(Spirit Lake)– The man who oversees the Integrated Roadside Vegetation Management, or IRVM program in Dickinson county says he continues to see a lot interest in it locally.
Charles Vigdahl oversees the IRVM program for Dickinson County in his role as County Weed Commissioner. He told the Board of Supervisors earlier this week he coordinates with the Dickinson County Secondary Roads Department as a number of ditches along county roads are in the IRVM program…
“We go out and help when the Secondary Roads go out and they clean out a ditch and they scrape it and turn it all into black soil. We put in prairie and hopefully that prairie takes and it will actually keep some of these invasive species out. We get all of our seed, prairie seed, which can be very expensive, we get all of our seed from a Tap Seed program, a federal grant, and we do not have to pay for any of prairie seed that we get in Dickinson county. So anything I need for, as long as it’s in the right-of-way, we get all of our seed taken care of which is really, really nice.”
Vigdahl says the program is also open to land and property owners in rural areas of Dickinson county…
“People that live in the country or, I have a couple of people on Big Spirit. They have a right-of-way ditch that they’re kind of tired of mowing or they want something else in there. I have four residents next year that are interested in turning their mowed ditch or right-of-way in front of their house into a prairie patch, so. And I also have one business, too.”
Vigdahl says the IRVM program provides multiple benefits…
“It reduces maintenance, we have to spray less. Once we get that diversity in there it does choke out the thistles and other things that are in there. It helps water infiltration, provides habitat for the pheasants and butterflies. It’s drought tolerant so it doesn’t, you know, die when it’s really, really hot out. They can sequester herbicides and topsoil that’s off of agricultural land, so. And it just looks pretty, too, so.”
Vigdahl encourages anyone who would like more information on the Integrated Roadside Vegetation Management program to contact him at 336-6269.
