Samish Overlook fans, you might recognize this view! We were lucky enough to get a glimpse of the Samish Bay mud flats during a low tide in July. What a sight!

In the distance (see the photo on the right), you can see rectangular shellfish beds. There are shellfish beds like these throughout the bay, where shellfish farmers grow oysters, clams, and geoducks. 

These shellfish are affected by bacteria in the water— too much bacteria can make the them toxic to people. When bacteria levels are too high, shellfish harvest has to shut down. This affects farms, consumers, and economy across the county.

While some of this bacteria comes from wildlife, a lot of it comes from US! Human poop, as well as poop from our dogs and farm animals, add a lot of bacteria to the water every time it rains.

Samish Overlook itself is a source of bacteria. When hikers leave behind dog poop, rain water picks it up and carries it right down the hillside into the bay. But bacteria from poop can travel a long way in our rivers and streams. Pollution from many miles away can eventually reach the bay— and our shellfish!

Whether you're out on a hike or in your own backyard, always scoop it, bag it, and trash it!

Pesticides and herbicides (bug and weed killers) can harm the health of our soils, plants, wildlife, and families. The good news is that we don’t need those chemicals to grow a healthy, beautiful landscape.

Poison in your yard is poison in our water

Anything you put in your yard can be picked up by rain and washed into our rivers, streams, lakes, and marine waters. Here, chemicals can not only affect humans and pets, but the entire food chain.

Even small amounts of pesticides can kill stream bugs. These bugs feed salmon and other fish, which in turn feed larger animals like river otters, seals, and orcas. If we lose the bugs, all of these other animals are at risk, too.

Reducing chemical use in your yard helps protect human health, water quality, and wildlife. So how can you switch to chemical-free gardening?

1. Set up for success.

If you can set your yard up for success against weeds and insects, you'll need to do less to remove them. You can help out your garden by...

• Building healthy soil with compost and mulch.
• Choosing pest-resistant plants and put them in the sun and soil conditions they prefer.
• Removing diseased plants to reduce hiding places for insect pests.
• Using a variety of plants, so if pests attack one plant, others can fill its place.
• Pulling weeds before they go to seed and spread.

2. Identify pests before you spray, stomp, or squash. 

What you think is a pest may be a beneficial, or helpful, insect that eats pests. Whether it’s a bug, disease, or weed, you should identify it to know how best to manage it. 

3. Accept a little damage and give nature time to work. 

Most insects are beneficial: only about 1-5% of the insects in our gardens are pests. Beneficial insects, like ground beetles, ladybugs, and lacewings help control pests. Don’t spray at the first sign of damage – nature may control it for you. Also, plants often outgrow the damage.

4. When needed, use safer alternative products. 

Chemical pesticides and herbicides can cause serious harm to people, pets, wildlife, and water quality. Even natural and organic pesticides can harm beneficial insects like pollinators, so use them only if necessary.

Here are a few safer options for controlling weeds and pests:

• Long-handled weed pullers remove deep taproots easily, and hoe-style weeders are effective with shallow-rooted weeds.
• Mulching around trees and shrubs with 2-3 inches of wood chips once a year reduces weeds in beds.
• Hand-picking can be effective for large pests like cabbage loopers, tomato hornworms, and slugs. Colorful sticky traps can be used for flying pests like apple maggot and whitefly. Beer traps can be used to control slugs.
• Less toxic, certified organic products like insecticidal soaps, horticultural oils, and plant-based insecticides are available. Visit growsmartgrowsafe.org for a list of safer products.

5. Handle chemical pesticides and herbicides properly.

Hazardous chemicals should be stored properly, and only used if necessary. For safe disposal, bring them to a hazardous waste collection site. Visit skagitcounty.net/hazwaste to learn about the Skagit Household Hazardous Waste Facility.

Some guidelines for hazardous waste are:

• Keep hazardous products away from children and pets.
• Never mix products. Some mixtures produce a poisonous gas.
• Keep hazardous products away from drains.
• Keep hazardous products away from food items, including vegetable gardens.
• Keep hazardous products in original containers and make sure they have a label.

This information was developed by Seattle Public Utilities and the Hazardous Waste Management Program of King County. Skagit County thanks the City of Seattle and King County for permission to share it.

Farm Tip of the Month

Do you know how much Skagit County has changed in the past 15 years?

Skagit County’s Voluntary Stewardship Program (VSP) tracks the loss of our fish and wildlife habitat critical areas. Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife data shows that we've lost around 80 acres of critical habitat in the VSP focus area since 2011.

This loss of habitat doesn’t just damage the health of our water and land. It creates risk for farmers, too. Through VSP, stewardship (doing things to take care of the land) is voluntary in Skagit County. But, if VSP doesn't meet its goals of protecting critical habitat, farmers might face more regulations on their land management practices.

