Why is Russian knapweed a problem in the Great Basin?
Russian knapweed can grow at relatively cool temperatures when soil moisture is usually most plentiful. Russian knapweed does not colonize new sites easily but once established is highly competitive and spreads aggressively to form dense, single-species stands that can persist indefinitely. Russian knapweed is a community-altering invader, reducing forage for livestock and biodiversity for wildlife habitat. How can we fight this weed? Russian knapweed does not readily establish in healthy, natural habitats, so maintaining healthy communities and monitoring regularly is the best defense. Once established, managers should stress the plant (biological or herbicide control) and cause it to use up nutrient reserves in its roots, eliminating new seed production (cutting), and controlling vegetative spread by isolating the infestation so no root fragments are transported to other locations. Even following these steps, Russian knapweed has proven more difficult than other knapweed species to c
