What are Phreatophytes and what can producers do to manage or control their impact at the farm level?
Phreatophytes are plants such as Russian Olive, tamarisk, willows and cottonwood, that obtain water from the water table or the unsaturated zone just above it. Often found along water supply canals, phreatophytes can consume significant quantities of water through evapotranspiration, reducing the availability of water to a cropping system and its users. Methods of control depend upon the specie and may include mechanical, chemical, and biological treatments or a combination of all three in order to remove, reduce, or manipulate unwanted communities.
