It’s important to know which plants are deemed problematic
- col-karen-gotter
- April 4, 2018
- 1383
How about this for some Ohio trivia? There are statutes in both the Ohio Administrative Code and the Ohio Revised Code that legislate plants deemed invasive or noxious in our state. Of the 59 species, only three plants are found on both lists. But what do those designations mean?
The Ohio Administrative Code lists the “Prohibited Noxious Weeds” in the state. Noxious weeds are “any plant or plant product that can directly or indirectly injure or cause damage to crops (including nursery stock or plant products), livestock, poultry or other interest of agriculture, irrigation, navigation, the natural resources of the United States, the public health or the environment.”
The 38 species on the Ohio Revised Code’s “Invasive Plant Species” list was approved in January 2018. It prohibits the sale or distribution of any plant on the list as they are considered “an alien species whose introduction does or is likely to cause economic or environmental harm or harm to human health.”
These lists are a go-to source of information for me. As a conservationist, it’s important to know which plants are merely annoying and which ones are deemed problematic enough that we all need to keep an eye out.
I grew up hearing my dad bemoan Louis Bromfield’s introduction of the multi-flora rose taking hold in our hay fields, spent six years helping professors at Miami University in the never-ending fight against bush honeysuckle (only to be followed along behind by a healthy crop of garlic mustard), my brother did battle in Wayne National Forest against strands of autumn olive, and I’ve learned that up here ailanthus is the local plague.
Kudzu is now making its way into our state as is Palmer amaranth and strains of herbicide-resistant marestail. The list goes on.
There are three things we’d ask you to consider this spring to assist our beleaguered forests, fields, roadsides and waterways from competition by introduced species:
Actively control the invasives and weeds on your property.
Early spring is the best time to scout for and target problem plants. As the plant is waking up and begins to draw water and nutrients, it is most vulnerable to chemical controls. Research herbicides for their effectiveness in controlling your target species.
A controlled application of the right product at the right rate will be far more effective than mechanical removal alone. For some species including ailanthus, mechanical control is counter-productive while for others such as garlic mustard it is very effective. Bear in mind that many times invasives will spring up in disturbed soils, which may be another case for judicious use of an herbicide.
If you are trying to control the plant later in the season, your first strategy should be to hamper reproduction and then to kill and remove it. If it is setting seed, bagging and removing seed heads can be an option, as is burning.
Removing the seeds from the site is recommended because they can continue to mature even if they are removed from the plant. Also it is important to remember that the seed bank will persist for years, and once an area is cleared the first time, ongoing monitoring is necessary to prevent a relapse.
Educate yourself and others about what these plants look like and how you can control them. You wouldn’t believe how many honeysuckle bushes are pruned and maintained in Southern Ohio because they look like burning bush.
Adopt the mindset of identifying and removing noxious species whenever you can do something about it. You’ll find that marestail is everywhere (it was actually growing out of my neighbor’s gutters last summer), so don’t feel guilty if you become a “guerilla gardener” and yank it out.
If you’re out for a walk, pull the garlic mustard you come across and remove it like you would other trash. If you’re in the woods, pull up little multi-flora roses and bush honeysuckles before they become monsters.
Be extra cautious about seed, feed and equipment that you bring home.
Try to use certified seed or seed that has been tested by a reputable lab. (The Ohio Department of Agriculture offers reasonable rates on seed tests.) Clean equipment that is leaving or coming onto your farm, especially if it is coming from a distance.
If you hire custom work done, use equipment that stays in the area. Serve your livestock a “locavore” diet, instead of risking introduced weed seeds mixed in with their rations or hay. Plan your rotations so that manure applications go on before corn when there may be more options for herbicide treatment to get things under control if seed winds up present in the manure.
When choosing plants for landscaping, select native species.
If you want to be part of the solution, plant native species. Many invasives were first introduced as garden and landscaping plants from Europe and Asia, which then thrived and spread without natural controls. Native plants are an integral part of a healthy, diverse ecosystem, which will in turn support biological controls and give less opportunity for an introduced species to dominate.
Admittedly in the past, there were conservation initiatives that promoted wide-spread adoption of plants we now deem invasive or accidentally spreading species of concern. (Recent CRP and pollinator habitat seed mixes were contaminated with Palmer amaranth).
However, if you’ve worked with our offices in the past few years, you know how persistently we ask for seed tags in an attempt to be extra cautious against helping anything else gain a foothold in the county.
Though it can’t make up for the sins of the past, there are currently several initiatives that assist in removal of noxious species from the landscape. (If you are interested in learning how, call our office and ask Chuck about EQIP.)
Remember: Plants are given designations on a state-by-state basis, so it is very important to know which weed seeds could be present in seed grown or purchased out of state. What may be noxious in Ohio is not always the same case elsewhere.
Karen Gotter is the water-quality program assistant for Holmes Soil and Water Conservation District. She can be reached at kgotter@co.holmes.oh.us.