The War Against Tumbleweeds

In the nineteenth century invaders from Russia took over vast swaths of the nation, threatening America’s very way of life in what has been described as one of the most rapid invasions in history. The invasion, and century and a half long war against Salsola Icali tragus, better known as “Russian thistle,” and even better known as the “Tumbleweed,” deserves to be remembered.
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Script by THG
#history #thehistoryguy #weeds

[@jamesdaubenspeck5683]

I am a 63 year old biologist. And I did not know the tumbleweed was an invasive species. Thanks for the fun lesson.

[@nancyk3615]

I fed a round bale of kosha to my horses and they ate it and left no crumbs...

[@alidaweber1023]

Biologist might not have known that the weed wasn't indigenous to North America. ​@Iwishiwasanoscarmeyerweiner

[@djquinn11]

@@nancyk3615: I fed a square bale of hay to my horse and he left some round patties.

[@tygrkhat4087]

@@Iwishiwasanoscarmeyerweiner Biologist, not botanist.

[@timmorris8932]

I am a 56-year-old biologist and I find myself in the same pressed flower book. 😊

[@stevenslater2669]

Biggest surprise to me was how much water the tumbleweeds deprive “cash crops” of. I’m almost 82 and still consider any day I learn something new a good day. Every time I tune in to The History Guy, I learn something I didn’t know before! Thanks History Guy!

[@gumpyoldbugger6944]

The day you stop learning is that the day you stopped living, but it may take your body a few years/decades to realize that fact and catch up with you. 63 here and just learned that Tumble Weeds are not a native species to North America and that Cottonwood Trees aka Poplars are actual a native species to my Province, though I was told otherwise decades ago.

[@blessedveteran]

🤗💜🤗

[@truthsRsung]

They don't bother to mention how much their plants consume in comparison, do they. But our Bow Tie here just told you that the Species Survived the Dust Bowl, the single largest mismanagement of airable land in History. So it MUST consume LESS water than ALL "Cash Crops." This is what happens when you don't put 2 and 2 together, you stay 2.

[@blessedveteran]

@truthsRsung what a dick comment. Go troll elsewhere, dude 👍

[@gumpyoldbugger6944]

@@truthsRsung Or it is better at accessing said water resources and maximizing its consumption of said resource. It could also be better adapted at withstanding drought conditions and their seeds could have to the ability to lay dormant for a longer period, allowing them to germinate once rain returns. But you are correct, much of the so-called staple crops we grow on a rather industrial scale do demand an incredible amount of water, which is why many part of the US grain belt and southern produce producing areas have been water stressed for a long time now.

[@AlexG-rc3oq]

I grew up in Arizona and these things can be a real annoyance. Seen literally a hundred miles of 12 ft high walls of tumbleweeds stuck to the fences crossing the reservation. Some of them can be 6 ft around and weigh quite a lot if dried mud is stuck to them. Hitting them at high speed, as they often just blow across the road from nowhere and very difficult to avoid, can break your lights, even crack a radiator. Or worse, go under the vehicle to get stuck on your exhaust just to be a serious fire risk. But I too did not realize they weren't native, learned something today, thanks.

[@QuantumRift]

Lived in Sierra Vista, AZ for nearly 25 years - and I've hit my share of them blowing across the road...loved having them EXPLODE when I hit them on I-10.

[@karentrimmer]

I've had the same experience in New Mexico.

[@brianSalem541]

I grew up just north of Los Angeles. Tumbleweeds were a huge problem especially in the Santa Ana winds.

[@susanbaker8023]

I grew up in Arizona as well. I purchased a home on two acres full of tumble weed. What a pain to be rid of. I too, didn't know they weren't native. Thanks

[@colleencrouch4346]

In Fresno, California, where snow is a rare occurrence, tumbleweeds are stacked, flocked & decorated as faux snowmen

[@HollyMoore-wo2mh]

😂😂 cute.

[@robertmclean9737]

I have made nice Christmas trees by stacking them on top of each other graduated of course, then flocking them.

[@Rocketsong]

They do that in Chandler AZ as well.

