There’s a weed that has invaded our desert, and it’s called buffelgrass. Each plant lives for 20 years and grows 5,000 seeds a year. In its lifetime, it can grow 200,000 seeds in all. It was brought here from Africa in the 1930s by the farming industry to help feed cattle and control erosion.

However, buffelgrass is the villain to our native land. It fights plants for their water, nutrients and sunlight. Even if it gets caught in a fire, it can grow back while the native plants cannot. Buffelgrass can burn the size of a football field in only three minutes.

Ben Tully, an Invasive Species Outreach Coordinator with the Pima County Extension office, says that buffelgrass will “turn our Sonoran Desert into an African Desert” if it is not stopped. He went on to say, “Buffelgrass loves fires–new plants come back stronger, but the saguaros and other native plants don’t come back.”

We can’t let this happen. To take out this invasive plant we need to grab a shovel, dig up the roots and put the weed in the bag so the seeds won’t fly out. And you don’t need to do this alone–go to Save Our Saguaros-Beat Back Buffelgrass at desertmuseum.org/buffelgrass/  to find ways to volunteer. Now get on your feet, and snag that buffelgrass out of the ground!

PHOTO: National Park Service