MRLA Hosts Cheatgrass Workshop Tonight

Cheatgrass is an invasive species of grass that is spreading quickly across the Golden Triangle, robbing the soil of the precious moisture and nutrients needed to produce more nutritious native grasses. It also dries out quickly, making it a fire hazard. The question for livestock producers is how to control it, if not eradicate it.

The Marias River Livestock Association will host a special workshop on cheatgrass mitigation on Wednesday evening, July 14th. The work shop is open to all, and will bring together three experts to discuss management tools available to fight cheatgrass outright, or at least give native grasses a fighting chance at competing with the invader.

Steve Sanders is a rangeland management specialist and consultant for Bayer Environmental Science, and colleague Justin Hossfeld, the company's  Western Range Segment Manager, will explain the use of the herbicide Rejuvra to control cheatgrass and improve rangeland overall.

Geologist Stuart Jennings has been researching methods to reclaim degraded soils for over 30 years, including a 20-year career teaching soil remediation at Montana State University. He is the founder of a company dedicated to the development of a non-synthetic products for improving soil health and accelerating the growth of native perennial vegetation.

The workshop will held in the conference room at the Well Done Foundation, 333 Main Street in Shelby. The evening begins with a BBQ beef dinner at 5:00pm, with the presentations at 5:45pm.