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Community Asked to Participate in Effort to Clear Dyers Woad from Ogden Valley
By Shanna Francis
The entire community of Ogden Valley and Ogden Canyon are being asked to participate in a Dyers Woad Eradication event slated for Saturday, July 16. The day will begin at 8:30 a.m. with an informational seminar regarding the Utah state-listed noxious weed and the best way to eradicate, manage, and control the spread of the weed. Weber County Vegetation Manager James Park will be on hand at Snowcrest Jr. High to provide the information and answer questions from the public.
Afterwards, from 9:00 a.m. to noon, the community is being asked to participate in the Valley-wide effort—to disperse into the community and clear dyers woad. Weber County has offered the use of dump trucks that will be parked at the junior high in Eden to receive the bags of woad that are collected by community members that morning. Please make arrangements to meet at the school before 9:00 a.m. to attend the informational meeting and obtain large orange collection bags from Weber County’s Road Department. It is suggested that participants bring gloves, a sharp digging tool if you have one, a brimmed hat, and plenty of water. The Weber County Sheriff’s Department will also have crews on hand to help with the clean-up event.
Representative Gage Froerer of Huntsville, and owner of Century 21 Gage Froerer real estate office in Eden (2405 N. Highway 158), has generously offered, along with his staff, to provide and serve hamburgers and drinks for volunteers at 12:30 following the clean-up effort. The luncheon will be provided in the Century 21 parking lot located west of Wells Fargo Bank and Maverik gas station on Highway 158.
Church and scout groups, families, businesses, and other organizations are being asked to set aside the morning to participate in this Valley- and community-wide effort between private landowners and county and state governmental agencies.
Landowners are also being asked to clean their own property of noxious weeds as directed by state law, prior to July 16 if possible. If weeds are pulled before the ground has hardened, cut or mowed down, or killed by spraying before the weed’s yellow blossoms ripen fully into green seed pods, the weed will not have to be collected, but can be left on the ground. Please note that by July 16, the weeds will have to be collected and destroyed to prevent the seeds from spreading and multiplying. This means that if neighbors clean their property before July 16, the job will be easier, and there will be much less work to do during the community-wide effort.
Jim Parks stated that Weber County can spray private property for the cost of $50 per acre. For arrangements, Mr. Parks can be reached at 801-399-8356.
Chemical control of dyers woad can be very effective. Small land owners will want to use 2,4-D with a surfactant (an adjuvant that helps the herbicide spread on, stick to, and penetrate the leaf surface). This herbicide works well while the plants are young. Once the dyers woad is mature enough to have flowers the 2,4-D is not very effective. Large property owners will get their best control with Escort or Telar. These products are only sold in larger sized packages. They have some soil activity and one application will often control dyers woad for two years.
Additional information on dyers woad can be obtained by contacting James Barnhill at 801-399-8200 at the Utah State Extension Office in Ogden, by visiting Weber County’s weed abatement web page at www.co.weber.ut.us/weeds/ or USDA’s web site at
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