Do weeds hurt farmers and ranchers?
Montana farmers and ranchers spend $ 100 million a year just to control weeds. This money could be spent in other areas of the economy. Yes, they can kill farmers plants and crops. They can kill ranchers livestock. Do weeds hurt our economy? Studies show that knapweed alone costs Montana’s $42 million in lost tourism every year. This $42 million in list dollars would support 500 well paying jobs in Montana. Why are many weeds hard to kill? 1. They produce many seeds and thus spread rapidly. 2. They have deep roots thus they are hard to kill. 3. They are not palatable to livestock and wildlife therefore, these grazers eat the other desirable plants first, leaving the weeds to flourish. 4. They are invader species. They are adapted to rapidly colonize disturbed areas. 5. They have allelopathy- they give off chemicals that inhibit the growth of other plants. 6. They have waxy leaves so herbicides do not stick to the plant and cannot kill it. How do we control these unnatural, unwanted for
