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KOB-TV.com - For more than 80 years southwestern Colorado has been plagued with a weed that officials have never been able to get rid of. For La Plata County weed director, Rod Cook, the Russian knapweed is a foreign plant that’s adapted to the area. "We're kind of the epicenter for the state of Colorado and southwestern Colorado," said Cook. The weed thrives in the area because of the high mountain desert climate. Cook said it’s also addictive and poisonous for horses, burros, and mules. "Once they reach that threshold of being poisoned they can no longer chew, they can no longer swallow food". Seeds help spread the plant but it’s the creeping roots that make it impossible to pull out. Officials told us sometimes the roots can grow as long as 20 feet. Recently, the Bureau of Land Management released a hundred tiny bugs from Asia called a gall midge. Their primary food source is the Russian knapweed. "Once you put them out there and they go to work for you doing their job...you can't beat that," said Cook. But—like anything else—there are some concerns. "There's really no guarantee that the bug may not adapt to some other plant," said Cook.
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Biologists hope insect can help wipe out invasive weed
From KOB-TV.com - For more than 80 years southwestern Colorado has been plagued with a weed that officials have never been able to get rid of. For La Plata County weed director, Rod Cook, the Russian knapweed is a foreign plant that’s adapted to the area. "We're kind of the epicenter for the state of Colorado and southwestern Colorado," said Cook. The weed thrives in the area because of the high mountain desert climate. Cook said it’s also addictive and poisonous for horses, burros, and mules. "Once they reach that threshold of being poisoned they can no longer chew, they can no longer swallow food". Seeds help spread the plant but it’s the creeping roots that make it impossible to pull out. Officials told us sometimes the roots can grow as long as 20 feet. Recently, the Bureau of Land Management released a hundred tiny bugs from Asia called a gall midge. Their primary food source is the Russian knapweed. "Once you put them out there and they go to work for you doing their job...you can't beat that," said Cook. But—like anything else—there are some concerns. "There's really no guarantee that the bug may not adapt to some other plant," said Cook. Read more
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1 comments:
I have a terrific solution. Tell an environmental group someone is making a profit from the weed and they'll figure out a way to get rid of it.
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