In Defense of WeedsLike so many things in the natural world,
weeds have positive as well as negative attributes. They are the
unwanted, the uninvited. They are seen as uncivilized and
common. The farmer, the gardener, and all who toil in their
yards and groom their lawns, see weeds as the enemy. They are
parasites; they are a plague. Not only do they steal precious
moisture and nutrients from proper vegetation carefully planted
by the farmer or gardener, they disrupt the symmetry and
geometry of the project. They are bad for the aesthetics; they
ruin the “look” of a meticulously designed garden, plot, lawn or
field. The fact is that weeds are useful; they are essential;
they are our friends. For one thing, they heal the wounded
earth. Weeds thrive in disrupted soil. Land that is plowed,
spaded, hoed, eroded, kicked, burned, scratched, grazed, or
trampled, is made inviting for thousands of varieties of growing
things. Seeds, bulbs, roots and all manner of propagating
materials eagerly await the slightest encou