[@robertweldon7909]

You can always rely upon "The History Guy" to have a curious and interesting history lesson. Sometimes, like in this case, we learn about something we generally ignore. Tumble weeds, who would have thought they were really so bad? Now, if we were talking about Kudzu. Some once told me that "Kudzu was the only plant that you could take out 50 yards from the house, plant it in the ground, and it would beat you back to the house". He wasn't off by much.

[@goodun2974]

Bamboo doesn't grow quite as fast as kudzu (or if it does, it grows vertically instead of horizontally) but it's equally difficult to get rid of.

[@glenns5627]

Paper Mulberry. A tree, with runners, that can outrun a man. The only way I've found to get rid of them - ALONG WITH the physical yanking and pulling - is concentrated Roundup, painted to the freshly cut trunk, 1" above the ground, and even the dead trunk won't go away until you dig it out.

[@HollyMoore-wo2mh]

😂😂 We joked once that kudzu could be sent over to the Middle East and they would never see them again.

[@thomasgarrison3949]

Wow, I am 68 years young, I always thought the Tumbleweed was a Western USA plant, because of the 1960's & 70's TV Westerns & the song by the Sons of the Pioneers - Tumbling Tumbleweeds. Thanks for the History Lesson.

[@LuckyBaldwin777]

"68 years young" Why do you say that? Are you afraid of getting old?

[@markpaul-ym5wg]

I thought that to.

[@thomasgarrison3949]

@@LuckyBaldwin777 No, I'm not old, I still ride a Touring Motorcycle & most of my family lived into there 90's & even into their 100's.

[@johnrudy9404]

Really? 68 years Young? ....I'm 63 years OLD. No shame here.

[@flagmichael]

We do have lots of them. They are crazy in Idaho.

[@flagmichael]

The lot of our first home in Phoenix was newly claimed from the desert when we moved in. Come Spring I was delighted to see our 5000 square foot back yard covered with green. You guessed it: it was all tumbleweeds! Through the Spring it matured into a jungle three feet high. In Summer it turned into tinder. I brought out a cheap charcoal grill and lit a small fire. With a rake, I snapped the evil plants at ground level and rolled them into the flames; a tumbleweed was gone in perhaps three seconds. When the yard was cleared, the detritus measured less than a cupful.

[@oldgysgt]

In past years in Cummings Valley California, camels were used to clear fields of tumbleweeds. Apparently camels love them, green or dried.

[@nancybode6159]

When it's moving it's a RUSHIN' weed!!

[@juliao1255]

🤣🤣🤣

[@timmorris8932]

You sir have won the comment section today.

[@goodun2974]

"Rushin' hands and roamin' *stingers* "! (For those younger than myself who might not get the reference, it was once said that a guy who would get unwantedly grabby with his date had "Russian hands and Roman fingers".)

[@DRAGONSLAYER1220]

*groan*

[@goodun2974]

At 9:30 , an epistle about a thistle! Had it been transmitted by email, it'd be an e-thistle! 😁

[@v.e.7236]

Your knack for finding historical irony is superlative! A Russian weed symbolizing the American spirit.

[@valoriesmith8875]

As a child of the 50's, we played in tumbleweed "forts". One year our Christmas tree was tumbleweeds stacked on one another. Along with music from the Sons of the Pioneers, it all makes for good memories.

[@toughenupfluffy7294]

When I was 13 in 1974, me and a couple of friends thought we'd do the community we lived in a great service and collect all the tumbleweeds in the neighborhood, piling them up in a vacant lot, three stories high. We were so proud of our feat that we called the local newspaper to come and record the fact, but they declined. The next day a big wind storm blew up and all of our tumbleweeds were scattered into nearby lawns and driveways. That's when the local news got interested, running a story about how three local boys caused havoc in the hood. Lol.

[@goodun2974]

The Outer Limits episode "Cry of Silence" involving animate, killer tumbleweeds featured an actress named June *Havoc*, as well as Eddie Albert who went on to the " Green Acres" TV series.

[@GeographRick]

I remember learning the tumbleweed was an invasive plant from Russia. I was surprised since so much imagery shows tumbleweeds are an iconic symbol of the west.

