Scentless chamomile’s white daisy-like flowers look attractive, but every farmer knows the weed is bad news.
Formally known as matricaria perforata, it spreads rapidly in ditches, along fence lines and into pastures and fields.
The annual, biennial and occasional perennial plant is tough to remove from pastures.
It likes high moisture and disturbed soil, which means farmers in wetter areas of Saskatchewan and Manitoba can expect it this year if it is in the weed seed bank at or near the surface.
The weed is a particular problem in central and northern Alberta.
A single plant may produce more than one million seeds in a season, which are carried by wind and water.
Control options for cropped land include Group 2 herbicides such as thifensulfuron and tribenuron, group 4 herbicides such as Lontrel (clopyralid) and dicamba and a Group 6 and 4 combination such as bromoxynil and MCPA ester.
Escort (metsulfuron) and Tordon 22k (picloram acid) can be used in pastures.
