Dear Editor:

I just came across a bit of information in my March/April, 2022 issue of the South Dakota Magazine.

On page 13, there is a picture of a field with the fence line full of tumble weeds (Russian thistles).

These "tumblin' tumble weeds" were not found in North America until 1877. The first thistle seeds came to Bon Homme County. They had been accidentally mixed in a bag of flax seed from Europe. They make their own seeds - as many as 250,000 per plant. They snap away from their root and roll with the wind.

The tumble weeds make for classic country songs and interesting imagery in western movies, but farmers and ranchers do no appreciate them.

Beth Namminga

Avon