I.R.V.M.-General Information

I.R.V.M. ( Integrated Roadside Vegetation Management) was introduced to Mahaska County to attempt to better manage the 1,000 miles of roadside that we have in this county. 1,000 miles of roadside equals out to about 4,000 acres of land held within the distance between the fence and the shoulder of the roads. We have 900 miles of gravel roads in Mahaska County and 100 miles of pavement.

I.R.V.M. has been around statewide since the mid-1980’s. To date, 72 of Iowa’s 99 counties are on board with some sort of program using integrated management techniques. More counties join every year.

I.R.V.M. was started when a few roadside managers were realizing that spraying herbicide was not the golden solution that people thought it would be. Improper application techniques coupled with poor plant identification led to blanket spraying that actually made roadside vegetation weaker and prime for weed invasion.

I.R.V.M. moved away from blanket spraying and switched to spot spraying herbicides. It also used a combination of mowing, controlled burning and roadside seeding establishment to remove and keep noxious weeds out of, and from invading our roadsides.

I.R.V.M. also sought to educate the public of integrated management methods and common sense reasoning. The use of hearty and tough native vegetation in roadside seeding jobs was also a strong keystone for the success of this program statewide.

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