At the annual Utah Weed Control Association meetings recently held in Provo, the Tooele County Weed Board received Weed Board of the Year for 2007. Jerry Caldwell accepted the honor on behalf of the board. Jerry was recently chosen to fill the position of county weed supervisor after the previous supervisor, Laury Hardy, retired. In the past three years, the Tooele County Weed Board has applied for and received more than $50,000 in grants from the USFS (Forest Service), NRCS (Natural Resources Conservation Service), and UDAF-GIP (Utah Department of Agriculture and Food - Grazing Improvement Program). The grant money has been used to establish the current noxious weed control program.

At a recent weed board meeting, Steve Burningham, state weed supervisor, commented that he had never seen Tooele County as aggressive as it is now. The county program is targeting grazing and crop land larger than one acre. In 2007, 1,600 acres of private ground were treated throughout the county and the program was expanded to include reseeding land previously treated. Biological methods of control are also being used in certain situations. Weed infestation trends are mapped and monitored using GPS and GIS technology along with before and after digital photography.

Landowners with county noxious weeds -- weeds listed on official county noxious weed list -- can borrow spray equipment and receive free herbicide to treat the affected acres. Annual weed control and weed sprayer calibration workshops are part of the program as well. All that is asked of participants in the program is that they keep a record of acreage monitored and treated and that they read and follow label directions. For more information call Jerry Caldwell at 843-3459. Homeowners with less than one acre of land can call the extension office at 277-2407 for recommendations about lawn and garden weed control.