t'
J.nn t fins tim evgtal
,, as to xriendin .
week during the loveliest part of the
day, to me, the mate afternoon, just
the hour when it is so pleasant to
take one's sewing or book to the
porch for a brief respite before be-
ginning supper preparations; but on
the porch of this little house sat no
cool, cairn housewife enjoying the
pleasant lengthening shadows. No,
indeed. She was on her knees' instead,
swishing a scrubbing brush and much
eoapy water and looking very hot and
red and tired and, to tell the truth,
somewhat cross.
"Work is never done in this house,"
she remarked with a sigh as she wiped
her hands and prepared fora mo-
ment's chat. "I'm at it from morning
to night, and then it's all to be done
over 'again -the next day and every
day afterward."
As it wasrather late to be clean-
ing the porch, I remarked that pos-
sibly she had been busy at some un-
usual enterprise, canning, perhaps, or
ironing.. But no, she said; . she had
merely prepared the meals and dust-
ed and cleaned as usual, but that even
these ordinary tasks occupied .all her
daylight hours. -
While we chatted the soapy water
cooled and the •.shadows grew longer
and longer and I felt quite guilty to
be delaying the process of cleaning
the porch, but she was loath to 'et
me go.
"If it were not for these little per-
iods of relaxation I don't see how I
could get through the day," she re-
marked plaintively.. "I was saying
that very thing to my next-door
neighbor this morning when I ran in
to see the new Iamp shade she was
making. It was such a lovely lamp.
shade, I just couldn't go home until
it was finished. I would love to make
And right then and there: I dis-1
covered the reason why the porch
was being' washed in t7,ie lata after-!
noon and why this woman's work wasi
never done She had neve' learned!
the secret of concentrating, of w'or
ing steadily during proper working:
hours and getting done. -Her world
was dropped at the slightest provoca-
tion or • whim—just a row to be croo-
cheted o'
n some
lace
ashe
ora aki
sm n
gR
just a page to read in some interest-
ing book, just a few moments', tele -j
phone chat, just an idle half hour with
some casual caller, and the golden,
hours of the day were gone, but the
work was still to be done.'
I did eo wish I might tell this tired
housewife that half her weariness
was caused by lack of . system, that
planning ahead is the surest way of .
getting ahead in the matter of •time
as well as money but I feared that
she might resent my unasked advice.*
Long ago I discovered that the only,
way to accomplish all the things l; so
earnestly wished to accomplish was
to divide my day into working periods,
playing periods and loafing periods.
In my working periods I really
work steadily and, vigorously; my,
play periods I devote to reading or,
fancy work or to doing some of the
fascinating things that I enjoy. I
have not so many Ioafing periods in'
my days, but I try to reserve a few
odd moments for pure laziness or re-
laxation. In niy .opinion the loafing
period is quite as important as the.
others, only it need not be so long.
It's sort of comforting to sit on
the porch late in the afternoon just
watching the sunt, with no pestering
little prick of conscience telling nue
of some neglected task.
I wish my friend in the little house
would try it.
Sweet Pickles That Won't
Shrivel.
Since
the
delicate flavor of small
sweet pickles is enjoyed by almost
every member of the family, provide
a number of jars Tof them for use on
picnics and for the winter months.
To keep them from shriveling make
them this way:
Select the small cucumbers, about' egti
100 of them, and cover with cold 'n,
water for an hour. Place them in a
crock.„and add a brine solution in the
proportions of 1 cup of coarse sett to
a •gallon of water. Allow the cucum-
bers to soak for 48 hours and be sure
that 'they are tightly covered with a
plate during the last 24 hours. While
in the brine,` the -:salt draws out the
water in the pickles and leaves them
shriveled and tough. If canned in
this manner, they would continue to
be tough, but they are not ready to,
be put in jars at this stage.
Soak the. pickles in vinegar for an
hour in order that the water may go
back into them again and they may
be made tender and turgid. (If the
sugar is added at this time they are.
apt to remain shriveled). After soak -1
ing in vinegar, pack in sterilized jars, I
and pour boiling spiced and sweeten-
ed vinegar over them, and seal.
The amount of sugar may be varied
cco, ding to taste, although 1 cup of
agar is considered a satisfactory
mount for 100 two-inch cucumbers.
1'he spices may be freshly ground in
he coffee grinder and tied in muslin
ngs if the housewife prefers to have
he vinegar remain clear in the jars.
or this quantity of cucumbers, it is
yell to use 1 stick of cinnamon, 1
teaspoon of whole cloves 1 teaspoon
Underfeeding is one of the
We have in ` our blackberry patch 4 bu-idens of the whole dairy industry.
one cane that measures 211 inches in The first purpose for which a dairy ,t
length.- It is the longest I ever saw. cow uses feed is to maintain her body; a
—R. T. R. , and before feed can be used for any ten
---y- other purpose, that part of •the feed
Slapping a man on the back is not needed for maintenanoa must be sup -
fin
of whole allspice, and a bay leaf, If
he vinegar is too strong it is well to
i'.ute it, since ;,,too strong vinegar
ads to soften the pickles too much,
In Abyssinia bars of salt are still
use as currency,
always striking him the right way. plied.
IsE rtisli hatIOOL 'f"i~AtHt 4s ARRIVE' Ill GANAbA
'ri t
e e.bove picture sliorvs tly+s lba,� v of one ]iundred`schcol teachers from.the British tiles who have conic "
l .„ to
t ars cemilmtry to stilly erlucatibzmal methods -rete. , They orb -shown ,outsifle the Chateau r�r onteYiac at ueboC after
: R , to
they held landed from the Canadian Paeiflc s.teani chip °'E npress ef.Scotland.”
FRENCH DESIGNS ACKNOWL-
EDGE THE FLARE,
The interesting feature of this
frock lies in the cut and arrange•
went of the pane:, which gracefully
ripples, its way across the front and
onto the back of the dress at the
hip line. The front and the back of
the frock are plain. The edges of
the panel are finished, or it may be
lined throughout with contrasting
calor material. It is set in at thea
-shoulder seams and tacked to the
front and at the hips. The neck is
cut in V shapes and finished with a
tuoked collar of georgette crepe, the.
same.: material being -used for the -lit-
tle jabot. The edeseres are long and
simply gathered to a narrow hand
tying at the. wrist. The diagram pic-
tures the simple design of pattern
No. 1077, which is in sizes 34, 36, 38,
40 and 42 inches bust. Size 38 bust
requirca 41.E yards of 36 -inch or 40-`
inch, or 3% yards of 54 -inch mater-
ial. The front panel requires 1%
yards of -additional materia:. Price
2d c4rlt8,
Our Fashion Boc.t, illustrating the
newest and most praeticai styles,
be of interest to every home dress.,
maker. Price of the book 10 cerate
the copy. Each copy includes one
coupon good for five rents in the pur•
chase of any patte 2.
HOW TO ORDER .PATTERNS.
W ite• your name and Address plain.
Iy, giving number and size of such
batterns as you want. ihttlese 20c in
tames or coin (coin prefer d; wrap
carefully) for each numb , and
address jour order to Pattern ept.m
ilson Publishing Co., �3 West o..
aide St,, Toronto. Pattern:% sent
eturn mall.
Pother of Canned iwoocl,
The tether of canned food 'res a
Frenchman, Nicholas Almpert, who tee -
served
erved foor',m by -moat sterilization and
sealing in 1705.
1.
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