We are growing a generation of seeds from weeds that have been imported in all sorts of ways. We have a weed that I had never seen before and, in so many years of walking the pastures and raising dust everywhere, I should have been familiar with it. I called the extension office and found out it was poison hemlock. I spray for it and have killed many a plant since I now know. But, it still keeps coming up and growing on our place.
There are other weeds that poke their stem out of the dirt every time we get a drop of moisture. Winter weeds and summer weeds, all year long we grow weeds. I have spent enough money on clover and grass seed to sink a battleship, and none of that seems to grow but once and the soil is exactly what it needs. The soil tests are exact and the rains have come at the right time, but one year, and then weeds take over.
I don't have a high education, just years of living; but I know the seeds we are fighting have come from some source that has been introduced by chance. What kinds of seeds do you think of that could be coming in and spread? I am tired of thinking about it, since I started my mind search months ago.
My only guess -- and that is what it is, a guess -- is the bird seed we spend hard-earned money on, and then the pretty little birds flitter it all over the country. I would like to think the seeds are all good old American seeds, bought from American seed producers who clean their crops and sell only certified seeds. I would like to think that all the pants we wear come from a plant in the country we live in, too! Think about it!
The land is ours to take care of, not to spoil and deplete. I use my portion pretty hard, we need it to produce a living for this bunch. Three families depend on what we produce for a living, so all things are used and used again. We do work at taking care of the land, soil tests, lime and fertilizer when needed, and reseeding as recommended by folks at the nearby university. Dirt is a most important entity of this business. So I hate weeds!
My close relative buys bird seed by the 50-pound sack and fills feeders in several places around the yard. We both enjoy watching the birds, and especially the cardinals during the cold days of winter. Yellow finches are sure pretty and a sure enough fun activity to watch them flit around. Now I am wondering about what is going on with the seed!
It is my opinion, and everyone has one, thinking too long and too hard will at times produce problems that were not there when you began to think! If you decided to think about sink holes, you might spend weeks dreading a sink hole swallowing your home, sell out and move to California and buy a beautiful place on the beach only to have it fall into the ocean!
See what I mean? Don't think too deeply. And headaches are also a problem!
I will do research on bird seed when I have time!
Bill is the pen name used by the Gravette-area author of this weekly column. Opinions expressed are those of the author.
Editorial on 09/21/2016