[@Seeker0fTruth]

Yuri Bezminov knew that there would be enough “useful idiots” to rewrite history…to the point our society willingly (even exuberantly) incorporating the these hijackers into the very iconography of our nation! It’s easy to become discouraged when you see such things unfold…but do not loose heart! Not everything is as it appears! Truly…I believe…LOVE conquers ALL. The hidden hand may have a strategy that spans generations, but the ultimate power over ALL things transcends time itself…even created it! Do that which you know is within your ability to do, and leave the rest for those warring/sparring/dueling/“authorities” to work out. Brothers and sisters, we are. Bonded together in perfect love, who can stand against us? No not one. Shall we? Let’s! 🤍⚖️💎🪔⚓️⚔️🛡️🧬📯🔗🌀🔔🏳️⌛️🦯🪘♟️🪈🏆🎟️🪃🍷🍯🍼🥚🌊💨🌪️🌈🌕☀️💫⚡️🌱🐉🪶🕊️🦋🦅🪖🪢🪡🫀🧠🫡

[@RemyJackson]

"Commieweeds" lol But it is interesting you hardly see a western or movie set during the Dustbowl without tumbleweeds.

[@goodun2974]

@@RemyJackson , There was an episode of the Outer Limits where a husband (played by Eddy Arnold) and wife took refuge in an old shack after their car broke down out west somewhere. An alien presence half buried the shack in tumbleweeds so they couldn't escape and tried to communicate with them, first using croaking frogs and then telepathically.

[@thomassnell5384]

An old TV show called "The Outer Limits" had an episode called "A Cry of Silence" with killer tumbleweeds.

[@orbyfan]

It aired on October 24, 1964, and starred Eddie Albert and June Havoc.

[@goodun2974]

​@@orbyfan, the entire episode can be viewed on KZbin

[@skyden24195]

Hollywood would never be the same once the first tumbleweeds rolled onto the set. While driving on Interstate 215 in California during a very windy day, I collided with a rolling tumbleweed that was bigger than the Honda Civic that I was in. The explosion was fantastic!

[@floycewhite6991]

During one particularly windy December day around 1999, tumbleweeds and everything else were gusting across the Ventura Freeway.

[@adreabrooks11]

Canadian here. I've occasionally wondered how much of a road hazard tumbleweeds pose. I always imagined them to be more "twiggy" than "grassy," and thought they might do damage if struck at high speed. From you comment, do you mean that they simply blow apart when you hit them?

[@skyden24195]

@@adreabrooks11 yes they do just blow apart, (for the most part, some smaller pieces might still cling together stuck to the vehicle on mirrors or windshield wipers.) They're very fragile. Also, they can (and did) leave multiple superficial scratches in the paint. So, generally speaking, if driving at high speeds down a highway (or somewhere like that) it's safer to just plow through them than to hit the brakes or swerve which could cause multiple vehicles to collide with each other; a much more dangerous situation.

[@adreabrooks11]

@@skyden24195 The more you know! Thanks for the info; it may come in handy, if I'm ever out west. :)

[@constipatedinsincity4424]

I have seen tumble weeds that were as big as a school bus. It's been a while living here in Las Vegas as of late they won't be any larger than a Mail truck.

[@PlanetEarth3141]

You're exaggerating and I've seen them for a lifetime. It's the kind of false fact that claims your 'expertise' and egotistical nature. Puffs you ego and then gets spread around by others as fact. This size never happens for a solid reason but you can't explain why Mr. False. Go back in your hole.

[@thomasott5899]

I remember burning the tumbleweeds along fences. Some farmers had special wagons with a burner they would pull behind a tractor and burn the weeds on the move. This probably accelerated the move to metal fence posts.

[@goodun2974]

I would guess that this tactic probably had the unwanted side effect of causing the barbed wire to start rusting sooner and more intensely.

[@curtisstewart3179]

​@@goodun2974 barb wire is made from high tensile cold drawn wire. When it gets heated, it will sag.

[@goodun2974]

@@curtisstewart3179 , sagging from heat is an excellent point; I hadn't considered that. And, fire will accelerate rusting. I wouldn't think burning tumbleweeds along a barbed wire fence, even if the posts are metal, to be a good tactic unless you're prepared to replace a lot of wire prematurely.

[@trumpetmom8924]

I have to wonder if tumbleweeds’ large water consumption didn’t/doesn’t also add to the dust bowl/drought problem in the midwest and west.

