The correspondence of Ferdinand von Mueller: ¶ The obstinate weed just sent by you is one of the South African tuber bearing species of Oxalia, ¶ or Wood Sorrel. On account of the ready ¶ natural propagation of this plant by its roots, it is ...

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95.09.00d

Plant names

Oxalia
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Preferred Citation:

Ferdinand von Mueller to the Leader, 1895-09 [95.09.00d]. R.W. Home, Thomas A. Darragh, A.M. Lucas, Sara Maroske, D.M. Sinkora, J.H. Voigt and Monika Wells (eds), Correspondence of Ferdinand von Mueller, <https://vmcp.rbg.vic.gov.au/id//letters/1890-6/1895/95-09-00d-final.odt>, accessed June 13, 2026

? Letter not found. The text given here is from 'Correspondence. A bad weed', Leader, 28 September 1895, p. 12 (B95.09.03). It is preceded by

Sir, — I enclose you a sample of a bulb weed known, I believe, as [ typesetter's error for Oxalis? ] and ask can you or any of your readers inform me how I can rid my orchard and cultivated paddocks of it. If you can I shall feel much obliged, as it is a terrible nuisance. It pushes out all cultivated grasses, and cattle will not eat it unless hungered. I may inform you (and by way of caution to your readers) that two plants were introduced into my orchard by an amateur gardener some years ago as a "pretty flower," and by digging and soiling the weed has spread over acres of my best land. It does not grow on old and hard pasture land. It costs me a considerable sum per annum to keep it from choking up my orchard. I find many others are suffering from the same trouble.— Yours, &c.. Braybrook. J. W. T.

[Baron Von Mueller favors us with the following reply:—.

The obstinate weed just sent by you is one of the South African tuber bearing species of ,

Typesetter's error for Oxalis?

or Wood Sorrel. On account of the ready natural propagation of this plant by its roots, it is extremely difficult in a winterless clime like ours to exterminate it. Turning over the soil, raking out the tubers and other parts of the plant will likely have to be done repeatedly before the ground is freed of this weed. The soils thus worked should then be sown with seeds of strong grasses and perennial pasture herbs, the up growth of which would keep the under. If still this plant then appears anew, the hoe must be set to work for coping with it.

The text is followed by '— Ed., L.]'