The authorities north and south of the border say there is a legal responsibility to destroy the spread of the weeds and summer is the best time to tackle them.
Northern Ireland’s Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) has reminded farmers and landowners of the need to destroy noxious weeds.
Under the Noxious Weeds (Northern Ireland) Order 1977, ragwort, thistle, dock and wild oat are defined as noxious weeds and landowners have a legal responsibility to prevent the spread of these weeds.
Noxious weeds should be destroyed before they have had time to flower, seed and spread.
Dock populations can increase significantly and are very hardy with strong roots.
The department also reminded owners and occupiers of land that ragwort (also called ragweed or benweed) is poisonous and may cause illness and even death to livestock.
It also said that care should be taken when filling and applying herbicides to ensure no chemicals enter any drain or waterway, as grassland herbicides are the most commonly detected pesticides in local drinking water catchments; MCPA being of particular concern.
DAERA advised that after spraying, sprayers should be cleaned and stored under cover to prevent rain washing any contamination from the sprayer into drains.
In the Republic
According to Teagasc, “any person responsible for land on which these weeds (ragwort, thistle, dock, common barberry, male wild hop and spring wild oat) are growing is liable, upon conviction, to be fined.
“A person responsible for land may be either the owner, occupier, user or manager of the land.”
Ragwort
Under the CAP payment schemes, farmers are required to maintain land in good agricultural and environmental condition as part of cross-compliance. One of the cross-compliance conditions is that appropriate measures must be adopted to minimise the spread of noxious weeds. Failure to comply with this condition may result in penalties.
Teagasc also says that “where weeds are abundant, they indicate that land is not being properly farmed and are evidence of a low level of grassland management”.
It advises that the best time to spray for docks in grassland is when they are actively growing in the summer months, when they are free of disease, pest attack, drought, etc, with nutrients being translocated to leaves, stem and roots of the actively growing dock plant. The best time to spray is before stem formation. In late July, this is when the dock plant has plenty of leaves to absorb chemicals in herbicide being used.
(Source – Irish farmers Journal – Amy Mc Shane – 11/06/2016)
Topping Rushes
Related Articles:
Dealing With The Scourge Of Rushes In Grassland
Q and A Weed Control Buttercup Farm May Lose Out On Productivity
Now Is The Time To Destroy Noxious Weeds If They Are Growing On Your Land