[@truthsRsung]

Is the consumption Large? What info were you given in comparison? At 15:40 he quoted evidence that the plant was able to grow unsupervised, while enduring cattle grazing, with little rainfall. I'd bet that places where this plant had rooted have More Topsoil than where humans had managed their land with Pure Force. Harmony and Eradication don't belong in any Government Document, ever.

[@ernestsmith3581]

They bring water to the surface and provide shade. I would say their damage as a growing plant is countered by their benefits. But, of course, like feral horses, they consume resources that would otherwise be used by rarer and rarer native species.

[@rickrudd]

This was a good one. Seriously. I wasn't sure what to expect when I saw the episode was about tumbleweeds, but you nailed it. I knew nothing about tumbleweeds and you somehow made it a fascinating history/bio lesson.

[@milosterwheeler2520]

I live in Southern California. In the 1950's tumbleweeds would blow down our street and pile up against fences and the newly-built 5 Freeway. Beginning in September, the yearly Santa Ana winds would create small dust devils and send tumbleweeds and fluff from Pampas Grass (another invasive species) swirling around everywhere. The tumbleweeds would blow across our school yard and collect against the far fence. The school would have huge bonfires to get rid of all their carcasses. Late November, some people would use them as lawn ornaments. They would stack three of them and paint them white - snowmen for a snowless landscape. The "Outer Limits" TV series demonized them in its episode "Cry of Silence". But to me as a small child, when Western series ruled television, I thought they were magical.

[@socalgal714]

Yup! I too have similar memories. 😊 Back when there were actual open spaces not curated by man to play in.

[@carenmontgomery2384]

Me, too! l live in San Diego and am retired. Long ago when l attended Spring Valley Jr. high. We lived in Casa de Oro when it was a newly built area. No houses at the end of our street but lots of tumble weeds! l remember being told that they could be eaten when very small. Wow------ memories...

[@goodun2974]

Is that the Outer Limits episode where a husband (played by Eddie Albert) and his wife have a car breakdown and are trapped in an abandoned shack by an alien presence which surrounds them with tumbleweeds and thousands of croaking frogs?

[@milosterwheeler2520]

@@goodun2974 Yes.

[@goodun2974]

@@milosterwheeler2520 , I'll have to see if it's on KZbin somewhere. I miss Outer Limits, and the original Twilight Zone. Night Gallery had its moments as well.....

[@TheTropicaltreasure]

Played this video for my kids on the way to school. They'll be talking about tumbleweeds all day.

[@kariknight6287]

Hey from Missouri. Learn something new everyday.

[@jrh7647]

Tumble weeds burn like a gas torch, when dry. To safely burn tumblweeds, turn them bottom side up. The hollow stem structure form a natual chimney. Turning the weed upside down defeats the chimney effect.

[@oldgysgt]

Two problems with burning tumbleweeds; with large piles, the fire can easily get out of hand and create a "wild fire", and at least in California, in most areas it's illegal to burn off weeds and dead grass of any kind because of air pollution concerns. Anyone caught doing so can be fined a hefty amount, and they are financially liable for the cost of extinguishing a wild fire started by their tumbleweed burning, as well for any and all property damage resulting from the fire.

[@flagmichael]

@@oldgysgt Break them off from the ground first. I had great success with a rake and charcoal grill. A windless day is a must, but with that caveat the fire is easily controlled.

[@bobhoffer5426]

wait a minute....isn't "bottom side up" and "upside down" the same thing? 🙃

[@arrahslichenmyer4986]

Thank you very much!!😊

[@oldgysgt]

@@flagmichael; in the past, California has suffered some very destructive wild fires caused by people who thought they could "control" their burn. But now, with the severe restrictions on open burning in California, burning tumbling weeds, or any other plant pest, is liable to result in a large fine. I'm not defending these restrictions, but that is the present state of affairs in California. Last winter I was forbidden to use my home fireplace to help heat my house because my fireplace insert is no longer on the list of State approved inserts. I could have done it anyway, but if someone had complained I could have been fined big-time by the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution District. You can imagine what they would say about open burning a large pile of tumbleweeds.

[@laserbeam002]

Honestly this is the first time I ever heard the tumbleweed is an invasive species from Russia. I would bet probably 90% of the U.S does not know this. Thank you for posting.

