Weeds

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Invasive weed is choking parts of a Central Texas lake

November 26, 2021 GMT

KILLEEN, Texas (AP) — An invasive underwater weed is spreading in a Central Texas lake popular with anglers, tangling boat propellers and threatening the fish.

The weed is hydrilla, an aquatic plant initially imported and sold as an aquarium plant in the 1950s that has become one of the world’s most invasive plants.

Some ‘impatient’ plants considered weeds, others cultivated

By LEE REICHNovember 2, 2021 GMT

At a recent dinner party, my host launched into a monologue about a plant he had discovered in his garden and was delighted with.

It had, he said, green leaves (what a clue!) and large, yellow flowers.

Invasive and toxic ‘devil weed’ found on Hawaii’s Big Island

September 28, 2021 GMT

HILO, Hawaii (AP) — An invasive plant species that is toxic to cattle and highly flammable has been found on Hawaii's Big Island.

Chromolaena odorata, also known as “devil weed,” was found on the east side of the Big Island earlier this year, the Hawaii Tribune-Herald reported Tuesday.

Weed sniffin’ dogs root out noxious plants along Snake River

By MIKE KOSHMRLSeptember 11, 2021 GMT

JACKSON, Wyo. (AP) — Finn the Labrador retriever was tuckered out, and her master, Lauren Wendt, knew it.

This dog’s dogs were barking, the result of two consecutive days of her pooch pads pounding on the weathered, rounded rocks omnipresent along the Snake River.

Invasive weed starry stonewort confirmed in Leech Lake

July 19, 2021 GMT

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — An invasive weed that can choke out native plants and fish habitat has been found in one of Minnesota's largest and most popular walleye lakes, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources said Monday.

Gardening: For easy, effective weeding, go back to the hoe

By LEE REICHJune 15, 2021 GMT

I’ll bet that in some corner of your toolshed or garage, an old hoe is leaning against a wall. A hoe that hasn’t seen use in a long, long time, having been replaced by, perhaps, a gasoline- or electric-powered tiller, chemical weed killers, or mulches.

Louisiana: February freeze killed lots of giant salvinia

March 27, 2021 GMT

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries says there’s a bit of good news from February’s big freeze -- it killed lake-choking invasive floating weeds...

Tiny bubbles aid new push to kill invasive weeds at Tahoe

February 24, 2021 GMT

STATELINE, Nev. (AP) — Researchers at Lake Tahoe are using tiny bubbles to combat the spread of invasive weeds that rob the alpine lake of its clarity...

EPA sidesteps public comment, allows cancer-linked pesticide

By JOHNATHAN HETTINGER of the Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting.April 10, 2020 GMT

Champaign, Ill. (AP) — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently announced that soybean farmers in 25 states are now able to spray a pesticide that the agency has determined is likely to cause cancer and drift hundreds of feet from where it is applied...

Cover your ground, for your plants’ sake

By LEE REICHOctober 22, 2019 GMT

Nature abhors bare ground, and so should you. Her response to naked earth is to clothe it, a job at which many weeds excel...

Wags and weeds: Invasive plants meet match in detection dogs

By MARY ESCHAugust 24, 2019 GMT

TUXEDO, N.Y. (AP) — In brushy terrain where a botanical interloper evades detection by the human eye, count on Dia to sniff it out...

Gardeners, let’s praise the hoe

By LEE REICHJuly 16, 2019 GMT

Hopefully, I've caught you in time, before your weeds have grown lusty. I want you to consider the much maligned hoe...

Fleet ready to battle weeds on Yahara Lakes, officials say

Bill Novak | Wisconsin State JournalMay 28, 2019 GMT

The fleet is ready for war. On water weeds, that is.

Dane County's fleet of 13 weed harvesters is motoring up to cut and remove tons of aquatic plants in the Yahara chain of lakes this summer, a continuation of a program to try and reduce lake flooding and lower the amount of algae-producing phosphorus.

Last year it was dicamba, this year it’s 2,4-D

By JOHNATHAN HETTINGER of Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting.March 30, 2019 GMT

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) — A volatile weed killer linked to cancer and endocrine issues will likely be sprayed on millions more acres of soybeans and cotton across the Midwest and South starting this year...

