Lake County ranchers ask Polson to act on tumbleweed infestation

Ranchers Steve and Susie Speckert, who own a 400-acre ranch off Montana 35, approached the Polson City Commission earlier this month to highlight the tumble mustard causing havoc on their ranch.  

The weeds are blowing across the highway and into their fields, sprinkler lines, equipment and fences. The “daunting task” of removing the tangled weeds from just one windstorm late last year took 300 hours over four to five weeks.  

The non-native invasive weed, which can be toxic to cattle, is crossing the highway from a neighboring property owned by Mission Ridge LLC, based in Idaho.   

The property owners, who plan to develop the parcel, asked that it be annexed into the city limits during a commission meeting on Feb. 3, 2025. Despite neighbors' opposition to development on the farmland, the commission passed a resolution approving the request.  

Before annexation, the land was in the county's jurisdiction and leased out to a crop farmer. With crops on the field in years prior, the weeds were under control. But no one farmed the land last season, according to Speckerts. 

Normally, this type of issue would have been addressed by the Lake County Weed District Office. A citation would have been issued “a lot faster,” Steve Speckert said on April 6, than the time it has taken the city to address the problem. Steve said he’s seen enforcement agencies take immediate action in the past.  

“It's a public nuisance, fire hazard and it's costing us a fortune. We don't have the manpower or the finances to go through another 300 or 400 hours of cleaning because we have to get ready for our ranching,” Steve said. “So we're in a bad situation.”  

The Speckert ranch is a fourth-generation farming operation that is self-sustaining and the sole source of income for Susie.  

The Speckerts originally reached out to the county weed control office. After learning the county no longer had jurisdiction, they filed a formal complaint with City Attorney Dave Michie on Jan. 22, just five days after a major storm.  

Steve Speckert said they cleaned up the weeds in the meantime, arranged for their attorney to send a letter to the property owner and filed a formal complaint in Lake County District Court, asking the property owner to mitigate the weeds under threat of legal action. He also said Michie informed them that he was writing a notice to the owners.  

Since that January cleanup, Steve Speckert reported multiple strong wind events that have sent more tumbleweeds onto their ranch. He noted that this poses an extreme fire hazard due to the flammable weeds becoming entangled in the electric fences.  

They do not have the time to make significant alterations to their 150-cow-calf operation. The weeds also drop over a million seeds per plant, which can last up to 10 years in the soil, and can’t be sprayed without killing the alfalfa, he said.  

“If we spray out the alfalfa, we would go two years without hay and that would cost us an absolute fortune. So, we're really in a bad position here, and it's really affecting our ranching,” he said.  

The weeds also pose a public safety threat as they blow across nearby roads and the highway and gather in ditches bordering the Speckert Ranch, creating more fire danger.  

City Manager Ed Meece explained that the city sent letters last week to the property owner and another individual who purchased a portion of the original tract. 

Meece said the city was in communication with the county weed office's director and coordinator, Tyler Linse, who had spoken to the owner of the property where the tumbleweeds originate. He said that, based on his conversation with Linse, the owner is interested in mitigating weeds and leasing the land again. He added that both landowners in the original tract of land have 30 days to mitigate the weeds.  

Commissioner Carolyn Pardini questioned why the city waited until last week to send the letter and noted that a cover crop should have already been seeded to address the problem this season.  

“Waiting till now to send a letter, and then waiting 30 days really puts the Speckerts and the farming community out there in a pretty tough spot for the upcoming year,” Pardini said.  

Meece said that they moved forward on the issue as soon as Brad Ekstrom was hired temporarily to assist with code enforcement. He said the code enforcement position was eliminated many years ago, and he or Michie handles enforcement as quickly as they can.  

Commissioner Lisa Rehard asked about the process for de-annexing the property, but Miche was unsure. Mayor Laura Dever also asked what the city’s recourse is after the 30 days if nothing happens.  

Michie said that if no mitigation occurs, the city would file a citation through the city court and go through the code enforcement process again and again.  

Steve Speckert asked if the city would recover their damages, but Miche said that they can’t to the full extent.