Council to use marker dye when spraying weeds

Yass Valley Council will soon begin using biodegradable marker dye with all glyphosate applications to make it easier for people to see where the herbicide has been sprayed.

Senior Biosecurity Weeds Officer, Brett Lees, said the herbicides will be applied by spot spraying individual plants to minimise the impact on non-target plants that maintain groundcover.

The dye will appear a pink-purple colour once sprayed and is not classified as hazardous.

Council's contractors will begin by targeting invasive grass species including African lovegrass, serrated tussock and Chilean needle grass.

The weeds were identified in the Council's Local Strategic Weeds Plan during spring - the peak growing season - to minimise the number of seeds produced and reduce ongoing infestations.

Weed spraying will continue into the summer months when contractors will target woody weeds such as blackberries, St John's wort and sweet briar.

Woody weeds are best targeted once the plants have emerged from winter dormancy and are in full leaf.

The following herbicides will be used in accordance with the approved guidelines: • Grass weed herbicides: Flupropanate and Glyphosate. • Woody weed herbicides: Metsulfuron-Methyl, Glyphosate and Grazon.

5 2021

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