Dear Action Line: We were hiking close to town and came across two plants growing alongside the trail that looked to be hand-sown. On my handy-dandy phone app, the photos came up identified as maize and nightshade. The nightshade looks like wild tomatillo found around here. Is the city planting indigenous plant species along our trail network? Kind of a cool thing to see. – Larry
Dear Larry: What a nice thought, that someone is going around spreading indigenous seeds along our local trails. Someone ought to do this, but alas, Action Line could find no evidence this is happening.
There could be a Johnny Maizeseed, right? Like the Johnny Appleseed that our guest expert for this question mentioned in his Sept. 30 column? If you’re out there, do your thing, Mr. Maizeseed. Just make sure to get your seeds straight.
Our guest expert is Darrin Parmenter, director and horticulture agent for the La Plata County Extension Office. He’s not so sure there’s cause for celebration regarding these two plant finds.
“I’m always cautious when identifying a plant from a photo, but I do it all the time,” Parmenter said. “There is a HIGH chance I’ve been wrong in my identification, but after 15 years I still haven't been fired, so there’s that.”
He said that black nightshade (Solanum nigrum) is in the same family as tomatillos, but the two shouldn’t be confused. Black nightshade can be toxic to cattle and horses, slowing heart rates and even causing death. Parmenter did not mention nightshade in his Sept. 5 column deeming 2022 “The Year of the Weeds,” but said he could have easily thrown it into the group.
“I've seen a lot of it,” he said. “If you don’t want it on or near your property, don’t let it go to fruit, as it is a reseeding annual.”
Parmenter said the “wild maize” confused him and admitted he’s not always perfect in identifying monocots (grasses).
“But my guess – based off the photo and the premise that we don’t really have ‘wild maize’ – is that this is some sort of millet, maybe white proso millet (Panicum miliaceum), which is a staple in most bird feed mixes and probably escaped from the feeders.”
Well, Larry, there you go. Looks like nobody is out there planting indigenously in the wilds around town. It was such a good notion. Darn it. Sorry to kill your buzz.
Dear Action Line: Yet another round of construction on Ninth Street and Camino del Rio? Are we doomed to horrible traffic backups from Highway 160 to 17th Street for the rest of eternity? How have they managed to work on that intersection since the spring? The folks up on Florida Mesa have built a few miles of road and a few bridges in the same amount of time. – A Cone Swerving Commuter
Dear Cone Swerver: Let Action Line attempt to replay the last couple of years along this stretch of Camino del Rio. There was the median project, which began in 2021, and went on for several months, until mid-December. It then resumed this spring and finally finished a few months ago.
We were free from construction. We thought!
Then there was another project, which had something to do with utilities and the new River Roost Apartments. River Roost is a 141-unit complex of studio apartments being reconstructed from the former Downtown Durango Inn. You know, the one adjacent to Applebee’s between Eighth and Ninth along Camino.
Finally that was finished. Whew. Safe to drive unencumbered along Camino, right?
Nope.
Action Line wanted to see what the Colorado Department of Transportation was up to this time, but instead learned that the latest project is being done by the city of Durango.
The city is working on a waterline replacement project on Ninth Street between Camino del Rio and Main, said Jennifer Holland, capital improvement project manager with the city’s Public Works Department.
The project began in July, Holland said. “Pending subcontractor schedule confirmation, we anticipate project completion by mid-November.”
So, to answer the question: Are we doomed to horrible traffic backups for eternity?
Well, yes. But it’s all relative. Durango is still a booming place, despite the fact that no one can afford to live here. (It’s strange. Action Line doesn’t get it either.) So there will be lots more traffic in the months and years to come. But eventually, MAYBE by mid-November, all the lanes will be open to allow the masses through in a somewhat more leisurely and less annoying manner.
Email questions and suggestions to actionline@durangoherald.com or mail them to Action Line, The Durango Herald, 1275 Main Ave., Durango, CO 81301. Oh, here’s something else to look forward to: that new Camino del Rio underpass scheduled for 2025 or 2026. That construction ought to bottle things up for a good while!
