Clinton News-Record, 1979-04-26, Page 56Ever he
The battle with the weed Page"
by R. H. Brown
Rideetown College
Weeds have tremendous ability
to survive, despite man's efforts
to control and eradicate them.
They survive by producing
many offspring. For example,
fall panicum, an annual grass,
can produce a quarter . of a
million seeds per plant if it has no
competition. Perennial weeds
reproduce by vegetative parts
and by seeds. Quack grass
produces rhizomes or un-
derground stems with many
growing points. Nutsedge
produces corms or tubers which
are swollen stem tissue. One
nutsedge plant could produce
1,500 new plants if it had no
competition. Various weeds
produce a variable number of
seeds or underground parts per
plant.
These seeds, rhizomes, corms,
bulbs or roots are able to remain
and of kohlrabi?
Add a bit of European flavor to
your garden and your meals with
kohlrabi.
Although this vegetable dates
back to the days of Pompeii, it's
new to most Canadians," says
Joe Muehmer, horticulturist at
the Ridgetown College of
Agriculture Technology.
A member of the cabbage
'family, this vegetable is popular
in northern European countries,
particularly in the Netherlands
and Germany.
"And because it is a cool
climate vegetable which is easy
to grow, it is ideal for home
gardens in Ontario," says Mr.
Muehmer.
Kohlrabi has become a favorite
at ethnic markets. To meet the
demand for planting recom-
mendations, Mr. Muehmer
conducted tests on several
varieties in the spring. The
results were delicious.
The first crop of white and
purple varieties was planted,
using seedlings, in early May. By
the end of June, 50 days after
planting, the crop was ready for
the table.
Mr. Muehmer plans to sow his
second crop at the end of July for
harvest in mid-September.
Where Easter
lilies bloom
Before deciding to throw out
your Easter lily, consider
transplanting it in the garden.
Easter lilies (Lilium
longiflorum) can he grown
successfully outdoors, says Theo
Blom, Ontario Ministry of
Agriculture and Food hor-
ticulturist. If you're lucky they
may bloom again in the fall.
Once the plant has bloomed
indoors, remove the anthers from
the flowers and keep the plant
well watered in a cool room. Mr.
Blom says lilies enjoy good light,
but not direct sunlight.
As soon as danger of frost is
past, remove the plant from the
pot and trati';.plant to a partially-
shadcd sec•tiyp of the garden.
Lilies prefer Tight soils with
good drainage and water -holding
capacity, but without high fer-
tility.
Because the Easter lily is not
entirely winter -hardy Mr. Blom
recommends using a thick mulch
of leaves and straw to cover the
hulks. If the winter is not too
severe, the hulks should grow and
flower again next year.
Another method of protecting
hulks for the winter is to dig them
up complete with roots and store
them in a cool, dry place.
Mr. Blom says temperatures of
about 10 degrees (' should he
maintained for six to eight weeks.
After this cold treatment, the
hulks can he potted and kept at
room temperature to encourage
the growth of the new shoots.
Home gardeners should seed
ohlrahi directly into the soil 40 to
centimetres apart in a shady
t of the garden, he recom-
ds.
)r• hest results, harvest
the swollen stem reaches 5
timetres in diameter," he
45
pa
men
"F
when
to 6 cen
says.
Somew
taste, ko
vegetable
fresh with a
To prepare
leaves and pee
up. Mr. Muehm
eked with so
hat like a mild turnip in
hlrabi is a versatile
which can he served
dip or cooked.
, pull off the side
1 from the bottom
er says it can be
e of the leaves
for more flavor.
Kohlrabi also freezes well.
Blanch after dicing or slicing and
put into freezer bags.
PLANT
VEGETABLES
SAVE YOUR .
\ BUDGET ,/
dormant for years. Research
indicates that seeds of some of
our most common weeds were
alive after 40 years of storage in
the soil. Velvetleaf, pigweed,
ragweed, mustard, purslane,
plantain, and curled dock were
among these long -living seeds.
Many seeds need certain
temperatures or temperature
changes, a chemical change,
moisture regimes of a specific
nature or light before they will
germinate. Velvetleaf has a hard
seed coat which must be broken
to allow moisture into the seed
before it will germinate. The
advantage of this, of course, is
that this ensures the weed's
survival.
Another interesting fact is that
not all of the seeds produced one
year will germinate next year.
One study indicated that only 4.5
to 7.5 percent of the viable seeds
present, germinate each year.
Weeds such as lamb's quarters,
shepherd's purse, annual chick-
weed and American nightshade
were tested. However, there was
a 22 to 27 percent reduction of the
remaining viable seeds annually
in undisturbed soil. This
reduction amounted to about 40
percent when the soil was
cultivated twice and up to 55
percent when cultivated seven
times per year.
Weed seeds can he eaten by
livestock, stored in manure and
some remain viable. Velvetleaf
seed stored in liquid pig manure
at .RCAT for 8 weeks and
removed at weekly intervals
germinated as well, or better
after 8 weeks than after 1 to 7
weeks. This helps the spread of
weed seeds when the manure is
returned to the field.
Many people do not realize that
many weeds, -cut -a t +be- -f-(-ower-i*g-
stage, will still produce or
mature viable seeds. Common
sow -thistle, groundsel and some
wild asters are .examples. If
weeds are mowed or cut off this
should he done at or before the
bud stage to prevent seed for-
mation.
Another important aspect of
the survival of the weeds is that
we are responsible for spreading
them. About 8 to 10 percent of
plant species in the north tem-
perate zone are weeds. Man
imported about 50 percent of
these weed species from Europe
and Asia. We are still spreading
them with equipment, th gh
feed and crop seed, and by ma
other means.
Not only have these we.
adapted to new areas, but they
are adapting to man's methods of
control. As we control some of the
common weed species such as
lamb's -quarters, pigweed,
ragweed, barnyard grass and •
foxtail, other less important, but
more difficult weeds, such as fall
panicum, velvetleaf, wire
stemmed muhly and others, have
become major problems. Weeds
resistant to the control of some of
our herbicides have evolved.
Lamb's -quarters, pigweed and
groundsel have become resistant
to triazines, such as atrazine,
Bladex and simazine.
Man has developed
mechanical, chemical and
cultural methods of controlling
weeds. This is evident in the
efficiency of our crop production.
It is difficult, however, to
eradicate many weeds because of
their many and varied methods
of survival through reproductive
methods, dormancy, adaptation,
dissemination and general
persistence.
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