Over the weekend, a wave of tumbleweeds swept through suburban Salt Lake City, particularly affecting neighborhoods in South Jordan, Utah. The beachball-sized plants were carried in by heavy winds, creating walls of tumbleweeds that blocked entire streets and wrapped around homes.
While this event may seem like a scene from a Wild West movie, it is a natural occurrence driven by a combination of seasonal weather patterns, plant life cycles, and strong gusts of wind. The Russian thistle, native to Russia and Siberia, is believed to have been introduced to the U.S. unintentionally by Russian immigrants.
