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farm406
Farm, Ranch
& Commercial Fleet
TTT REPAIR
RAILER
RUCK
RACTOR
Open Monday – Saturday | Email: tttrpr@gmail.com | 1610 34th Ave. N.E. - Black Eagle, MT
406-727-2859 406-727-2859
Quality Service Since 1991
getting more resilient, and much more competitive against
noxious weeds and other invasive plants."
In 2006, the Cremer family launched an all-out assault
on their weed problem. The plan called for a combination
of herbicide spraying and biological controls (releasing
insect species that feed upon leafy spurge and knapweed).
The project was a cost-share agreement: the Cremers
would pay for the upfront costs, then submit invoices at
the end of each year for reimbursement. Early on they
realized that aerial spraying from a helicopter was the
most effective way to apply herbicide on the hilly, broken
terrain. In order to offset that cost, the entire family –
Leo, Lois, and their two children – did the ground
spraying themselves.
"It was a hell of an undertaking," Leo says. "In the first
year our costs were more than $60,000. Without the grant
money there's no way we could have done it."
Under the summer sun they worked in Tyvek suits and
rubber gloves, one person driving a four-wheeler while the
other walked behind with the sprayer. At other times, each
family member carried a backpack sprayer. On level
ground they could treat 20 acres in a day. In rough terrain
they covered three or four acres. They logged hundreds of
hours, and when the spraying was done each day, they still
Lois Cremer looking over
the land and appreciating
the fruits of their labor over
the past 11 years.
