The Rock County Highway Department (RCHD) will be applying chemicals in our roadway ditches to control noxious weeds starting in late spring and continuing throughout the summer and fall of 2006. The RCHD uses a combination of HiDep IVM and Tordon 22k for noxious weed control. The RCHD strictly adheres to the wind restrictions for spraying which limits any chemical application if the winds are above 10 mph. The RCHD does limit our broadcast spraying to areas adjacent to corn fields and pastures. We will not apply our chemicals next to bean fields unless our personnel identify an area of noxious weeds. It is very helpful if the landowners/renters address any noxious weeds in the fence line to minimize the risk of crop damage from our chemical application. RCHD Chemical Harvesting Restrictions HiDep IVM: Contains 2-4-D and this has a 30-day pre-harvest interval for hay. If the plant is cut before the 30-day interval the chemical does not break down and should not be fed to dairy cattle. Tordon 22k: Contains picloram and this has a 14-day waiting period for harvesting for hay. Hay harvested before the waiting period and fed to livestock can cause damage to beans when the manure from the livestock is spread on ground intended for beans. If a County roadway ditch is to be cut for hay, please contact Mr. Walter Stearns, Highway Maintenance Supervisor, at (507) 283-5013 to determine if we have applied our chemicals to the roadway ditch in question. If a landowner/renter does not wish the roadway ditch adjacent to their land to be sprayed for noxious weeds, they must contact Walter Stearns, Highway Maintenance Supervisor, at (507) 283-5013. If the RCHD does not apply chemicals to a roadway ditch it will be the adjacent property landowner’s/renter’s responsibility to eliminate any noxious weeds.Mark R. Sehr, PERock County Highway Engineer(6-8, 6-15)