Researcher finds way to fight cheatgrass, a western scourge

Invasive cheatgrass can be fought with soil bacteria, in methods being explored by Ann Kennedy, a USDA-ARS scientist at Washington State University.
Invasive cheatgrass can be fought with soil bacteria, using methods explored by Ann Kennedy, a USDA-ARS scientist at Washington State University.

After more than a half-century of largely failed efforts to thwart the Sherman’s march of cheatgrass, a researcher may have a powerful new weapon against it.
Ann Kennedy, a soil scientist with the Agricultural Research Service of the United States Department of Agriculture, has discovered naturally occurring soil bacteria that inhibit the growth of the weed’s deep root system, its competitive advantage, even as those bacteria leave native plants untouched.

Read the New York Times story here.