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Find out more about COVID-19 in King County and our ongoing response. It's important that everyone take steps to reduce the spread of novel coronavirus.
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Milk Thistle - March 2020 Weed of the Month
Milk thistle is a perfect example of how plants can have both positive and negative impacts. On the one hand, milk thistle is a Class A noxious weed and quarantined species in Washington because of its negative impacts on pastures and livestock, the potential for rapid spread, and the difficulty to eradicate it once it establishes. But on the other hand, milk thistle seeds are widely used as an herbal medicine and are commonly sold even here in Washington (which is legal if the seeds have been steam-treated or otherwise made non-viable).
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Steps the noxious weed program is taking to help slow the spread of COVID-19.
The King County Noxious Weed Control Program is following the guidance of Public Health – Seattle & King County on the COVID-19 outbreak to help prevent the spread of novel coronavirus in our community. We have rescheduled or cancelled all program-sponsored classes and other events in March and April. If guidelines change, we will make additional scheduling adjustments as needed. Also, we are contacting property owners and agencies by phone, email and mail to avoid in person contact. Follow the Read More link below for more steps we are taking.
That said, we are still hard at work reducing the impacts of noxious weeds in order to protect the environment and people of King County. Our noxious weed specialists are available by phone or email to give technical assistance and to follow up on noxious weed reports. You can report weeds and find lots of great resources through our website kingcounty.gov/weeds.
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Poison-hemlock season is here.
The sun is shining! Planning on spending some time outside? Going for a walk in a natural area or doing some gardening are great ways to unwind while practicing social distancing. But this time of year you could encounter a different danger to public health: poison-hemlock. This noxious weed is common in King County and is toxic if eaten by people or animals. The problem is it looks a lot like other edible plants like carrots and cilantro. Do you know how to identify it?
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What's weeding now?
A mild winter means we are seeing a bunch more noxious weeds popping up early, or moving along faster than usual. As we keep getting rain, sun and mild temperatures, our noxious weed season is growing into a serious challenge! Read on for a small sample of the noxious weeds showing up in King County this March.
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King County offering free classes on noxious weeds.
NOTE: The class schedule may change based on COVID-19 guidelines and advisories. See kingcounty.gov/covid for the latest information.
Spring is on the way and so are the noxious weeds! King County’s noxious weed program wants to help city and county crews, landscapers, restoration groups and county residents fight noxious weeds. We plan to offer a full day seminar and evening workshops several times a year that teach how to identify and control noxious weeds and also stay safe and protect the environment while we do so. Registration is open now. If we need to reschedule any classes or change to an online format, we will make sure to let you know.
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Sasha Shaw, King County Noxious Weed Control Program
Please feel free to distribute this information freely and to contact me if you have any questions.
Thank you.
Sasha Shaw
King County Noxious Weed Control Program
sasha.shaw@kingcounty.gov
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