Photo: Cheatgrass, southwest Montana. © 2020 Delena Norris-Tull
The Myth of the Silver Bullet for controlling invasive plants
Summaries of the research and commentary by Dr. Delena Norris-Tull, Professor Emerita of Science Education, University of Montana Western, October 2020.
Bob Parsons, retired Park County, Wyoming, Weed and Pest Supervisor, in an interview with Becky McMillen, said: “Herbicides are becoming much more specific. When I started, we had 2,4-D and Tordon, and, if it was a broadleaf, those two products would kill it. So, it was fine for a while. But after a while the varieties of weeds that were susceptible to 2,4-D and Tordon, you killed them off. And the varieties that weren’t, had a niche that they filled in.
“Now you have products that maybe only work on a half dozen of the noxious weeds that we have. You have to weigh all the factors. Where are they going to use it? Is it in a pasture, along a fence row? Is it cropland, non-cropland. All those things now come into play. You have to be a lot more educated on what the products will do, then you used to have to be. When we only had 2,4-D and Tordon it was pretty simple.
“Of course, every new product that came out was the new silver bullet. When Tordon came out, just before I started, I was told that I was not going to have a job in a year or two, because now we had Tordon. Then when RoundUp came out, ‘Oh, this is the product that is going to end all of our problems.’
“Then when Curtail came out, clopyralid, and they allowed it in the United States, England had had it for a while, but, ‘Oh, this is finally the product. It works as good as Tordon, but it doesn’t have the longevity. So this is going to be the product.’ So now, whenever a new product comes out, I say, ‘Well, this is just another bullet for the gun. But the gun’s got a lot of chambers in it, that’s got to be filled yet.’”
The information provided in this section on herbicides may cause land managers to have pause about what we are doing, by continually inventing new “silver bullets” that seem to just add to the environmental and health concerns and that contribute to the increase in herbicide-resistant weeds.
Next Sections on Herbicides & other Pesticides:
Next Sections on Management of Invasive Plants:
The Myth of the Silver Bullet for controlling invasive plants
Summaries of the research and commentary by Dr. Delena Norris-Tull, Professor Emerita of Science Education, University of Montana Western, October 2020.
Bob Parsons, retired Park County, Wyoming, Weed and Pest Supervisor, in an interview with Becky McMillen, said: “Herbicides are becoming much more specific. When I started, we had 2,4-D and Tordon, and, if it was a broadleaf, those two products would kill it. So, it was fine for a while. But after a while the varieties of weeds that were susceptible to 2,4-D and Tordon, you killed them off. And the varieties that weren’t, had a niche that they filled in.
“Now you have products that maybe only work on a half dozen of the noxious weeds that we have. You have to weigh all the factors. Where are they going to use it? Is it in a pasture, along a fence row? Is it cropland, non-cropland. All those things now come into play. You have to be a lot more educated on what the products will do, then you used to have to be. When we only had 2,4-D and Tordon it was pretty simple.
“Of course, every new product that came out was the new silver bullet. When Tordon came out, just before I started, I was told that I was not going to have a job in a year or two, because now we had Tordon. Then when RoundUp came out, ‘Oh, this is the product that is going to end all of our problems.’
“Then when Curtail came out, clopyralid, and they allowed it in the United States, England had had it for a while, but, ‘Oh, this is finally the product. It works as good as Tordon, but it doesn’t have the longevity. So this is going to be the product.’ So now, whenever a new product comes out, I say, ‘Well, this is just another bullet for the gun. But the gun’s got a lot of chambers in it, that’s got to be filled yet.’”
The information provided in this section on herbicides may cause land managers to have pause about what we are doing, by continually inventing new “silver bullets” that seem to just add to the environmental and health concerns and that contribute to the increase in herbicide-resistant weeds.
Next Sections on Herbicides & other Pesticides:
- Myth of Eradication
- Merging of Agrochemical Companies
- Impacts of Pesticides on Environment and Human Health
Next Sections on Management of Invasive Plants: