If you are a small landowner (5-50 acres) interested in learning about weed control, there’s a series of very usful presentations coming up on March 4 and 11 at the Flathead Community Collage campus. It sounds very useful.
Tag Archives: weed control
Next ‘Flathead Forest Friday’ meeting discusses weeds
You weed wranglers out there might be interested in the next Flathead Forest Friday get-together. Here’s the press release . . .
Everyone Invited for a Breakfast Chat on Friday, September, 20th
KALISPELL, MONT. – Nearly 30 species of invasive plants, or weeds, can be found on the Flathead National Forest. Each year forest employees strategize when and where to put its resources in the fight against these invaders. The tools used to kill the weeds are constantly changing as botanists consider everything from plant sniffing dogs to plant eating insects. Come chat with us about our efforts.
Forest Botanist Chantelle Delay and others invite you to have breakfast with us (no-host) at the Perkins Restaurant (1390 U.S. 2, Evergreen, Montana) starting at 7:00 AM on Friday, September 20, 2013.
Every other month, the Forest Service will coordinate these no-host breakfast meetings at a local restaurant with the goal of sharing good food, great company, and a little information about what’s happening on our National Forest. We hope the event will be a great way to discuss public land management opportunities and challenges that are important to us all.
If you plan to attend or have any questions, please notify Public Affairs Officer Wade Muehlhof at ewmuehlhof@fs.fed.us or (406) 758-5252. Your response allows us to plan accordingly with the restaurant.
Old Moose Fire burn on North Fork has a knapweed problem
Knapweed is a real nuisance in the old Moose Fire burn area . . .
The hillsides above Big Creek and the North Fork of the Flathead River are valuable winter range for deer and elk. Unfortunately, a new invader has moved in — weeds. Spotted knapweed is becoming a problem along the North Fork Road where the 2001 Moose Fire razed the landscape.
The Forest Service is aware of the problem, said Tris Hoffman, weed coordinator for the Flathead National Forest.
Hoffman said last week that Montana Conservation Corps crews were hand-pulling weeds from the slopes last week. The Forest Service is also spraying and in some cases using weevils to control the weed.
Larry Wilson: Optimism and glee over funding
This week, Larry discusses the good news that funding has been approved for additional improvements to the North Fork Road and for additional efforts at weed control. On a more somber note, he also announces the passing of Bettie Jacobsen . . .
Not long ago, I was not very optimistic that the Resource Advisory Committee would grant money to all of Flathead County’s requests for road improvement projects. My pessimism was due in part to the fact that RAC projects had already provided funds for the North Fork Road stretching from Camas Junction nearly to Whale Creek…
I am pleased to announce that I was wrong again. Last week, RAC granted $25,350 for dust abatement on the North Fork Road in 2012…
On a sad note, word was received this week of the passing of Karen Feather’s sainted mother, Bettie Jacobsen…
Larry Wilson: North Fork roads, weeds and toilets
Larry covers a lot of territory in this week’s column. There’s lots of good information on pending road improvement and weed control projects, as well as a brief discussion of a …uh… tourist traffic related issue.
I think almost all North Forkers have been pleased with the use of federal and Flathead County funds on the North Fork Road from Camas Junction to Polebridge.
That work, done with a 50 percent Resource Advisory Committee (RAC) grant and 50 percent county funds, has provided a smooth, virtually dust-free corridor on the section of the road that has the most traffic in the summer.
County maintenance on the paved portion from Home Ranch near Coal Creek to Hay Creek Bridge has also helped. The RAC grant was approved in 2009 and most work was completed in 2010. Additional dust abatement was approved in 2010 and applied in 2011 with county matching funds.
Also, a 2010 grant was approved for an additional eight miles of gravel mixed with bentonite binder to be applied from Polebridge north…
In a weed stomping mood? Now’s the time
If you are concerned about invasive plant species — noxious weeds — there are plenty of opportunities to do something about it within the next few weeks.
The North Fork Landowners’ Association has two “weed roundup” events scheduled. The first, on Tuesday, July 26, will concentrate on the area from the border to Ford Station; the second, Friday, August 19, will work from Ford to Polebridge. See the NFLA online calendar for details.
Glacier Park is also kicking off their second annual Noxious Weed Blitz on Thursday, July 28th from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the West Glacier Community Building. You get training on weed identification, surveying and mapping. You also get a free lunch out of the deal. Here’s the core part of the press release announcing the event:
Participants will spend the morning learning how to identify five targeted invasive plant species. After lunch attendants will learn how to conduct invasive plant surveys and map the locations of invasive plants using GPS units. Attending the Blitz will give you the option to continue as a citizen scientist weed warrior during future hikes. The event is free and open to all ages. Lunch will be provided for those who sign up for the event. Please bring gloves for hand pulling weeds, footwear for hiking, and drinking water. To sign up or to find out about other invasive plant opportunities, please contact the Crown of the Continent Research Learning Center at (406) 888-7986 or glac_citizen_science@nps.gov.
Read the full press release for more details.