Luckily, every year more Skagit farmers and landowners decide to step up to protect our water, fish, and wildlife!

Landowners in action

Agricultural landowners across the county have planted streamside plants, protected waterways from wandering animals, and reduced the amount of polluted water leaving their properties. Many landowners get financial and technical support for these projects from local organizations. This work benefits everyone downstream and protects the land and water for generations to come.

Thanks to these landowners and programs like Skagit Conservation District, Natural Resources Stewardship Program, and Skagit Fisheries Enhancement Group, we have seen enough restoration and land enhancement to help offset the habitat lost.

Keeping track of hard work

Along with tracking habitat loss, VSP also tracks projects that protect and improve critical habitat!

The work you do on your property to improve soil health and protect water quality makes a big difference, even if you’re not part of a formal program. The choices you make to protect our land and water lead to less regulations for you and other farmers. You can take our agricultural producer survey online to tell us about how you protect land, soil, and water!

Resources for you

If you are a landowner who is looking for financial or technical assistance, contact Taylor Scott at taylors@co.skagit.wa.us or 360-630-9355. Funding may be available to help you with practices that protect critical areas, such as fences, riparian management zones or improved pastures and paddocks.

Learn more about the Voluntary Stewardship Program at skagitcounty.net/vsp.

Tansy ragwort is in the hot seat for our Noxious Weed of the Month!

Tansy ragwort is a highly toxic weed that causes huge problems in pastures. It can kill humans and livestock, and even contaminate honey made from its flowers and milk from animals that eat it.

Tansy ragwort is a Class B noxious weed on Washington's quarantine list, meaning it is illegal to buy, sell, or transport. Here's what you need to know to make sure you're not an accomplice to this wicked weed!

Description: Tansy ragwort is typically a biennial plant, meaning it has a two year lifecycle. In its first year, tansy ragwort only grows as a rosette— a cluster of very ruffled, dark green leaves growing close to the ground. During the second year, the stem will grow and flower.

Tansy ragwort stems get up to 4 feet tall and can grow on their own or in clusters. Stems branch out near the top of the plant.

Ruffled green leaves grow alternately up the stems. Leaves near the top of the plant look sparser and more divided, with more space between leaf sections.

Yellow flowers grow in clusters at the top of the stems. Each small flower consists of a round, bumpy center, which may be slightly brownish or orange, surrounded by 13 narrow yellow petals. When they go to seed, the flowers become round, white or light brown puffballs.

The fluffy seeds make tansy ragwort an especially big problem around roads. Seeds can get picked up and distributed by the wind from passing cars and trucks.

Toxicity: Tansy ragwort is highly toxic to livestock, humans, and pets. It can cause liver and neurological issues that can lead to sickness, coma, or even death. Animal products like milk and honey can become contaminated with toxins from the plant.

While livestock typically avoids tansy ragwort, it can become a big problem when unintentionally mixed into feed. It also becomes easier for animals to eat when wilted, so plants that have been pulled up and left in the field are dangerous, too.

All parts of the plant are poisonous, but the flowers hold the most toxins.

Control: Good pasture management is an important first step to prevent and reduce tansy ragwort infestations. Keep pastures, fields, and disturbed areas seeded with non-invasive (or even native!) plants to out-compete the weed.

Always wear gloves while working with tansy ragwort, as all parts of the plant are toxic. You can control small infestations by hand pulling the plants, making sure to pull the root as well. Larger infestations may need to be treated with herbicide, as well.

Mowing can help knock down flowerheads before they go to seed, but can also prolong infestations, as mowing tansy ragwort can make it return each year.

Make sure you remove all of the plants you treat or pull up from your field. Put plants, especially flowering heads, in a plastic bag and in the trash.

For more information or for help identifying and controlling tansy ragwort, including by using herbicide, please reach out to our Noxious Weed Coordinator, Evan Emrick, at (360) 707-1502 or evane@co.skagit.wa.us.

Learn more about how to identify tansy ragwort from the Washington State Noxious Weed Control Board.

Photos courtesy of the Washington State Noxious Weed Control Board.

Program News

We're looking for two new representatives to sit on our Noxious Weeds Board! We have vacancies in both District 3 and District 4.

Help us weed 'em out by overseeing noxious weed coordination and being a resource in your community. Noxious Weed Board Meetings are held quarterly. You can help us decide which weeds are targeted for control each year - helping farmers, homeowners, and foresters alike!

Learn more about the Noxious Weeds Board online and reach out to Evan Emrick in our Public Works Department at evane@co.skagit.wa.us if you're interested in applying!