A wet spring and recent heat have conspired to make much of the state an inviting environment for an alien invasion.
Weeds have been growing like weeds, and while all weeds are annoying, experts say the truly noxious ones are an increasing threat to native vegetation, livestock, wildlife and ecosystems.
Copious moisture after a couple of years of drought conditions “has made noxious weeds stronger, healthier and bigger,” said Tina Booton, weed supervisor for Weld County.
The weather shift also has goaded weeds to emerge and flower earlier, which is extending their season and potentially their spread, said Alicia Doran, weed specialist in Jefferson County.
Colorado has classified about 80 weeds as noxious, meaning they spread quickly and shove aside native plants, and have fingered them for mandated eradication and control.
The invaders, which have few enemies, frequently “hitchhike” from other countries and states on equipment, people and animals, and in hay.
Many have alluring names such as dame’s rocket and oxeye daisy, and are considered pretty enough to plant in gardens. Some have escaped into the wild.
“All can, if left to themselves, seriously degrade the environment for birds, deer, elk and cattle,” said Jefferson County Commissioner Kathy Hartman, who serves on the county noxious- weed board.
Farmers and ranchers are attuned to the emergence of a new weed – such as yellow star thistle – or the proliferation of ones from the knapweed family that have been around awhile.
But this year, even city dwellers have noticed weed jungles erupting in their backyards.
Counties, cities, state and federal agencies and homeowners spray, dig and chop the invaders.
Volunteers such as a bunch of wild weed whackers in Jefferson County’s foothills are battling back. Beginning at 8 a.m. Saturday, volunteers will yank weeds around Evergreen Lake.
“This is an outgrowth from the Evergreen Naturalists Audubon Society,” said volunteer Bud Weare. “Weeds impact the environment, and then species such as birds are impacted. It’s all interrelated.”
The group, which will celebrate 10 years of its war on weeds, has T-shirts that depict an invading Russian thistle choking a native columbine.
Experts will be on hand to help identify weeds brought in by curious property owners.
Identifying “the new outlaws of the West” is only half the battle, county weed specialists say. Education about eradication methods is the other.
“We have a number of people who have bought 5- to 35-acre pieces of land who you can see out there in sandals and shorts spraying weeds. They need to be educated about proper application,” said Jude Sirota, Mesa County’s weed supervisor. “And then we have those whose attitude is, ‘This is my property and I’ll do what I want.”‘
The weed war is costly, and dollars are few, said Fred Raish, Yuma County weed coordinator and president of the Colorado Weed Management Association.
“We’ve got the tools, but we need the funding,” Raish said. “We’ve been trying to get about $250,000 back in the state budget that can be used as grants.”
Three weeds – jointed goatgrass, volunteer rye and cheatgrass – plague the wheat- growing community, particularly in dryland areas. In one year, the trio cost Colorado wheat producers $24 million in lost crops and herbicides.
“A weed in a flower bed near the Pepsi Center is one thing, but when it gets out in my area, it becomes a huge economic loss,” Raish said. “People don’t realize the impact.”
Staff writer Ann Schrader can be reached at 303-278-3217 or aschrader@denverpost.com.
To learn more:
Contact county weed divisions or go to these websites:
- Colorado Department of Agriculture’s noxious weed management program –
- Colorado Weed Management Association –
- Center for Invasive Plant Management –
- Colorado State University Cooperative Extension Service –
Source: Colorado Department of Agriculture