[@user-uk3nx8cn4u]

Antony Blinkin came from Russia, name a few of his kind with their diverse public so called political affiliation

[@laserbeam002]

@@user-uk3nx8cn4u What does Anthony Blinkin have to do with the plant called 'Tumbleweed'????????????????????

[@user-uk3nx8cn4u]

@@laserbeam002 his gradparent came from russia, at least on of them

[@laserbeam002]

@@user-uk3nx8cn4u Ok..whatever but the video was about Tumbleweeds

[@JeffBilkins]

They look very flammable and a potential nightmare during brush fires in windy conditions.

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

They are. Contributing to brush fires is one of the largest hazards of the weed.

[@BuzzinVideography]

They are... look at my PFP. That fire burnt 1/8 of Washington state, and dwarfed any California fire you've ever seen. Because of the tumble weed

[@TimHayward]

Seems like they would make great pellets for pellet stoves

[@flagmichael]

@@TimHayward They probably would. Very little smoke or ash.

[@cybersandoval]

non sequitur: an actual, well written script with human voice, the information is a bonus

[@tommycolton4971]

Here in Southern arizona we have a saying " at a four way stop the tumbleweed has the right of way"

[@MichaelRainey]

I was driving through Benson when a tumbleweed crossed the highway. It bounced off the truck in front of me and came down on my windshield.

[@constipatedinsincity4424]

I remember the good old days when the only thing that hops the rails 🚈 were Hobos! Box Car Willie!

[@bartsanders1553]

Be on the lookout for Kitchener Leslie. He's been known to kill hobos with his bare hands.

[@tomarmadiyer2698]

Rip shoestring

[@constipatedinsincity4424]

@@bartsanders1553 Zoinks Scoob

[@constipatedinsincity4424]

@@tomarmadiyer2698 💯

[@user-oh2hs6jh5x]

In December of 2009 we were traveling on Interstate 40 near Santa Rosa, New Mexico. It was a windy day, and from out of the south came a herd of Salsola Icali tragus, attacking my car and all of the other cars near me. When we arrived at our destination I took a look at the front of the car and saw that several of their species had attached themselves to every nook and cranny of my car. At least I had the satisfaction of knowing that the ones that I crushed wouldn't torment any others.

[@highpath4776]

young shoots are edible, apparently , maybe get goats to eat them - but watch they dont spread seeds in manure

[@siseley1]

@@highpath4776 Our Burro's will eat them when they are green and young, but once they dry....forget it !!

[@joanhoffman3702]

Last year, my sister and I were returning to the house after an errand. We were waiting to make a left turn at a traffic light, when, from our right, there were a few tumbleweeds rolling down the middle of the street. We’re not exactly on the edge of town, so those bushes maybe travelled for several miles. We pulled into a nearby parking lot and my sister started taking photos of them. It was our first sighting of tumbleweeds in the wild. It may not seem like much, but for two women who grew up in Queens, NY, now living in Tucson, AZ, it was something to see!

[@HollyMoore-wo2mh]

I would have stopped myself. I live near the DFW in North Texas area and have never seen an in-the-wild tumbleweed BUT I have seen a coyote and a roadrunner ... just not chasing each other.

[@TheBetterManInBlack]

This year has been the worst I've seen for tumbleweeds here in 15 years. I've got one of the barbs in my finger even now.

[@saintpaulsnail]

I remember times when strong westerly winds blew tumbleweeds into Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Twin Cities were at the eastern edge of the prairies. The tumbleweeds would just get pushed east if the winds were blowing strongly over the western plains.

[@michaelmanning5379]

What would the Sons of the Pioneers have done without tumbling tumbleweeds? Humming along with humming hummingbirds just doesn't have the same cachet.

[@curtisstewart3179]

Kept them looking for cool water.

[@PlanetEarth3141]

I think your lyrics are incorrect.

[@JamesGoetzke]

On Star Trek they call these things Tribbles.

[@flagmichael]

Good one!

[@PlanetEarth3141]

False of course and lies are believed too easily.

[@goodun2974]

​@@PlanetEarth3141 , a shame we can't simply beam tumbleweeds into deep space ---- it wouldn't be inhumane at all!

