Author Archives

• Milk Thistle – May 2018 Weed of the Month

  By theweedsbeat on May 14, 2018

  

  If you’ve ever walked barefoot in a field, chances are you’ve felt a thistle: those spiny-leaved plants that prick your feet and make you jump. Left unchecked, they produce purple or pink flowers at stem ends and plenty of seeds…. Read More ›

• King County Noxious Weed Program Launches Web Pages in Four Languages!

  By theweedsbeat on October 29, 2017 • ( 2 )

  

  Want to learn more about noxious weeds in Spanish—or know someone who does? How about Vietnamese, Chinese, Russian, or Somali? Well now, King County’s Noxious Weed Control Program has made a start to offer just that. This week, the program launched… Read More ›

• Join Us at Green Seattle Day!

  By theweedsbeat on October 26, 2017 • ( 3 )

  

  Fall is a great time to plant trees in the Pacific Northwest and there are so many great tree planting opportunities this time of year. In Seattle, on November 4 from 9am-noon, the Green Seattle Partnership will host Green Seattle… Read More ›

• Big changes proposed for 2018 Washington State Noxious Weed List

  By theweedsbeat on October 12, 2017 • ( 4 )

  

  The Washington State Noxious Weed Control Board is considering several significant changes for next year’s state noxious weed list. These include adding small-flowered jewelweed (Impatiens parviflora) and European coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara) as Class A and B noxious weeds, respectively—additions originally proposed… Read More ›

• Buffalobur – September 2017 Weed of the Month

  By theweedsbeat on September 14, 2017

  

  Native to Mexico and the Midwestern United States, buffalobur (Solanum rostratum) is an annoying—and painful—regulated Class C noxious weed in King County. While we’re just a truck ride from its native range, this plant has effectively spread all over the… Read More ›

• King County Controls a New Noxious Weed!

  By theweedsbeat on September 1, 2017

  

  It’s not every day you find a new noxious weed in your county, but this August King County had one of those days. On August 15th, our program was alerted to an infestation of the Class A noxious weed ricefield… Read More ›

• Puget SoundCorps Helps Stomp out Knotweed

  By theweedsbeat on August 18, 2017 • ( 3 )

  

  Each year, the King County Noxious Weed Control Program gets a great boost of support from the Puget SoundCorps, a branch of the Washington Conservation Corps’ AmeriCorps Program. Just when we need it most, the Washington State Department of Natural… Read More ›

• It’s Time to Kill Your Knotweed!

  By theweedsbeat on August 7, 2017 • ( 2 )

  

  It’s that time of year again: the weather’s hot, the ice cream stands are open, and King County’s invasive knotweeds (Polygonum spp.) are in full bloom. Don’t worry too much about your knotweed going to seed: King County’s most common… Read More ›

• Garden Loosestrife – August 2017 Weed of the Month

  By theweedsbeat on July 30, 2017 • ( 2 )

  

  What plant is so tough that it can outcompete common cattail (Typha latifolia), purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria), and even Himalayan blackberry (Rubus armeniacus) along King County’s shores? Garden loosestrife (Lysimachia vulgaris), a Class B noxious weed from Eurasia, has managed… Read More ›

• Weeds to Watch out for—August 2017

  By theweedsbeat on July 30, 2017 • ( 2 )

  

  As we roll into August, plenty of noxious weeds across the county are blooming and going to seed, and those of us in the weed world are doing our best to keep up. Here’s what to watch out for this… Read More ›