Council Update/Local Volunteers Responsible For Hogweed Removal

June 14/04 

Dear Mayor Bagnato and Members of Council,

This note is just to let you know what is being done down along the river trails and at Riverbend Park regarding the weed situation. I am aware that the area around Centennial Park has been sprayed as well as an area on the dyke by the bridge along the Saugeen River Trail.

Over the past few weeks at Riverbend Park and along to the end of the river trails, past the Truax Dam, I have removed the bee nettle by hand and have also dug out any hogweed that I have seen. This has taken approximately 11 hours of labour.

The bee nettle was quite easy to remove and didn’t take much time. The hogweed took a bit more effort but was not difficult. Alison Rowe, from WHCI, has also joined me and I know that, as a whole, their organization is happy to be partners in maintaining the town’s image. 

Essentially what we have done is dug the hogweed plant out and taken out as much of the root as possible; the plants have been left to decompose in a pile far off the trails. In doing so, pieces of the root may break off and new growth will emerge, however, I will continue to monitor the areas and continue to dig out any plants that re-grow, the roots will eventually run out of energy. 

I understand that the plants were sprayed last year but at the incorrect time so I am assuming that they went to seed. The problem is that the seeds remain viable for up to 10 years so the areas must continue to be monitored. I have offered to do that. I will also incur any expenses of applying Corn Gluten Meal (CGM) to the surrounding areas and would be more than happy to work with organizations like the SRTC to enhance the enjoyment of the park. 

I have been in touch with many of the U.S. universities, including Iowa State where CGM was developed and as far as I know, CGM is the only safe product that prevents seed germination. I am also concerned that the spraying has been done far too close to the water and that the buffer zones have not been adhered to. The Saugeen Conservation Authority has stated that spraying that close to the river is not recommended, they do not spray on the dykes. By law there is a minimum buffer zone of 10 meters on bodies of water and flood plains should be given special environmental consideration. Manual removal seems the best solution all round and I am willing to do that. Some poison ivy is present; tilling it to destroy the rhizomes and applying corn gluten to the area to destroy the weed seeds is a viable option, especially so close to the water. This method is also recommended in the Weed Control Act of Ontario for noxious weeds, which I have enclosed for your reference. 

It was suggested that CGM and pro-biotics be applied to the park turf in order to prevent any germination of further weed growth via seed, this was apparently not met with great reception so I have offered to pay for this myself in order to safely establish healthy, strong turf. 

My family uses the trails quite a bit and many of the hogweed plants were right on the water or near other delicate wild flowers so I would prefer to take care of the weeds by digging them out. We love the park areas and want to see that they are safe for everyone and that there is no threat posed to anyone’s health. 

What a wonderful natural resource we have and I think I can speak for most when I say how thankful we are to the organizations like Rotary and the Saugeen River Trails Committee for their many years of hard work in establishing them for our use and enjoyment. 

Sincere regards, 

Kelly Reid Horticultural Technician 

414 Scott St. 
Walkerton 

881-2574 

cc: Saugeen River Trails Committee/AZ file/kr Encl.

Volunteer Terry Reid stands in front of a Giant Hogweed plant