July 1, 2023 - Invasive Weeds​

After this year’s record-breaking winter and spring rains, the vegetation on the ranch is growing like weeds, which are starting to spread like wildfire!  Amidst the Mule’s Ears, Bluebells and Larkspur lurk many invasive and noxious weeds which are overpopulating the roadsides, disturbed areas, and coming for your front yard.  Why is this a concern to owners on the ranch?
  • Noxious weeds and invasive plant species increase fire danger.
  • Many are not palatable to wildlife and displace native forage.
  • Noxious weeds and invasive plants can out-compete native plants, often growing faster to take over large areas.
  • Summit County can hold landowners responsible to control nuisance weeds and charge for clean-up if the owner is not compliant (Summit County Weed Control Program Policies, 2017, Section 5-H MORE HERE)
  • Weeds don’t respect property lines, any invasive weeds on your property will become a problem to you neighbors in the coming spring.
  • Seeds can remain viable in the soil for decades, taproots can regrow plants year after year, and the multitude of these seeds will spread by wind, water, shoes, on and off-road vehicles, machinery, and animals.

We have a weed committee?

Our unofficial weed committee has prepared a top-eight most wanted list (below) for you to cut, dig, pull, or, as a last resort, apply herbicide to gain the upper hand and give our native plants a fighting chance to propagate.  Most of these “wanted” are already going to seed so anything you pull should not be left on the ground and must be bagged and thrown away. PLEASE DO NOT put them in the burn pile. The mountain has all eight species growing along the roadsides and even covering hillsides on many lots.

We can all help stop the spread of these noxious and obnoxious invasive weeds on our properties!  This summer, weed warriors will be meeting up for Weed Walk Wednesdays (W3) at 7:00pm along designated roadsides in need of our help. Please join us and take back our beautiful neighborhood from these noxious bandits. For more information on W3 and workdays, check the neighborhood Facebook pages. For questions or to nominate your roadside for a W3 contact Amanda Cencak at: [email protected]
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Thank you!.