Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Weeds
    Weeds
    Weeds
    Ebook243 pages1 hour

    Weeds

    By Alexander C. Martin and Jean Zallinger

    4.5/5

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    This eBook is best viewed on a color device.

    This handy identification guide to the plants that cause billions of dollars annually in crop loss and control measures include information on:

    -The harm that weeds cause
    -Benefits from weeds
    -Major weed habitats

    Accurate full-color illustrations and descriptive text identify the principal weeds and weed groups that invade lawns, gardens, fields. and roadsides. Range maps show distribution within the United States.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMacmillan Publishers
    Release dateFeb 25, 2014
    ISBN9781466864900
    Weeds
    Author

    Alexander C. Martin

    Alexander C. Martin contributed to nature guides from Golden Guides and St. Martin's Press.

    Related to Weeds

    Related ebooks

    Agriculture For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      The Bee Lawn

      Feb 24, 2022

      The Bee Lawn
      3 min read

    • Article

      Douglas Tallamy

      Feb 24, 2022

      Douglas Tallamy
      8 min read

    • Article

      How To Plan Your Seed Sowing

      Jan 7, 2020

      How To Plan Your Seed Sowing
      3 min read

    • Article

      Plan Your Permaculture Plot

      May 14, 2021

      Plan Your Permaculture Plot
      6 min read

    • Article

      Good-Looking Edible Greens

      Nov 25, 2020

      Good-Looking Edible Greens
      4 min read

    • Article

      Permaculture

      Aug 2, 2023

      Permaculture
      2 min read

    • Article

      Edible Invasives

      May 8, 2020

      Edible Invasives
      8 min read

    • Article

      Design Challenge

      Oct 6, 2020

      Design Challenge
      4 min read

    • Article

      Seed Starting with Chickens

      Mar 15, 2024

      Seed Starting with Chickens
      4 min read

    • Article

      The Garden of Rebirth

      Mar 13, 2020

      The Garden of Rebirth
      10 min read

    • Article

      John Grimshaw

      Oct 19, 2023

      John Grimshaw
      9 min read

    • Article

      Heirloom Gardener Bookshelf

      Dec 8, 2017

      Tired of genetically modified food? Every day, Americans are moving more toward eating natural, locally grown food that is free of pesticides and preservatives ... and there is no better way to ensure this than to grow it yourself. Anyone can start a

      6 min read

    • Article

      Potato Growing 5 Ways

      Nov 8, 2019

      Potato Growing 5 Ways
      8 min read

    • Article

      How to Propagate Willow Shrubs

      Jan 15, 2021

      How to Propagate Willow Shrubs
      9 min read

    • Article

      Build Your Own Layens Hive

      Jul 13, 2018

      The Layens hive is the original horizontal hive with extra-deep frames, invented in the 19th century by Georges de Layens. More than 1 million hives of this model are in use today, and it’s the hive that I (and my bees) prefer. This style of hive is

      4 min read

    • Article

      Vermicomposting Basics

      Mar 19, 2021

      Vermicomposting Basics
      6 min read

    • Article

      A Pot Of Patience

      Oct 20, 2022

      A Pot Of Patience
      2 min read

    • Article

      The Root Of The Matter INTERCROPPING AND LIVING MULCHERS

      Dec 18, 2022

      The revolution in soil organic matter formation and health shows the importance of a diversity of living roots for soil health, rather than the likes of compost and animal manure (see Humus is dead — long live MAOM!, Organic NZ Nov/Dec 2022). Organic

      4 min read

    • Article

      The Trouble With Monocultures

      May 24, 2022

      The Trouble With Monocultures
      5 min read

    • Article

      Non-Native Invaders

      Sep 16, 2022

      Environmental advocates who blame invasive species for disrupting native ecosystems can take heart in a new Delaware law. The legislation, which took effect July 1, 2022, bans the import, export, sale, transport, distribution, and propagation of 37 n

      6 min read

    • Article

      Where Have All The Beetles Gone?

