Pahranagat Valley Cooperative Weed Management Area Weed of the Month Russian Knapweed

Russian knapweed is a creeping perennial that reproduces through seed and roots. You will begin to see this plant in spring with the flowering stage occurring June through September. Typically, the plant grows between 18-36 inches tall with flowers (1/4-1/2 inches in diameter) at the tips of the many branches. Flower color can range from white, pink, and purple. The leaves are covered with gray hairs. One easy way to identify this plant is the dark (black/brown) roots that run horizontally and vertically. Russian knapweed is one of Nevadas noxious weeds. It is highly invasive along roads, irrigation ditches, and in dry pastures. Russian knapweed crowds out other plants and produces a chemical toxin that prevents other plants from growing near it. This plant is also toxic to horses. Russian knapweed is difficult to control due to the extensive root system and the seed survives 2-3 years in the soil. The best control methods are to stress the plant during the growing season (May-August) by mowing continually and then chemically treating the plants with an herbicide in the fall which disrupts the root bud development. Recommended herbicides include Milestone (aminopyralid), Tordon 22K (picloram), Transline (clopyralid), and Curtail (clopyralid + 2,4-D). Since Russian knapweed invades degraded areas, seeding with perennial grasses and forbs that can compete with the knapweed is important to win the war with this noxious weed. For more information on the weeds in Pahranagat Valley, please contact the Pahranagat Valley Cooperative Weed Management Area Weed Hotline at (775) 725-3368 or contact the CWMA coordinator at rpowell@audubon.org.