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In some places, Russian thistle has served as a centerpiece at some community festivals, but here in Dakotaland it is a nuisance weed and nothing more. This story took on added meaning when I was visiting my dentist in Tripp. On his waiting room table, I found a copy of the December 2013 National Geographic where, on page 130, was a story titled “The Weed That Won The West.” The story shares that the Department of Agriculture in 1880 had received reports of a strange new plant near the town of Yankton, S.D. Furthermore, the story said the seed was found in some contaminated flaxseed near the town of Scotland, S.D. Interesting as that was the very story Mrs. Bender had shared with me earlier.

AMERICAN EMBLEMS

Tumbleweeds were already a detested farming pest and fire threat back in the late 19th century, but that didn’t stop them from becoming immortalized in 20th-century Western movies as rugged roamers, symbols of our national reverence for resilient individualism, wide open spaces and rambling frontier freedom.

Several Westerns were named for these shrubby lone drifters — a 1925 silent film called “Tumbleweeds” and a 1953 Audie Murphy flick named "Tumbleweed." A 1935 Gene Autry movie titled "Tumbling Tumbleweeds" also featured a hit song by the same name.

A poster for the 1925 silent movie “Tumbleweeds” starring iconic cowboy actor William S. Hart.

www.treehugger.com/everything-you-ever-wanted-know-abouttumbleweeds-4864166

TUMBLEGEDDON!

From a series of Twitter posts on Jan. 1, 2020, by Washington State Patrol Officer Chris Thorson

• We’re still working on clearing the roadway with

Washington State DOT. We are unsure when the roadway will be opened. Tumbleweeds are piled 20-30 feet in places. #tumblegeddon • After 10 hours of (Highway) SR 240 being closed last night on New Year’s Eve, it was opened around 0430 thanks to Washington State Department of

Transportation. #tumblegeddon • We still have one abandoned car trapped in the tumbleweeds that was found at daylight, luckily no one was in it. #tumblegeddon

“Tumblegeddon” was a massive collection of tumbleweeds which closed highways in Washington State on Dec. 31, 2019, and Jan. 1, 2020. Snowplows were brought in to clear the highways of the tumbleweeds. Photo by Chris Thorson, Washington State Patrol.

ALWAYS HERE. ALWAYS CARING.

For over 100 years, De Smet Farm Mutual has been helping to protect what we all love about South Dakota. While it may take some time to recognize our new look, you can have confidence that the values our company was founded on are stronger than ever.

FARM & RANCH HOME AUTO

(605) 854-3337 www.DeSmetFarmMutual.com

Salsola tragus, commonly known as Russian thistle.

State workers unbury a car trapped in tumbleweeds on a Washington State highway on Jan. 1, 2020. Photo by Chris Thorson, Washington State Patrol.

The annual Christmas tree made of tumbleweeds in Chandler, Ariz., a tradition more than 60 years old. Photo by Peter Bronski, Wikipedia Commons.

THE COLD HARD FACTS

Russian thistle (Salsola tragus), also referred to as tumbleweed, is a summer annual belonging to the family Amaranthaceae. Stems of this plant vary in length from eight to 36 inches, and are striped with red or purple markings. At maturity, the plant takes on a dome shape with diameters ranging from 18 inches to 6 feet. During the fall months, the plant becomes dry and breaks off at the soil level where it rolls for great lengths from wind movement. The result of the tumbling is to spread seeds across long distances. By depleting available water for crops, providing shelter to harmful invertebrates, and a carrier of curly top virus, the Russian thistle reduces ag crop yields. Russian thistle can build up along fence lines, creating a fire hazard, and where it must be manually removed. One plant is capable of releasing 200,000 seeds across several miles depending on wind conditions and path obstructions. Russian thistle has been identified in 23 states and the District of Columbia.

Russian thistle was accidentally introduced to the United States by immigrants in 1873 in contaminated flax seeds brought to South Dakota.

Excerpted and adapted from the Texas Invasive Species Institute www.tsusinvasives.org/home/database/salsola-tragus