      Aug 3, 2022

      Where Have All The Beetles Gone?
      4 min read

    • Article

      Flowers That Fly

      Dec 18, 2022

      Flowers That Fly
      5 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Weeds

    4.5/5

    19 ratings2 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5
       One of several pocket-sized Golden Guides that lined my shelves back in the day. This is probably the book where I realized that I was interested in viewing things and learning about them, more than learning how to identified specific ones. I mean that learning the names of things is not the point, but enjoying them is.
    • 4/5
      Originally published in 1972. This is a great little field guide (6"x 4") to carry around to help identify some weeds. There's plenty of colorful drawings for each plant (full plant, leaves, berries or flowers, stems, roots) to help in identification and basic information about each weed. I love it, as a lot of the weeds in the book grow right here on my 10 acres. I have found at least 20 of them. These weeds are actually not just for our area here in Southeast Texas. They are grown throughout the U.S. A map is provided to show where they can be found. The only problem with this book is that there just aren't enough wild weeds listed. It's such a tiny book. I feel like there's plenty of room to keep on adding to this little book.

    Book preview

    Weeds - Alexander C. Martin

    WHAT ARE WEEDS?

    Most of the plants called weeds look weedy. They are generally unglamorous in appearance because of their tiny flowers and unattractive foliage. A few, such as Morning-glories and Blackeyed-Susans, do have showy blossoms.

    The usual definition of a weed as a plant out of place reflects human bias. Actually, pest plants are out of place only in terms of man’s purposes. In nature’s scheme, they often serve useful functions, and judging by their success in wide-open competition with other plants, they are anything but out of place.

    An important factor contributing to the widespread abundance of weeds is their adaptability to diverse and adverse circumstances. Horseweeds that sometimes grow ten feet tall in favorable environment can also succeed in hard, dry soil, where plants only a few inches high may produce a crop of seeds. Other weed species can thrive even in crevices of concrete. What a contrast to our pampered cultivated plants!

    Another secret of the success of weeds is their effective means of reproduction. Many of them bear tremendous quantities of seeds. Some species of Pigweed commonly yield 100,000 or more seeds per plant. Furthermore, some weeds have remarkable devices for assuring widespread dispersal of their seeds. They either float in the slightest breeze by means of tiny, feathery parachutes or attach to clothing, fur, or wool by hooks, burs, or cleavers. Seeds of still others can remain dormant for many years until favorable conditions return.

    In addition, some species can multiply by vegetative means as well as by seeds. Purslane, common in gardens and lawns, not only produces many seeds but also can start new plants readily from broken-off bits of stems that have dried for a week or two. Bermuda Grass rootstocks that have been cut off and dried can still regenerate. Chopping up the plant often simply multiplies it.

    Weed seeds are remarkably adapted to assure widespread seed dispersal. Examples of special devices are shown below.

    Star-thistle

    Cocklebur

    Wild Carrot

    Pitchfork

    Dandelion

    THE HARM WEEDS CAUSE

    Weeds cost the American farmer an estimated 5 billion dollars annually. This considers both the loss in crop yield and the expense of control measures. As consumers of agricultural products, all of us share in the paying of this huge bill.

    Though this loss is tremendous, it represents only a fraction of the total harm done by pest plants. Not included in this bill, for example, is the staggering amount of time, effort, and money spent in controlling lawn and garden weeds. Nor does the agricultural loss account for the discomfort, lost time, and expense experienced by millions who suffer from hay fever and other respiratory ailments, either caused or aggravated by weed pollens. Other costs that should be added include the injury or poisoning of people and livestock by thorny or toxic weeds and the unsightliness and fire hazard created by weeds along roadsides or in vacant lots. In addition, aquatic weeds choke waterways, interfere with navigation, conflict with fish, wildlife, and recreational interests, and impede malaria control. The annual cost of controlling these aquatic nuisances alone runs into the millions of dollars.

    A typical operation for spraying weed killers

    Dredging to remove water hyacinths that clog

    Enjoying the preview?
    Page 1 of 1