Milfoil could begin to turn up in next week

Jeff Broddle | Cadillac News Although itŐs still too early to tell, in the next few weeks biologists will survey lakes Cadillac and Mitchell to assess the spread of milfoil this year. Cadillac resident Dave Foley, secretary of the Lake Mitchell Association, does some fishing near his home.

CADILLAC — For Dave Foley of Cadillac, May is the best month of the year for fishing. During the month he is out on the water everyday in his canoe, as long as the weather cooperates.

Not only are the fish abundant and biting, but he also doesn’t have to worry about snagging milfoil — yet. He still has some time before the milfoil starts to be a nuisance and take over a portion of Lake Mitchell.

“I have been out on the lake a lot — if the weather is warm I get out at least four days a week,” said Foley, who lives on Lake Mitchell. “When I pull in the anchor I have been pulling up a lot of weeks, but no milfoil yet.”

As for the milfoil outlook this season, Progressive AE Aquatic Specialist Tony Groves said it is hard to predict because it varies season to season.

Milfoil, like many other plants and weeds, is weather driven. If it stays warm, it could accelerate the plant growth. But Groves said that remains to be seen.

“The treatment went well in Lake Cadillac last year, so we hope there won’t be as much to deal with this year,” Groves said. “In terms of lakes downstate that we have already looked at, it looks like the usual progression. It will likely turn up in Lake Cadillac and Mitchell in the next week or two.”

Surveys of the amount of milfoil in lakes Cadillac and Mitchell will be done within the next few weeks, according to Groves. During the survey biologists will collect plants, map out the milfoil and then come up with a treatment plan.

During times of treatment, which will happen periodically during the summer, signs will be posted along the shoreline that state which specific products were used in the water and what water-use restrictions apply, according to Cadillac Community Development Director Jerry Adams.

“We sent out a mailing that gives information about the kind of chemicals that might be used,” Adams said.

Normally 2,4-D is used, but other chemicals could be used later in the summer during spot treatments.

As for weevils, which are small beetles that eat milfoil, a pre-stocking survey will be scheduled where biologists will collect a sample number of plants and count how many weevils survived.

“We’ll use that as a basis for how many and where to stock weevils,” Groves said. “The weevil stocking is a multiple year program that we will continue to monitor.”

For more information about the lake boards, people can visit www.lakemitchell.org or http://web1.msue.msu.edu/wexford/LC/index.html.

tberkebile@cadillacnews.com | 775-NEWS (6397)

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The following is a preliminary 2007 treatment schedule for lakes Cadillac and Mitchell.

June: conduct a lake survey for purposes of mapping milfoil concentrations

June/July: apply chemical and biological treatments

July/August: Resurvey lake to determine treatment results. Spot treat if necessary.

August/September: Evaluate results.

Lake Mitchell will use somewhat the same treatment schedule as Lake Cadillac (for chemicals). In June, approximately 450 acres of milfoil will be treated, with 250 acres using 2,4-D and the Renovate and Reward chemical used near the shore. Although there are no plans to use weevils, it could be done in the future if studies show it would be effective.