This week Minnesota Department of Agriculture officials found the invasive weed, Palmar Amaranth in cow manure in Redwood County. It was spread through Minnesota grain and seed screenings used in feed. Denise Thiede with the Department of Agriculture says a soybean field that had been treated with manure is where they found the problem.
She says they discovered that the Palmar Amaranth came from grain produced in states far south of Minnesota. Thiede says the Ag Department will be sampling more screenings to find if there’s any more problem with the invasive weed. She says it’s best for producers to get their feed screenings from that produced in Minnesota.
Left uncontrolled, a single female Palmar Amaranth plant typically produces 100,000 to 500,000 seeds and is resistant to multiple herbicides. It can cause substantial yield losses and greatly increased weed management costs in soybeans and corn. Thiede says they can test for Palmar Amaranth but it’s a slow process.
The Ag Department is advising farmers that have manure from feedlots spread on their land to look for Palmar Amaranth and report suspect plants to them. They also advise that pictures are taken of the plant and provided to MDA through their Arrest the Pest line at 1—888-545—6684.
