The host of aggressive foreign noxious weeds gradually
dominating our wild lands is fully capable of devastating both native and
desirable agricultural plant communities. This infection can be compared to foreign
strains of flu, Lyme Disease or West Nile Virus, but unlike our bodies, native
plant systems don't have enough time to develop an immunity to fight the onslaught.
Human mobility is the source of the infection; it is therefore up to us to
isolate and fight the disease.
As with human disease, weed treatments come in a variety of
prescriptions that have a range of applications and effectiveness. Examples
would be hand pulling of weeds (surgery), planting competing vegetation
(increasing immunity), introducing weed eating insects (inoculation) and spraying
with herbicides (drugs). Like a doctor prescribing antibiotics and bed-rest for
us, using a combination of the weed control options is usually the most
effective measure against a weed infection.
Comparison of herbicides to human drugs isn't as much of a
stretch as it might seem. Both fit under the general definition of pesticides. As
with antibiotics, herbicides aren’t always the best prescription, and can have
very serious side effects if used improperly.
However, they are often necessary with the most resilient and
virulent weeds.
Everything humans do has some risk of undesirable
side-effects, especially when tackling serious problems. However, if we don’t
use all the remedies at our disposal, the risks are very high that a lot of our
wildlife, recreation areas, and family farms and ranches will be seriously, if
not terminally ill. Herbicide use can be controversial. However, just as with
antibiotics, they are effective and safe when used appropriately.
