Black Mustard Problem

[Anonymous]

Has there been any successful attempts at eliminating or even controlling Black Mustard Brassica nigra established in native coastal sage scrub plant communities in Southern Calif.? If anyone has suggestions please let me know.

-P Seiley seiley@yahoo.com</p>

[Anonymous]

Mustards like other weeds usually require extensive effort via hand pulling prior to seed set. Mustards can resprout if cut. With diligence populations can be controlled. Organize some volunteer gropus or kids groups, highlight the value of stewardship.</p>

[Anonymous]

Hi Paul,

My experience with Black mustard is that one must spend extensive effort the first 3 years to keep the mustard from getting to seed. This can be hand pulling or I have used Roundup. After the initial few years of spraying I started introducing in natives. If you are hand pulling the mustard, you might be able to plant sooner without impacting your plantings. It is amazing to me how many times I had to go back even in dry years in Lopez Canyon to keep the mustard from getting to seed. If you only treat the site 1 time in the spring you might as well not do it as plants continue coming up and blooming into late summer. Hopefully someone has better advice for you.Cindy</p>