- Author: Rebecca Ozeran
This year, I received a variety of questions from livestock owners in the region. All of the weeds I mention here were of concern to owners managing smaller (less than 20 ac) properties in Fresno and Madera Counties, impacting multiple kinds of livestock – horses, sheep, and cattle. The most common weeds infesting larger properties may be different, and this list is not comprehensive of the weeds found in this part of California.
Weed common name |
Scientific name |
Livestock of concern* |
Key weed... |
- Author: Rebecca Ozeran
In January I visited a small property to help identify various plants that had taken over an acre of unirrigated land. The property owner wanted to know how to manage the weeds, and if horses could safely graze them. Among some residual annual grasses, there was a surprising amount of mallow, already forming enormous mounds of leaves and stems.
Since January, mallow - little mallow (Malva parviflora; pictured above), and/or common mallow (M. neglecta) - continues to show up, not only in small pastures and rangelands, but also along roads and in urban areas in Fresno County. In my 5 years in the region, I have never noticed mallow dominating quite as much as I've seen it this year. It seems that our...
- Author: Guy B Kyser
Silverleaf nightshade (Solanum elaeagnifolium) is a perennial subshrub native to the American Southwest, southern states, Mexico, and South America. It's a member of the Solanaceae, thus a relative of tomatoes, potatoes, tomatillos, eggplant, and tobacco, as well as weeds such as tree tobacco, black nightshade, and hairy nightshade.
The photo below shows silverleaf nightshade spreading in a recently disked field near UC Davis. Note that it's pretty much the only plant present: it can regrow from small rhizome fragments, and is very tolerant of hot and dry conditions. It's also poisonous to livestock. It is a listed noxious weed in many states and in a number of Mediterranean-climate countries...
- Author: Devii R. Rao
- Posted by: Gale Perez
From the Livestock and Range blog
Did you miss the Weed Management for Small Acreage Workshop? Don't worry! Here's the link to all the presentations: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLLjlfxpbNglYGn38KY94aoo6z3pLjo7E4.
Topics Included:
- Poisonous Plants
- Yellow Starthistle Control
- Herbicide Resistant Weeds
- Weed ID and Management 101
- Author: Rebecca Ozeran
As of February 20, fiddleneck (Amsinckia spp.) was flowering in Fresno County. Zero rain fell in the city of Fresno during the month of February. By February 27, a date when the temperature reached 79°F in Fresno, the U.S. Drought Monitor had declared most of California's Central Valley to be in Moderate Drought conditions (D1). This status persists despite cooler temperatures and rain in the middle of March (Fig. 1).
Figure 1. March 31, 2020 Drought Monitor showing moderate drought (D1) in the southern San Joaquin Valley, and the western portion of the entire Central Valley through the north coast. In California,...