Trout-Friendly Weed Control

Trout Friendly Weed Control

Manage weeds with your watershed in mind!

What do trout have to do with weeds?

Your property is part of the watershed! The way you manage your lawn or landscape impacts water quality and quantity, and effects the ecosystems and wildlife (including trout!) downstream. Trout friendly landscaping refers to practices that protect rivers and wetlands by limiting fertilization, choosing water-wise behaviors, prioritizing native and pollinator-friendly plants, and curbing the use of herbicides and pesticides. So how can you stay trout-friendly and environmentally conscious while controlling noxious and obnoxious weeds in your yard? Below are some suggestions!

Digging & hand pulling

Many weeds can be effectively controlled with just a little elbow grease! Species with a tap root – such as dyers woad, houndstongue, musk thistle, Scotch thistle, and bull thistle – are excellent candidates for pulling or digging out. Always wear gloves and remember to bag seed heads! Pro tip: pull plants just before they flower. With the plant’s energy directed to the flower head, roots are weak enough to easily dislodge from the ground.

Mowing, discing & tilling

As with hand pulling, the long-term success of these control methods varies by species and location. In many cases, mechanical treatment can damage individual plants enough to prevent seed production; however, retreatment or additional treatment (often chemical) is often necessary. Some weed infestations, including those of Canada thistle and hoary cress, can be exacerbated by tilling, discing and mowing. When in doubt, double check species-specific control recommendations or contact your local weed supervisor!

Biocontrol

Several noxious weeds in our area have a match for biological control! Knapweed root weevils and stem weevils, toadflax stem-mining weevils, and leafy spurge flea beetles are all insects collected and released locally for weed management. Once established, the bugs feed, chew, burrow, or lay eggs in host plants, causing extensive damage to individual plants and reducing overall rates of survival and reproduction. While the effects of biological controls are not always immediate, they are substantial. Over time, biological control can reduce target weed populations by over 50%. Contact your county weed supervisor to see if there is a good biocontrol fit for your yard!

Solarization

Put that Utah sun to work! If you are struggling with persistent weeds in your garden beds, solarization may be a good practice to consider. Solarization entails clearing your garden bed of all plant material, watering it deeply, and covering it with a sheet of plastic (burying the edges) for several weeks—preferably during the hottest time of the year. Much like a convection oven, the area covered in plastic heats up, cooking and killing lingering weeds, root fragments, and weed seeds. Solarization is not a good fit for landscapes with a patch work of weeds and desirable plants; instead, view solarization as a general, hard “restart” for your garden.

Mulching

Can’t fix the problem? Bury it! Applying a thick (3-5in) layer of mulch to problem areas is often a great weed management solution. A thick layer of mulch deprives weed seeds of the sunlight they need to germinate, thereby deterring one or more seasons of plants and seed production. Depending on how long a species’ seeds stay viable in the ground, several seasons of coverage may even flush out your seed bank.

Make sure to use the most trout-friendly product available for mulching! If you or your neighbors need to remove trees for fire mitigation or otherwise, use the chips for weed control. If not, choose products that are natural and undyed; colored mulch can leach harmful chemicals into your landscape.

Grazing

While not the most conventional form of backyard weed control, well-managed grazing can work wonders on weed-infested landscapes. Goats can eat a wide variety of plants and, when given the option, consume forbs and woody vegetation over grass 85% of the time. Combined, these characteristics make them ideal agents for weed mitigation. What’s more, goats can easily maneuver steep and hard to access terrain, and their waste provides fertilization!

Grazing makes the most sense for sizeable landscapes and for those that don’t contain extensive cultivated vegetation. If you are interested in grazing for weed management, do your research and speak to an expert.

A note on herbicide...

While trout-friendly landscaping advocates for minimal chemical weed control, situations may arise in which herbicide application is necessary. Some perennial plants and weeds with extensive or rhizomatous root systems – such as Canada thistle, hoary cress, leafy spurge, etc. – are extremely difficult to control by hand. In these situations, spot spraying is generally considered the most effective means of control. Herbicides should always be used thoughtfully and conservatively. Abstain from spraying in overly hot, cold, or windy weather, and never spray before precipitation or watering. Always follow label instructions and, whenever possible, use an alternative control method… like the ones listed above!

The Summit CWMA hosts this page on behalf of the East Canyon Creek Watershed Committee. Check back soon for more trout friendly resources and links to Summit County’s trout friendly stipend and certification programs.