[@christopherconard2831]

It would explain the lack of Klingons across the American southwest.

[@MichaelRainey]

​@@christopherconard2831Yeah they stay north around Broken Bow.

[@joeslayter5841]

Once on a road trip, when my then 5 year old daughter saw her first tumbleweed cried out: "Look, Daddy at the haybale rolling across the road!" I will never forget it.

[@Semper_Iratus]

The troubles with tumbles.

[@brianSalem541]

They're dead, Jim.

[@Tauridballistics]

I live in Central Washington and I battle tumbleweeds constantly 🤣

[@alanhelton]

I live on a Ranch outside Winslow AZ and the cows here graze upon prairie grass sagebrush and tumbleweed…

[@jameslovelady7751]

Tumbleweeds clogged the canal that takes Colorado River water to Los Angeles. In the 1950s a friend of mine had a summer job running a speedboat up and down collecting them and pitching them over the fence. It was steady work.

[@LuckyBaldwin777]

Interesting. I'm thinking they were afraid of them getting into the pumps.

[@Robert_Keel]

In 1968, I pranked my new wife when taking her to our new home in California from her home in Virginia. I knew what they were, and she had no idea at all. We were in a Corvair traveling west on Highway 80 when I spotted one, larger than the car, rolling straight down toward us on the road. I didn't say anything and simply drove right through it. I don't think she ever forgave me for that one.

[@Chris-ut6eq]

Glad YT tumbled me into this story. Keep spreading these story seeds!

[@stuartriefe1740]

Good morning from Connecticut, fellow students. Now let’s all settle down for our lesson!

[@JeffreyGlover65]

Present!

[@E5PY]

YES! Plant history!! I am all about it. I would love to see an entire playlist of plant history some day (apologiesif you'vecovered any already): decorative plants gone wrong (Japanese knotweed & kudzu), moss, 'American' foods (e.g. vs Mediterranean) (sweet/potatoes, corn, carrots, cliche stuff), endangered plants -how it got that way,

[@pulaski1]

This could be the start of a series - episodes on kudzu, periwinkle, English ivy, Japanese knotweed, and Bradford pear trees (and its uncultivated hybrids) should follow.

[@user-oh2hs6jh5x]

Add bufflegrass to the list, plague of the Sonoran desert.

[@ernestsmith3581]

And on the animal side of the coin, SA fire ants, carp, starlings, feral hogs, and, yes, precious to many, feral horses have killed hundreds, if not thousands of native American species.

[@pulaski1]

@@ernestsmith3581 There are probably more invasive animals than plants - flat worms, africanized "killer" bees, Asian hornets, Burmese pythons, monitor lizards, to name but a few, and the last two are part of what could be a separate series of its own - invasive animals in Florida.

[@neilm9630]

You sure know your invasive species. In Illinois the Bradford pear is taking over.

[@pulaski1]

@neilm9630 In SC it's no longer legal to plant Bradford pears, and they are discouraged in NC and several other states. Here in NC if you provide evidence of a felled/ removed Bradford pear the state will give you a replacement native tree; think the limit is three trees per person/home.

[@hankpoth9681]

For all your diligence you did not mention my favorite carton strip, Tumbleweeds! Love the channel anyhow!

[@Wyoutside]

Oh man I hate that weed. I’m in WY and I battle it yearly. I have a newly constructed home and the natural land that was displaced during excavation is very problematic. I’m on year 3 of battling. I find pulling it up manually works the best before seeding. I remove and or burn them. Ugh.

[@WeazelJaguar]

Last fall I drove from Southern California to BC, and the tumble weeds scared the shit out of me!

[@baumgartnerwm]

Around 10 years ago, in central Washington state north of Sunnyside, on a rural road passing through a gully the Tumbleweeds compltely buried a section of Washington route 24. People drove through it were buried and trapped for several hours before emergency crews could dig them out. I hate them

[@0159ralph]

My home on the Westside of Albuquerque was loved by the infamous tumble weed gang. One year my whole house was completely covered with tumble weeds and burning was the only way to get rid of them. Out of all of my neighbors, I was the only house that was invaded and battered. I was cursed....

