Welcome!

Welcome to the TEAM Leafy Spurge website where we have compiled hundreds of articles and other information for you on the noxious weed leafy spurge and its management. As we are currently in the midst of updating and transferring those hundreds of items from our previous site to this new one, if you don’t find what you need here, consider visiting our former site at the link above. Also scroll down this page to see brief info and a few quick links on the weed and its management options.


What's New:

• Assessing the Long-term Impact of Leafy Spurge Biological Control Agents in Wyoming (PDF 3.3 MB)

• Now Available on the Internet: Purge Spurge CD!

What is leafy spurge?

A native of Europe and Asia, leafy spurge is an aggressive, persistent, deep-rooted perennial weed that invades a wide variety of habitats in the U.S. and Canada.

For more information, click Leafy Spurge above.

How bad can it be?

Listed as a noxious weed in 35 states, leafy spurge crowds out desirable plants, is toxic to cattle and horses, and costs producers and taxpayers an estimated $144 million a year in just four states alone (Montana, Wyoming and North and South Dakota).

For more information click Leafy Spurge above.

What management options are available?

A variety of tools, including biological control, multi-species grazing and herbicides, are needed to control leafy spurge in both the short and long term. However, biological control holds the most promise for long-term, sustainable leafy spurge management when incorporated as part of an integrated pest management plan.

Click here for all information relating to Biological Control, Grazing, and Herbicides to control leafy spurge. How-to manuals for all three tools are also available in our Info Products section.

Where can I find more information on leafy spurge?

Here on our website, of course, but our Links page also features a list of sites with additional information.

What is TEAM Leafy Spurge?

TEAM Leafy Spurge was a six year research and demonstration program focused on the Little Missouri River and associated watersheds in Wyoming, Montana, North Dakota and South Dakota. Its goal was to research, develop and demonstrate ecologically based, integrated pest management (IPM) strategies for landowners and land managers to achieve effective, affordable leafy spurge control. The program ran from 1998-2004 and was sponsored by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS) in connection with USDA-Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). This site provides information on much of what was learned!

The information developed under the program is provided here courtesy of the USDA-ARS Northern Plains Agricultural Research Laboratory (NPARL), Sidney, MT.