Couch grass like so many other harmful weeds are now a most troublesome pest in a cultivated land causing farmer a loss of thousands of dollars annually by taking care of fields and crowding valuable crops. But this can be wisely used in many ways.
Description of the plant: This quite coarse grass produces several stems 1 to 3 feet high from a long creeping jointed rootstock and bears densely flowered spike like heads resembling those of rye or beardless wheat. The Stems are round soft thickened at the joints, and flat trajectory from five to seven leaves.
These have a long slit envelope and are tough on the upper surface. The heads or spikes are closing, compressed with two rows of spike let on a wavy and flatly vertical.
Couch grass is one of the most troublesome weeds to eliminate on account of the long jointed rootstock each link of which is capable of producing a new plant. Every bit of the rootstock must, therefore, be removed from the ground or killed in order to destroy it.
The Healing Property: The most expensive part of this grass not only agriculturally but also medically is its long hard rhizome or rootstock creeping along underneath the ground and pushing in every direction. It is bright yellow, nearly one eighth of an inch in width with joints at separations of nearly an inch from which limited branching rootlets are produced.
One of the best methods of destroying these weeds is to ploughing up the roots and burn them. They need not be burned, however but may be saved and prepared for the drug market. After the rootstock has been collected and washed the rootlets should be removed and the rhizome or rootstock not the rootlets cut into small pieces about two fifths of an inch long.
A normal food cutting device may be used for this purpose. These should be then be dried as suggested in the general instructions. In the medicine trade, this plant is commonly known as
dog grass or
tritium. As found in the stores, it is in the form of small thin pieces about one eighth to one fourth of an inch long straw colored shining and hollow. These pieces are odorless but have a relatively sweetish taste. The liquid extract prepared from dog grass is used in
kidney and bladder troubles.
How to use: When a portion of the roots of has been collected they are burnt in heaps on the ground the serve to enhance the soil in some, but a much more productive made of them. When roots are from the field which adheres to develop to be healthy and farinaceous.
Pigs eat them greedily, and cows will also feed them when boiled or steamed, and weight they contain not much less nutritious items than potatoes. It is rubbish, therefore, to burn them maceration and clean an entire facula obtained which with hot water jelly like arrowroot.
The decoction the root has been recommended as a and demulcent beverage and not apparent reason, but if they be thought worth while to wash and the couch for food it is still more to dissolve it by means of than to burn it. For this purpose should be gathered into a large heap watered to induce fermentation.
It has heated it should be turned and mixed with quicklime in a bit after two or three turnings with the spade with a break few weeks it will be found into full mold, which may then be over the land, either as a top dressing cover and artificial grasses or in with the seed where this practiced.
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