GOLDEN, Colo. — It’s not uncommon to find weeds in a city park, but DeLong in Golden is not a ordinary park. It’s pesticide-free, meaning no chemicals are used to control the weeds, and instead controlled by hard work.
“If you're going to opt for something safer, take some manual labor,” said Dr. Laurel Starr, the leader of the volunteer Weed Busters brigade.
“We are getting the weeds out of the areas that have been planted with native grasses so that the grasses have a chance to fill in,” she added.
The park just opened this summer, and the Weed Busters have met every Thursday since to pull whatever has sprouted up since their last visit.
“A lot of people don't know that business as usual in parks and lawns in public spaces is to routinely apply a cocktail of pesticides every few months throughout the growing season,” Starr said. “We believe that there are health problems associated with that that we'd like to mitigate and give people a chance to live in a place that is safe and healthy and non-toxic.”
While weeding is not something that most people look forward to, Starr said doing it with others makes the work a lot more enjoyable.
“They're all wonderful people and I'm learning from them,” she said with a smile.
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