Barb Martin from Big Sandy and Dan Wilkins presented a program to the Big Sandy students called Pull Your Share. It is designed to teach what a Knapweed looks like and encourage students to pull the weed before it forms seeds. The program hopes to have teachers and their classes adopt sites that are infested with noxious weeds.
When pulling weeds, wear gloves, pull close to the ground, and remove as much root as possible. If the weeds are pulled before seed heads have formed, it is ok to leave the pulled weeds. If seed heads have formed, it is best to place the weeds in a garbage bag and dispose of them in a garbage bin. Avoid pulling when the plants are dry, as the seeds will disperse. Barb stated, “The Teton River is loaded with spotted Knapweed, and it travels a lot by water, which in my Conservation District is my job to protect and help.”
Barb continued, “The Teton comes down and meets the Marias at Loma. Then, Marias meets Missouri, and any weeds coming down from the Teton infects Missouri. Our job is to protect the Waters of the US. That’s our number one concern. There are a bunch of people involved, including a lot of schools. It’s becoming a growing concern because Montana has so many invasive species.”
Chouteau County has two conservation districts. Barb Martin works in the Big Sandy District.
They pull better in the spring because the ground is soft and moist. It’s rained enough to keep the ground moist, so they are still easily pulled.
The seeds of the Knapweed are viable seeds for seven to 10 years. Pull Your Share hopes to stop the weed from spreading by pulling the Knapweed weed while still in bloom for five to 15 minutes each walk. This will make sure that no new seeds get planted because we have allowed the seeds to mature.
It does kill off forage for other animals--our livestock, our wildlife.
You can contact Dan Wilkins at 406-750-4116 or DanWilkinsPYS@gamil.com.
