<\/p>\n
Thanks to the Montezuma County Chapter of Great Old Broads for Wilderness, there are fewer noxious weeds on Maverick Trail in the Boggy Draw area above Dolores.<\/p>\n
For the past two years, the group has pulled Canadian thistle, musk thistle and common mullein in cooperation with Montezuma County and the San Juan National Forest.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have been out here so many times pulling weeds, it\u2019s satisfying to see the progress of our work,\u201d said Susan Treneer, of the nonprofit Great Old Broads.<\/p>\n
Weeds were severed and left to dry in the sun or bagged and hauled off. Training was provided by Bonnie Loving, director of Montezuma County\u2019s noxious weed program.<\/p>\n
Another approach inoculates Canadian thistle with the rust fungus. The fungus is harvested from another location, then dried and sprayed on thistle patches.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe fungus is species specific to Canadian thistle. It seeps into the leaves and kills the roots,\u201d said Loving.<\/p>\n
Because this year\u2019s wet spring follows a dry summer, noxious weed seed beds could flourish, said Corey Ertl, rangeland specialist with the San Juan National Forest.<\/p>\n
High-use areas such as the Boggy Draw trail network are more susceptible to weed infestations, he said. \u201cThese partnerships volunteer groups are important because we don\u2019t have a large staff or budget.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ertl said the burn scar from the 2018 Burro Fire in the Bear Creek drainage area will be treated this summer to stop noxious weed development.<\/p>\n
Great Old Broads adopted the Maverick Trail as a project for noxious weed control.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou did a good job cutting them off in this area,\u201d Loving said. \u201cThe community needs to step up like you did to help control noxious weeds on public lands we all use.\u201d<\/p>\n
Follow-up also is important. Musk thistle seeds remain viable in the ground for up to 14 years. Common mullein is a biennial forb native to Europe and Asia, and each plant can produce 100,000 to 250,000 seeds.<\/p>\n