[@broncobubba3169]

I always viewed tumbleweeds as a sign of death in movies. For example, if there are tumbleweeds, the town is dying.

[@KellieT73]

I was happy to see this video! I used to live near Phoenix in the west valley and miss seeing the tumbleweeds, especially on I-10. This history is so interesting 🤗

[@undreahankins8194]

Love your work and what you do for us as a Country! THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE!

[@wpgne]

Looks like you were able to resolve your video software issue, Lance. Look forward to seeing future videos! A topic suggestion I had was a report into the history of inks and writing instruments.

[@patraic5241]

I was training at the NTC near Boise Idaho. We had high winds for a couple of days. The whole countryside seemed to come alive with tumble weed. Everywhere you looked brown round rolling bushes for as the eye could see.

[@craighoover1495]

I lived at Mtn Home AFB for 4 years. We had a few there too.

[@Svensk7119]

There's an NTC near Boise? I went to the one near Barstow in the early 90s.

[@patraic5241]

@@Svensk7119 It's next to Gowan AFB. We used the barracks at the base and had a field encampment near our tanks. It was just building up at the time. About 1990.

[@RetiredSailor60]

Good morning from Ft Worth TX History Guy and everyone watching

[@ShirleeKnott]

[@daletoro]

Ft worth here also

[@mangamaster03]

The Trouble with Tumbles

[@constipatedinsincity4424]

Back in the Saddle Again Naturally

[@wolfstar_productions]

I grew up in the Mojave, these things were like overdue visitors staying at your house beyond welcome... I learned something new.

[@joezeigler1064]

In Utah during our school lunch break, we’d gather them up, stick them together and make igloo style structures to play inside.

[@kraneiathedancingdryad6333]

Dried tumbleweeds are highly flammable and are have known to create fire tornadoes when the flames come racing across the plains. I did a college project on invasive species and this was one of the plants. In keeping with the "South Dakota's Least Wanted" promotional thing they did a few years back, I put faces on the photos and had them holding ID numbers like they'd lined up for a mug shot. There's a few of them here in the black hills, but not as much as the surrounding areas. I'm a plant nerd, and I approve this message.

[@blandrooker6541]

We in Colorado made the news winter before last with a huge tumbleweed problem, but this past winter, we hardly had any.

[@daniellabunsky653]

Good morning from California:)

[@THEELTOPIAN1909]

THIS IS MY FAVORITE EPISODE YET! I live in the TRi-Cities Washington and was raised in the town of Eltopia just a few miles away, situated on the Northern Pacific RR mainline (now BNSF) 120 miles south of Spokane. I'm 65 and retired, but in my youth, as a farmers son, I pulled, chopped, pitchforked, burned and hoed what seemed like thousands of thistles along furlongs of fence line. This also included forking them from around sheds, barns and houses on a calm day, far enough away to safely burn. Practically every summer our local newspaper runs a story or two of side roads blocked off for a couple of days until the county can burn them clear. You mentioned chandeliers. Here in eastern Washington we also have the traditional "TUMBLEWEED CHRISTMAS TREE". Like the chandeliers they are festooned with lights. However we usually try for three tiers high and use four or five cans of flocked snow. They're quite festive. REALLY! 😅 OH. One more story. In 1976 l was a pump jockey at the local gas station. A car with New Jersey license plates came in. In the back seat was a very large tumble weed. My coworker asked the man why he had it. "OH, I'M TAKING IT HOME. THEY'VE NEVER SCENE ANYTHING LIKE THIS"! 😂

[@BasicDrumming]

I appreciate you and thank you for making content.

[@jbtubman]

Very interesting. There's no shortage of tumbleweeds here in western Canada. (Although I don't think that Canada counts as "far-flung" from an American point of view.)

[@DCI_LeoDan_]

13:45 The tumbleweeds pulled PRANKS on people!?

[@jagsdomain203]

I use to live in Victorville. We use to make tumble weed snowman

[@nedludd7622]

Tumbleweed is also a problem in Australia. I first became aware of it many years ago in reading a detective novel by Arthur Upfield in his "Bony" series where it was an important factor. Those books are delightful reads. There are many species of tumbleweed, all apparently from Russia and Siberia. You mentioned US-Russia relations. It was after WWI when relations became antagonistic. Near the end of the war, the US sent troops to attack Russia in the north at Arkhangelsk and in the east at Vladivostok instead of bringing them home. That invasion lasted nearly two years and is history that deserves to be remembered.