For ‘weedless gardening’ next spring, begin now

By LEE REICHDecember 4, 2018 GMT

I take a four-pronged approach to keeping my vegetable and flower gardens free of weed problems, and suggest you try it...

Weed of the Month: Oriental bittersweet

By Emilie Justen Minnesota Department of AgricultureNovember 30, 2018 GMT

WINONA — In southeast Minnesota, an invasive woody vine has caused property damage and altered ecosystems with its prolific seed production and aggressive growth.

Oriental bittersweet was first confirmed in the Twin Cities in 2010, and has since been confirmed in multiple counties with the most severe infestations in Red Wing and Winona.

California judge mulls new trial in $289M Roundup award

By PAUL ELIASOctober 11, 2018 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A San Francisco judge said Wednesday she is considering tossing out the lion's share of the $289 million judgment against agribusiness giant Monsanto and ordering a new trial over whether the company's weed-killer caused a groundskeeper's cancer...

Lawsuits alleging Roundup caused cancer can move forward

By SUDHIN THANAWALAJuly 10, 2018 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Hundreds of lawsuits alleging Roundup weed killer caused cancer cleared a big hurdle Tuesday when a U...

Sedges are low-maintenance option

Staff WriterFebruary 8, 2018 GMT

Some of the newest ornamental grasses on the market are not grasses at all, they are sedges. When we hear the word sedge we might think of weeds or water and not ornamental plants.

Weeds may come to mind because of yellow nutsedge (Cyperus species).

Icy weather could be help with Candlewood Lake weed problem

Katrina KoertingJanuary 2, 2018 GMT

The freezing temperatures that have gripped the region for more than a week could bode well for those hoping Candlewood Lake will be less infested next summer with Eurasian watermilfoil.

For years, FirstLight Power Resources has lowered water levels over the winter in an effort to expose parts of the lakebed to the cold and kill the invasive plant, which has long been a nuisance for swimmers and boaters.

Monsanto facing stricter rules nationally and in Minnesota for dicamba pesticide

By Tom MeersmanDecember 23, 2017 GMT

Minnesota is clamping down on a troublesome pesticide developed by Monsanto that brought a cascade of complaints and damaged an estimated 265,000 acres of soybeans in the state this year. Monsanto is pushing back, questioning how the state came up with the tougher standards and warning that they could be counterproductive.

Crews start treating section of Eno River for invasive aquatic weed Hydrilla

WRAL.comJune 2, 2017 GMT

Crews have started treating portions of the Eno River in Orange County with an herbicide for an infestation of Hydrilla, a non-native aquatic plant that can impact the health of fish and wildlife.

The North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation said the treatments will be ongoing through September.

Property owners in fight to death with weeds

By RICK KELLEY | Staff WriterMay 9, 2017 GMT

HARLINGEN — The usual concerns for property owners in the downtown historic district are zoning rules and parking.

But these days they’re having to spend an inordinate amount of time dealing with an invasive species that is proving difficult if not impossible to kill.

Want to be a weed warrior?

Staff WriterApril 29, 2017 GMT

Quarry Hill Nature Center is looking for weed warriors.

As part of a Conservation Partners Legacy grant program, the center is holding an introduction session to the Weed Warrior program from 9 a.m.

Ensley: What is that sticky weed?

Ricky Ensley, Polk County Extension CoordinatorApril 25, 2017 GMT

The question we have been getting in the Polk County Extension Office is “what is this sticky weed on my lawn and how do I get rid of it.”

The weed causing a stick is the most common lawn burweed (soliva pterosperma) a.k.a.

More than 300 people help at 44th annual Yakima River cleanup

Nicole KlaussApril 17, 2017 GMT

Around 90 volunteers from Central Washington University and the Ellensburg community showed up to Helen McCabe State Park on Saturday morning to work on environmentally conscious projects as part of the 44th annual Yakima River Cleanup.

Philly pot activists to host ‘pop-up weed garden’ outside Art Museum

October 18, 2016 GMT

By Staff

If you recently saw a gigantic pot leaf walking around Philadelphia, rest assured that you weren’t tripping out. That was just marijuana activist N.A. Poe playing the part of Delaware NORML’s mascot, Hempy.