Hello Harry,
As a kid in the late 60's my siblings and I spent many a summer evening pulling
tansy from our pasture near Sherwood, Oregon. Dad drove the old Chevy pickup
and we filled the bed with plants which were then stacked and burned because
the seed will mature on a plant that has been pulled.
When the plant is cut back to the ground it will regrow from the roots and send
out short flowering stems that mature a bit later. I would suggest pulling the
plant, cutting the flowers and buds off and packing them out. Please leave
Tansy plants that have bunches of caterpillars eating the flower buds so the
moths multiply. So far as I know Tansy is the moth's only host plant.
There for a while Cinnabar Moths were so numerous I rarely saw a tansy plant,
which in turn limited the number of Cinnabar Moths and caterpillars. In the
last few years I see more Tansy and the moths and caterpillars are once again
becoming numerous. There is a boom bust cycle that is pretty interesting to
watch.
Sandy Leaptrott
NE Portland
Sent from my iPad
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