Regarding Princess Ludwigia & The Sad Eyed Lady of the Laguna Marsh

I just read another article about how tenacious Ludwigia is and how much money has been spent with so little results. I bike past the creek crossing Stony Point near Rohnert Park Expressway on a regular basis and am always amazed at it's lush invasive presence at that juncture. I'm not an expert on these things at all but wouldn't a giant football field sized tarp, maybe a 100 X 200 yards, laid systematically across various parts of the streams leading into the marsh have a significant impact? A tarp itself would not be that expensive, certainly not millions of dollars, and moving it from the shoreline with winches or whatever doesn't seem too impossible.

Just like getting rid of Bermuda Grass (which did you know is a sacred herb in Ayurvedic medicine, ranking right up there with Ashwaganda and Holy Basil!) or any other truly pernicious weed in the garden....ie....you water the soil to sprout all the weed seeds, then cover it with clear plastic which in the summer just bakes it it till it all dies off. If a giant tarp were laid across sections of the stream, it would block all sunlight and possibly heat the water up underneath which might be problematic, but any fish or wildlife could probably swim the fifty yards to far edge of it....and I would think it would systematically eradicate or at least greatly reduce the Evil Ludwigia, section by section at far less of a cost than other methods. I was going to contact the director of the Laguna about this possible strategy but figured it wouldn't hurt to run it by the smart folks of Waccobb first.


ps...I saw the coolest method for eradicating roadside Kudzu, etc, down in the South, on tv, a few years ago. They just drag a 12 ft rubber mat behind a tractor that sprays boiling hot water on the weeds as it goes along, and the mat keeps the ground hot enough for 10 seconds or so to burn off all the essential oils needed for the weeds survival. Very green!

We might also start a local manatee reserve and provide winter quarters for same. Then charge admission.

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Posted in reply to the post by decterlove:

I just read another article about how tenacious Ludwigia is and how much money has been spent with so little results. I bike past the creek crossing Stony Point near Rohnert Park Expressway on a regular basis and am always amazed at it's lush invasive presence at that juncture. I'm not an expert on these things at all but wouldn't a giant football field sized tarp, maybe a 100 X 200 yards, laid systematically across various parts of the streams leading into the marsh have a significant impact? A tarp itself would not be that expensive, certainly not millions of dollars, and moving it from the shoreline with winches or whatever doesn't seem too impossible.

Just like getting rid of Bermuda Grass (which did you know is a sacred herb in Ayurvedic medicine, ranking right up there with Ashwaganda and Holy Basil!) or any other truly pernicious weed in the garden....ie....you water the soil to sprout all the weed seeds, then cover it with clear plastic which in the summer just bakes it it till it all dies off. If a giant tarp were laid across sections of the stream, it would block all sunlight and possibly heat the water up underneath which might be problematic, but any fish or wildlife could probably swim the fifty yards to far edge of it....and I would think it would systematically eradicate or at least greatly reduce the Evil Ludwigia, section by section at far less of a cost than other methods. I was going to contact the director of the Laguna about this possible strategy but figured it wouldn't hurt to run it by the smart folks of Waccobb first.


ps...I saw the coolest method for eradicating roadside Kudzu, etc, down in the South, on tv, a few years ago. They just drag a 12 ft rubber mat behind a tractor that sprays boiling hot water on the weeds as it goes along, and the mat keeps the ground hot enough for 10 seconds or so to burn off all the essential oils needed for the weeds survival. Very green!

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My guess is that they have thought of that,and probably the problem would be the organic matter is still there,only now rotting.there is already a problem with too much biomass in the Laguna region,so it might cause the water to go exceedingly stagnant,and lay down more mass for more weeds to grow in,causeing infill and clogging up the waterway?

I also am a dreaming wild unknowing enthusiast with great ideas love the steam machine bit awesone!

being a worm farmer ,I cannot understand why the mysterious "somebody" does not "do the math" and figure out that worm Compost can sell for $ 2.00 a lb Compost teas $10.00 a gallon .25 gallons from 4 lbs of compost... it is the "rage of the future for soil remediation,which if you study agriculture at all you know is super important right now... there is property enough around the laguna to handle the operation no odor problem like waste management is dealing with in their compost ops. All that is needed as good grant writing and the right agencies to step in and assist each other ..? or is that too simplistic like most of my rants. worms LOVE that stuff (I know this cause worms love EVERYTHING that grows from the ground! ) yumm yumm

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Posted in reply to the post by decterlove:

I just read another article about how tenacious Ludwigia is and how much money has been spent with so little results. ...
ps...I saw the coolest method for eradicating roadside Kudzu, etc, down in the South, on tv, a few years ago. They just drag a 12 ft rubber mat behind a tractor that sprays boiling hot water on the weeds as it goes along, and the mat keeps the ground hot enough for 10 seconds or so to burn off all the essential oils needed for the weeds survival. Very green!

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The solution is only waiting a market which is coming.