Perennial Mustard Management
Long-term management plans are essential for control of perennial mustards. Consider individual infestations and
make specific management decisions. In sensitive areas near water, you may need to integrate several techniques.
Develop long-term restoration plans BEFORE initiating any management treatments.
- Two perennial mustards, Perennial pepperweed (Lepidium latifolium) and
Hoary cress (Cardaria draba)
are members of the Southwest's “Dirty Dozen” invasive weeds species. Other invasive perennial mustards
include Lens-podded hoary cress (Cardaria chalepensis) and Hairy or globe-podded whitetop (Cardaria pubescens).
- Infestations primarily spread as shoots emerge from perennial roots that access moisture deep in the soil.
- Perennial mustards are extremely competitive. As infestations develop, they displace nearly all
herbaceous resident vegetation, reducing species biodiversity and transforming soil properties and hydrology.
- Some forms of non-chemical control are effective in Perennial mustard management. For controlling perennial
pepperweed, continual grazing and flooding are effective tools. For Hoary cress, continual grazing, intensive
disking (every 10 days for 2-5 years) and flooding have proven effective. Also, alfalfa and western wheatgrass
may out-compete hoary cress.
- Perennial mustards are sensitive to sulfonylurea (SU) herbicides (Telar, Escort, Oust); however, these
chemicals are not registered for use in sensitive areas next to water.
- Herbicides registered for use in/next to water (2,4-D, glyphosate, triclopyr) have limited effectiveness.
In those areas, integrating mowing with herbicides may improve treatment effectiveness.
- Read the label. You must follow the label directions for all pesticides to get the best results. Failure
to follow labeled instructions may result in poor control, environmental damage, and wasted time, money and
resources. If you have questions, contact a crop consultant, Extension specialist or County Extension Agent.
- For more information, contact an Extension Specialist or your County Extension Agent.
Southwestern Noxious/Invasive Weed Perennial Mustard Excerpt:
Excerpted from July 2004 presentation short course, Farmington, NM,
by Mark Renz, Extension Weed Specialist, New Mexico State University, markrenz@nmsu.edu
Click the following link to listen to the audio excerpt:
Perennial Mustard
Click for problems with the audio file.
 |
Mark Renz: You need to be aware of what's there underneath that canopy of pepperweed.
When you remove that pepperweed you might end up getting an explosion of an undesirable plant.
|
 |
Narrator: Here chicory, another undesirable rangeland plant, is beginning to emerge from beneath the pepperweed.
So, it is very important to plan how you will replace perennial mustard population with desirable plant populations
prior to beginning treatment. For more information, contact a state Extension specialist or your local County Extension Agent. |
If the video is not playing, it may be because you do not have the QuickTime player (or the latest version of it) installed on your machine.
Click here to download QuickTime for Macs.
Click here to download QuickTime for Windows PC.
back to top
|
