Wednesday, August 1, 2018 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Obituary
17
Superheated steam is weed killer
Paul Joseph Edgerton
August 10, 1937 — July 29, 2018
By George Plaven
A wonderful, gentle soul
gently soared to heaven.
Paul Joseph Edgerton passed
away July 29, 2018. He was
born to Charles and Helen
Hartwig Edgerton August
10, 1937, in Florence,
Arizona. Paul gradu-
ated from North Phoenix
High School, received
his Bachelor of Science
in Wildlife Biology from
University of Arizona and
did extensive graduate work
at the University of Idaho,
where he met his future
wife, Susan Cox.
Paul and Sue married
in September of 1960 and
began their life adventure.
Paul worked as a research
ecologist for the Pacific
Northwest Research Station
of the U.S. Forest Service
in La Grande and directed
research at the Forestry
Sciences Lab in Wenatchee,
Washington. He also worked
as the Ecologist for Region
9 of the U.S. Forest Service,
based in Milwaukee,
Wisconsin.
Paul and Sue spent many
years back packing and river
rafting with their family,
especially when they lived
in La Grande. After retire-
ment, they enjoyed trav-
eling and visiting several
countries. They especially
enjoyed visiting Mexico and
also spending a few winter
months in Arizona.
He and Sue retired to
Friday Harbor, Washington,
where he became an
orchardist and master gar-
dener, and sold fruit, veg-
etables and flowers at the
San Juan Island Farmers’
Market for 10 years. They
moved to Sisters in 2002,
and Paul soon became one
of the first tour leaders for
the Deschutes Land Trust,
teaching many people about
the ecology of plants and
animals of our region as
Capital Prgss
well as his love for nature.
He was presented with
a Lifetime Achievement
Award by the Land Trust
in 2017. There is a bench
in his honor at the Metolius
Preserve.
He is survived by his
wife, Sue, and their four
children: Patricia Carrell
(Gerald) of MapleValley,
Wa s h i n g t o n ; D a v i d
Edgerton (Terrence Wagner)
of Seattle, Washington;
Michael Edgerton (Jenny)
of Bend; and Kelly
Richards (Dan) of Bothell,
Washington. Also surviv-
ing him are seven beloved
grandchildren and two
great-grandchildren. He
was extremely proud of all
his children, grandchildren
and great-grandchildren,
and nieces and nephews.
He was predeceased by his
parents, his sister, Dorothy
Simms, and his niece, Lorrie
Simms.
Paul was loved by his
family and admired in his
field of Wildlife Biology
and Ecology and forest suc-
cession after fire. He will be
greatly missed by his family
and many friends.
A celebration of his life
will be held at a later date:
donations to the Deschutes
Land Trust can be made in
his memory.
Smile,
Sisters!
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SALEM (AP) — The
Steam Weeder looks like an
old-time vacuum cleaner
and sounds like an espresso
machine, with a long hose
and nozzle attached to a trac-
tor-mounted boiler heating
steam to 250 degrees.
Erik Augerson, a gradu-
ate research assistant for
Oregon State University,
demonstrated how the tech-
nology works July 18 during
Blueberry Field Day at the
North Willamette Research
and Extension Center, steam-
ing along rows of blueberries
to control field bindweed.
As a weed management
tool, Augerson said the
Steam Weeder shows prom-
ise, especially for organic
growers. Superheated steam
kills weeds by bursting plant
cells, without damaging
mulch or other farm infra-
structure, as flame weeding
does.
Augerson, who is earn-
ing his master’s degree from
OSU in horticulture, is part
of a research project trying
to develop a season-long
organic weed management
program for small berry
growers, combining steam
with other mechanical treat-
ments and certified organic
sprays.
“The organic berry indus-
try in Oregon is having a lot
of trouble determining what
the best and most cost-effec-
tive form of weed manage-
ment is for their systems,”
Augerson told the Capital
Press. “We’re just trying
to increase the growers’
toolbox.”
The project is supported
by a $500,000 grant from
the Organic Transitions
Program through the USDA
National Institute of Food
and Agriculture. Additional
funding comes from the
OSU Agriculture Research
Foundation and Northwest
Center for Small Fruits
Research.
The Steam Weeder is man-
ufactured by Weedtechnics,
a company based near
Sydney, Australia. Jeremy
Winer, managing director of
Weedtechnics, was also on
hand at the field day to meet
with growers and answer
questions about the product,
which sprays at a rate of 2.5
gallons per minute and pen-
etrates 1 inch deep into the
ground.
“It’s not actually boiling,
but it’s superheated,” Winer
explained. “It explodes the
(weed) cells.”
Augerson said OSU pur-
chased the Steam Weeder
over the winter and began
field trials about a month
and a half ago. While they
are still collecting data, he
said the technology could
be a solid option for organic
growers — depending on the
cost analysis.
“We know that it can kill
weeds, and that it works from
a management standpoint,”
Augerson said. “I think it has
a lot of promise.
We know that it can kill
weeds, and that it works
from a management
standpoint. I think it has
a lot of promise.
— Erik Augerson
Depending on the size
and model, Steam Weeders
can cost between $16,000
and $30,000, a steep price
tag for small growers. But
Augerson said the value lies
in decreased need for man-
ual labor controlling weeds,
allowing farms to put their
workers to better use.
“There is a lack of farm
labor, and it is decreasing,”
Augerson said. “We want to
make it so farmers can uti-
lize their labor in different
ways.”
Augerson said they will
need at least two years of data
before they can start writing
a comprehensive, full-season
weed management program
for organic berries.
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