#ROLLING TUMBLEWEED ANIMATED GIF FREE#

In many western states, Russian thistle is an agricultural weed and farmers have to spray it when it grows among their crops. That’s a bigger concern in Oregon, Washington and Idaho than in California, said Pitcairn. In California, tumbleweeds clog sprinklers and irrigation canals. When it’s green, a Russian thistle plant, like this one in Woodland, California, can harbor the beet leafhopper, which carries a virus that damages sugar beets, tomatoes, peppers and other crops.Īnd they also harbor agricultural pests when they’re green. “They pierce the soft parts of the plant - the leaves - and suck the juice out.” They lay eggs inside the plant tissue,” said Jennifer Willems, an environmental scientist at the Department of Food and Agriculture in Fresno. In the cities of Palmdale and Lancaster, tumbleweeds are such a big problem that Los Angeles County spends $100,000 to $150,000 yearly mowing and chipping dried-out Russian thistle in vacant lots and abandoned agricultural fields before they can tumble away, said Ariel Verayo, deputy agricultural commissioner at the county’s weed abatement division in Lancaster. Tumbleweeds blow into alfalfa fields and need to be cleared out before the alfalfa is harvested. Alfalfa is cattle feed, and cows won’t eat prickly tumbleweeds, Verayo said. One alfalfa farmer earlier this year found a creative use for tumbleweeds after clearing them off his field. He packed them into rectangular bales and told Verayo he planned to use the bales for bow and arrow target practice. That’s one way of making sure tumbleweeds no longer tumble. Those goathead thorns actually start out soft, green & pliable, but once they harden up, it's pain city.This report was produced by KQEDs Science. I've seen it spread up to 3ft from the central root. Puncturevine, lays flat to the ground & grows more like a groundcover. Tumbleweeds can grow up to 6 feet tall, and will be easily blown by the wind once the central stalk is detached from the ground, they roll, or 'tumble' across the ground, hence the name. I've also posted a pic of puncturevine so you can see the difference. Here's a few pics of tumbleweed, 1st the young, green plant, followed by the dry adult plant. Those goatheads can lay there for a couple years & still stay sharp & viable. It's going to take several years before you stop seeing them in your tires, shoes, feet, etc. Hit the young plants with Roundup in spring, or hit them with the brush burner. You'll need to remove those plants & apply a preemergent herbicide to keep those remaining thorns from germinating. They stick in your car tires, the soles of your shoes, your dog's paws, etc.Īnd a new plant can sprout & grow from each of those goat head shaped thorns.

Those aren't part of tumbleweeds, those are from Puncture vine, AKA 'Goatheads.' One of the nastiest plants known to man or beast.

#ROLLING TUMBLEWEED ANIMATED GIF FREE#

Might take more time & more work, but it'll be chemical free & cheaper. If you don't want to use chemicals, get a jump on them in spring with a propane brush burner. Hit 'em with Roundup & Surflan Roundup is a non-selective contact herbicide, Surflan is a preemergent herbicide. Best way is to get a jump on them in the spring, while they're small, green & tender. Even with chemicals, it's an ongoing process to control them. As they tumble, seeds are spread, that's why there are often miles & miles of tumbleweeds out on the range. Tumbleweeds are always an ongoing process to control as more of them blow in/through every year. You could just burn 'em without scraping when they dry, but like I said, they burn real hot & real fast you'll have to be REALLY careful so the fire doesn't get away from you & burn something you don't want to burn, like a fence or a house or start a brushfire. If they're still green, I'd hit 'em with herbicide & then scrape, but it sounds like you want to avoid chemicals. The leftover ash can be composted or sprinkled around the yard as a soil amendment. They burn really hot & fast due to all the air/space between all those little branches. We used to just crunch 'em, pile 'em & burn 'em. You can use almost any method to remove them when dry tractor with a blade, scoop or drag will do it.

Real tumbleweeds break off pretty easily when they dry out, the wind is often all it takes to break the stem.

Rolling tumbleweed animated gif