By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
"If there's one thing the history of evolution has taught us, it's that life will not be contained. Life, uh, finds a way." Dr. Ian Malcolm may have been talking about dinosaurs in the 1993 classic "Jurassic Park," but the same sentiment applies to weeds. Alicia Boor, agriculture and natural resources agent in the Cottonwood District for K-State Research and Extension, said that's why it is important to know which weeds need to be controlled.
"If you are spraying indiscriminately and things are able to recover from it, that can create a problem in the future because plants will become immune to what we have," she said. "If they're immune, they're going to take over and your only option will be hand-pulling at that point."
Many weeds visible in yards during the summer need to be sprayed in the fall for proper control. Spraying the wrong type of chemical on weeds or using the chemicals too late can lead to stronger strains of the plants.
"You want to spray weeds when they're small," Boor said. "If they get too big, then they can fight off some of our herbicides. If they are able to fight it off and reproduce, that's when you get herbicide-resistant weeds."
Boor said the homeowner's best bet is to properly identify a weed before taking action. Those unable to identify a plant can take a clear photo and email it to Boor, or pull a plant and drop it by the Extension office at 3007 10th Street in Great Bend. Boor can be reached by calling (620) 793-1910, or by emailing [email protected].