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2016 Summary Report-Noxious Weed Management on HOLCIM <br /> (US) Inc. Quarries in Larimer County-2016 <br /> Holcim (US) Inc. <br /> 3500 Highway 120 <br /> Florence, CO 81226 <br /> Attn: Mike Toelle <br /> Mike, <br /> Below is a summary of the 2016 spray season for HOLCIM(U.S) Inc. quarries in Larimer County. This <br /> season proved to be yet another tough season to spray noxious weeds in Larimer County with the weather <br /> patterns we experienced early in the season and then a sudden shift into drought like conditions for the <br /> majority of the summer and well in to the fall. The early season moisture combined with a quick increase <br /> in temperatures created optimal conditions for the plants to mature at a rapid pace which put us at a <br /> disadvantage. As we progressed throughout the summer months and in to the fall though,the lack of <br /> moisture and higher temperatures caused a lack of re-growth with the plants therefor limiting our fall <br /> applications. Our main target species continues to be Leafy spurge (Euphorbia escda), Canada thistle <br /> (Circium an,ense), Dalmatian toadflax(Linaria dalntatica),Musk thistle(Cardtnts nutans) and Scotch <br /> thistle(Onopordutn acanthium). Dalmatian toadflax (Linaria dahnatica)has been on the incline, while <br /> Leafy spurge spread has remained stagnant and all thistle species has had a good growing season, not just <br /> on Holcim properties, but around all of Larimer County. Although significant progress has been made, a <br /> large percentage of infestations have been reduced, and our acres treated decreased this year,we are still <br /> experiencing new infestations popping up in areas not seen in the past years and therefore scouting of the <br /> entire properties was again mandatory to assure proper coverage. <br /> Our main focus, and where the greatest noxious weed problems occur,was the main quarry,the <br /> Boettcher Limestone Quarry, and to some extent the Curtis Lake area. Based on our past observations and <br /> applications of the Boettcher Limestone quarry,we are starting to see greater control in areas that were <br /> heavily infested with L. spurge and C.thistle on the east side of the property from south to north,but we <br /> are experiencing re-growth of L.spurge and C.thistle and this is mainly due to adjacent properties <br /> infestations. Houndstongue and D.toadflax are still present on the east side,but the Houndstongue <br /> infestations are less than 7% of the original size of infestation, and the D.toadflax is increasing just as we <br /> predicted the past 2 years,with the exception of one isolated infestation that appears to have good control <br /> results from previous year application,but this could be skewed observations with the lack of regrowth <br /> due to the lack of moisture and drought conditions. We were able to perform a fall application on toadflax <br /> where we saw re-growth,mainly in lower lying areas,but my best estimate would be 30%re-growth with <br /> consecutive treatments of Chlorosulfuron(Telar) at 1.5 oz/acre. We had intentions this season to do <br /> another biological release for D.toadflax but unfortunately we were not able to release anymore bugs this <br /> season due to the high demand for Mecinus janthiniformis, the stem mining weevil that feeds on <br /> D.toadflax. Our goal is to have a healthy population along this corridor to assist in bringing our toadflax <br /> population back to more manageable levels. However, I still recommend continued monitoring and <br />