What are you doing for International Ragweed Day?

This coming Saturday, June 23, is the first annual International Ragweed Day!!!

Whether you're battling Common Ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia) or Giant Ragweed (Ambrosia trifida) or any of the other 39 species, this date has been chosen for Ragweed Day because the stuff has not yet begun blooming for the year (provided you're in the northern hemisphere -- I guess that's a pretty big assumption). That means there's still time to get rid of it before hayfever season starts and makes hundreds of millions of people miserable.

Now, I know eradicating a species is not very permacultural. But how about harvesting it? My own experiments over the past four years have demonstrated that giant ragweed makes an exceptional sheet mulch material, breaking down completely in as little as 3 months (July-October) when kept moist. Why not take this opportunity to harvest all the ragweed in your neighborhood and build lots of sheet mulch beds for yourself and your neighbors? That's what I'll be doing.

Let me know what you think, what you try, and how it goes!

If I could I would gather enormous quantities of Giant Ragweed for compost. As things are now I will just admire the enormous stands of it on neighbors' lands.

I have giant ragweed on my land. I allow it to grow with my hosta because it shades them during the heat of summer.
I have also had very good luck with heavy stands of gaint ragweed choking out all other plants. I am using it as a cover crop then sheet mulching with it after I pull the plants and put my potted plants in the ground.
I find that giant ragweed is a great indication of soil conditions. I have some of the worst soil in souther ohio, flat silt and clay. When the ragweed reaches over 12 feet the soil is good. Where the ragweed is as tall as I am the growing conditions are not good.
We should learn to make better use of weeds that readily grow on our lands.
If you remove giant ragweed before it seeds it is not a issue.
I will be collecting seeds and growing it next year along with burdock.