Public Enemy 1.0 and 1.1

 

It is that time of year again. The annual war on the weeds. The two criminals above get absolutely no mercy from me at all. They are the worst plant forms to ever live and I will eradicate them in any way I have to. I might even just burn the entire farm to get rid of them. 

Thistle - We have at least three specie on the Small-Hold. The standard Canada Thistle but we also have a musk and a milk thistle that are pretty much the same. I would say the thistle is a bit easier to deal with than the next enemy. It usually starts growing much earlier and is large enough that I have plenty of time to deal with it. It is extremely hard to kill though and without using any herbicides about the only way to actually kill a whole colony of it is to mow early and then keep mowing until the natural grasses over come it. This requires a good two years of allowing the field to lay fallow until Fall though. It does allow an end of season hay cutting though so it is not a total waste. Where I have the largest issue with it is in areas that cannot be closed off, like small main lots and the barn yard itself. It especially likes to grow into fences and stuff that is stored outside. Thistle is of course another root spreader as well. I usually control it with mechanical means but the extremely protected plants get a spot spraying.

I know I hate herbicide spraying and with the thistle I can often times keep it at bay with an organic weed killer but it sometimes requires the nuclear option to get rid of it in an area completely. Some types of it will take an organic spray and laugh. Trouble is it always comes back within a few years as the stuff is literally everywhere around us. Getting rid of it for a time just allows seeds from miles away to come back eventually as the flowers die into a dandelion-like seed pod that spreads with the wind. A good hay field will defend against it for a while but eventually it will spread into it from the edges and require patch mowing at the very least.

 

Buffalo Burr - This stuff is impossible to get rid of it seems. I never had even seen it before about 5 or 6 years ago. Mechanical control is almost impossible as it starts off growing low to the ground and seems to manage to bloom most of the time before you know it is around. I am pretty sure this plant was transported here when we got Mrs. PP's pet goats because it started in the first area I kept them in until I got their moveable home built. It has two weaknesses. Any type of weed killer, even organic, does a quick number on it and it usually doesn't start showing up until it gets really hot and that means dry around here as well. It also cannot handle taller competition so is usually only a problem in highly grazed areas. From Mid to late June up until September it requires weekly control walks around the barn lot because this stuff will do a number on any exposed skin.  It is also poisonous but I have never seen our sheep or goats eating it. When it shows up it will begin blooming almost right away so it is important to find it fast but it is also hard to see so I almost always end up missing a plant or 6 hiding somewhere. There never seems to be an end to it but constant weed patrols can keep it mostly under control. I have mostly managed to contain it to the barn lot and the areas right around the gates going into the barn lot. Like I said any competition seems to overwhelm it but these areas get way over grazed of course.

I hate this plant.

Luckily by the end of August I am usually far enough ahead of these invaders they are not much of an issue but they are always ready to try again when Spring and Summer come around. They know they will eventually win, time and age are on their side.

Also I stopped taking pictures of the powdery mildew zucchini plant. No real point to it anymore as the new growth has all come in mildew free. I cannot say if the spray did any good really or if it was just the end of the really high humidity but the plant survived. So it was a failed test for the home-made organic spray recipe anyway.

 

Keep Prepping Everyone!!!!