[@danstotland6386]

Scientists are planning to introduce at least two fungi that parasitize tumbleweeds., and do not consume any other thistle species. They are Colletotrichum salsolae and Uromyces salsolae. Other fungi are, also, being studied. Great video, keep up the good work.

[@MrLeafeater]

Yay...let's cross-breed it with Kudzu. Love your work!!

[@k.c1126]

Lol kudzu of the high plains ... 😂😂😂

[@dawnreneegmail]

Oh lord, kudzu!!

[@noneyabizz8337]

At least this was accidental. Man kudzu has ruined so much

[@thomasott5899]

Eastern Washington also has a mustard plant that tumbles along and piles up like tumbleweeds. Sometimes you get a bad dose of both weeds.

[@ajg617]

I grew up thinking it was simply a part of the American west and later iconic symbols of the dust bowl. Who knew. Now I have to keep a sharp eye out as I travel through the mid-west.

[@mattgeorge90]

Thank you for sharing! ❤

[@bronwynecg]

Good morning! 👋🏽 😊

[@stephenhenderson9871]

Good morning from Indiana, I’ve seen them here especially when all the crops are out.

[@corvid...]

Very interesting video, as always.. also i got my THG shirt recognized by a stranger at the store a few days ago and that started an interesting conversation 😊

[@grayharker6271]

There were tumble weeds in Afghanistan taller than myself!

[@e.f.3207]

Terrific episode!

[@stephenskinner4857]

Long Live the History Guy. Love your clever creative presentation of what many would find boring topics, you have found facts to create an entertaining subject. I even found history in poorly taught Public Schools, interesting.

[@dougalexander7204]

I had no idea. Thank you, Mr. History guy.

[@paulyosef7550]

Had then on the farm in Elburn IL.

[@johnopalko5223]

Small world. Back in the 1980s I worked with a guy who lived in Elburn. That's not a town name I ever expected to see here.

[@jeffcraig6227]

I am itching just watching this! Whoa unto you if a tumbleweed brushes your leg!

[@frankgulla2335]

Fascinating, that is all I have to say. Thanks, THG.

[@gent_Carolina]

Very nice homage... Heard the song in my head immediately. 💌

[@nhmooytis7058]

As a kid we lived in Phoenix. Age 3 in 1955 my best friend and I built a tumbleweed fort in the front of our apartment building.

[@stevenmiller2427]

Outstanding information. Thank. Keep the good work 👏 🙌 👍

[@usapatriot4163]

Great story as usual! Thanks!

[@jasonkilgore1977]

Well, I learned something new today. Great video. Thank you.

[@dennisnelson6781]

I grew up in NW Kansas and remember seeing a Cadillac passing through town with New York plates and a tumble weed in the back seat.

[@dawnreneegmail]

Wonder if it was Truman Capote!

[@halfbackmutt]

Loved the information and the irony, what is a true Icon?

[@yoinkhaha]

This was a great episode.

[@mora103]

I was super excited when I finally seen a tumble weed, pretty silly 😂

[@Isolden11]

This was so funny! Gave me much needed humor today as well as interesting info! You can make watching paint dry seem interesting. Thanks so much!

[@jennlizzy2019]

In 2022 I was driving north on I-25 between Las Lunas and ABQ. The wind was howling, as it often does in New Mexico, and hundreds of tumbleweeds were rolling straight down the freeway. I clocked them with my car speedometer rolling at 65 MPH. I laughed so hard at the surreal sight of tumbleweeds "rolling along like a...tumble weed" .

[@goodun2974]

At 9:30 , an epistle about a thistle; had it been sent as an email, it'd be an e-thistle! 😁

[@mikeable1376]

Thanks great story.

[@J.A.Smith2397]

Never knew!!!! Tks

[@DavidHBurkart]

Very well presented. The presence of a rambling plant which causes so much havoc, even to this day, also being in part responsible for stemming the tide of the dust bowl is a truly fascinating irony. What a history.

[@TheCosmicGuy0111]

Rollin they hatin