Eradicating Scotch Thistle with FOTO
Scotch thistle is an invasive plant that grows as tall as a man and spreads its seeds through its bristle-covered spherical seed pods. It is native to Europe and Western Asia. In this country it has become a nuisance, spreading through agricultural fields, along roadsides, campsites and across scenic landscapes. It is difficult to eradicate because it is drought resistant. When it invades state parks, its prickly leaves and spicular seed pods can greatly diminish the outdoor experience, particularly of children and pets that have been unleashed.
Eradication of these noxious plants is by either cutting them out or by spraying with herbicide. Whichever method is adopted, it takes money–money that the Oregon State Parks is short of. And that’s where the volunteers of the Friends of the Owyhee (FOTO) come in. FOTO is largely the effort of Ontario resident Tim Davis who has invested an exceptional amount of energy and time in bringing together lovers of the Owyhee Canyonlands to organize hikes and other activities to introduce the beauty and ecological complexity of the region. FOTO also assists government agencies, such as the BLM and Oregon State Parks, as well as other NGOs, providing badly needed manpower for such work as repairing the corrals at the historic Birch Creek Ranch, building guzzlers to provide water for threatened Big Horn Sheep, and eradicating noxious weeds, like the Scotch Thistle.
An example of a state campsite badly infested by this noxious weed is Succor Creek State Park, which is nestled in a magnificent canyon famed as a thunderegg site. The park is about 25 miles south of Adrian, Oregon and just across the border from Homedale, Idaho. It gets a lot of use from folks who don’t pay the taxes that support it. One Sunday in early June I joined more than a half dozen FOTO members and a park ranger working on a steep hillside cutting out head-high thistle, hauling them down the mountain (taking care not to leave seed pods behind) and pitchforking them into a trailer. The work ran from 9:00AM to a bit after 1:00 PM. (I was late as usual.) It was a pretty good haul, considering the difficulty of the terrain and the heat (91º in the shade according to my car’s thermometer). The park ranger, Aaron Reines, said that without the volunteer help eradication would have been nigh impossible. There are no funds for contracting the work out, and he does not have the staff for spraying. He was extremely grateful to the FOTO members.
Such volunteering is an important way of sustaining the people’s claim to their public lands. Joining organizations such as Friends of the Owyhee (check out their FaceBook Page or Website) is critical to supporting such work.