The January Bad Naturalist newsletter is here, and it has plant and critter mysteries, snowy landscapes, reader letters, book news, and a dancing poodle.

#bookstodon #nature #ecology #conservation #snow #animaltracks #nativeplants #invasiveplants #coyote #poodle #badnaturalist

https://badnaturalistnewsletter.beehiiv.com/p/fogbound-in-december-51c5479021bd73c9

If you're near Leesburg, VA, I hope you'll come out and see me on Friday 1/24 at 6:30pm, when I'll be at Birch Tree Bookstore and plant shop getting into the weeds, talking with good naturalist Casey Koester about Bad Naturalist, native plants, invasive plants, and the struggle...

#badnaturalist #bookstodon #events #nativeplants #invasiveplants #memoir #nonfiction #nature #ecology #conservation #Virginia #Piedmont #BlueRidge

Tickets and details here:
https://events.humanitix.com/author-event-bad-naturalist-by-paula-whyman-moderated-by-julie-borneman

This seems like an important paper. You were worrying about whether plastics are affecting human fertility? Take a look at what happened with these grassland plants exposed to microplastics while trying to germinate from seed.

Also, on behalf of those of us in North America, I’d like to apologize for that invasive Solidago canadensis.

#NativePlants #InvasivePlants #microplastics https://mastodon.online/@mrillig/113764746451263419

https://www.kuow.org/stories/washington-state-aims-to-ban-english-ivy “It’s not a war on Christmas.

But two botanical symbols of the holiday — holly and ivy — face increasing controls in Washington due to the ecological havoc they can wreak when they escape into the wild.

The Washington State Department of Agriculture is proposing to ban the sale or transport of English ivy and its cousin, Atlantic ivy, by adding the plants to the state’s list of quarantined species.” -KUOW.org #InvasivePlants #NativePlants #Holly

As a botanically trained ecologist in NZ, I get a front-row seat to the slow-motion avalanche of new plants spreading into the wild from gardens.

It will be a massive landscape transformation, just getting started.

On Monday I made the 24th observation of the common lionface on #iNaturalist in greater Christchurch. The first was 2019. It would already take a city-wide effort to stop, and is just one species of hundreds.

https://inaturalist.nz/observations/254076984

#InvasivePlants
Since it's from Australia/NZ, I used to grow #WarrigalGreens (Tetragonia tetragonioides) in the greenhouse.
Two years ago, I planted a few seedlings on 3.5x0.8m outside for the first time.
This year, after winter temperatures down to minus 15°C, the plant seeded it self and although we harvest it, it currently covers roughly 5x3.5m of ground.
So Warrigal greens are now definitely on my invasive species watchlist!
Location: Northern Germany
#gardening #GardeningAU #GrowYourOwn

I bought the domain for treeofheavensucks.com bc I'm that much of a hater against this fucked up tree lmao

The August issue of the Bad Naturalist newsletter is here, and it's got a plant you can eat and a plant you definitely should not eat, a hitchhiking moth, a sleeping poodle, and some exciting book news...

#BadNaturalist #OnTheMountain #NativePlants #insects #InvasivePlants #plants #naturalist #virginia #BlueRidge #bookstodon #conservation #BookNews

https://badnaturalistnewsletter.beehiiv.com/p/august-everything

We need to think carefully before a fleet of drones is set loose to zap living things with lasers. Very, *very* carefully. But this is a serious proposal for killing invasive plants;
https://www.rnz.co.nz/programmes/the-detail/story/2018948825/robots-with-lasers-killing-weeds

(1/2)

purple loosestrife in the front acre prairie. this is on the invasive list here in Ontario, and not a native plant, but is certainly is beautiful. I clip the flowers so they won't produce seed & spread.
#rewilding #invasiveplants

The most invasive and illegal plants you should never grow in your garden.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/lifestyle/gardening/most-invasive-illegal-plants-you-33248931?int_source=amp_continue_reading&int_medium=amp&int_campaign=continue_reading_button#amp-readmore-target

#Illegal
#IllegalPlants
#InvasiveSpecies
#InvasivePlants
#Gardening

Interesting solutions for invasive plant control in the Niagara area.

Goats & caterpillars…

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/niagara-goats-phragmites-1.7250226

I've managed to dig up the roots, then tarp the area to make sure it's dead. I also burn the roots, since I've seen them "reanimate" after getting wet. I've done a pretty good job of controlling them, but it takes a bit of work.

Don't be fooled by its pretty orange berries: #AsiaticBittersweet is a nasty invasive

#Maine Public | By Susan Sharon
Published October 11, 2023

"It's found all around #NewEngland, an aggressive climbing vine that grows wildly out of control along roadsides, can topple trees and take over entire woodlots. Asiatic bittersweet (not to be confused with the American variety) snuffs out native trees, shrubs and plants. If there's a vacant building in your neighborhood, chances are the vine has made its mark.

"And don't be fooled by its eye-catching, yellow-orange berries in the fall: this plant is one of the worst.

"You might call it a 'super spreader.' I first became aware of it from a Facebook post. Someone shared a photo of the vine's glossy, round, fine-toothed leaves and I realized, not only did I have bittersweet in my yard, but I was seeing it everywhere — on neighborhood walks with my dog and on recent road trips to Massachusetts and New York.

"And its bright berries, so popular for making Autumn wreaths? Birds love them, too.
The orange-red berries of Asiatic bittersweet can be eaten by birds, who spread the seeds in their droppings.

"'Almost every berry that a bird will eat because it's bright orange, they go poop the seed and there's another plant,' says Rick Gammon, a horticulturist who runs a landscaping company based in Auburn, Maine.

"He says a lack of public awareness is another reason bittersweet is so prolific. Left unchecked, it can climb 60 feet and higher into tree tops and creep across the ground in a monstrous mass, smothering everything in its path.

"'People are just not doing anything,' Gammon says. 'It wouldn't be near as bad as this if people controlled it. There'd be no seed factory. There'd be no producer of the next generation.'"

https://www.mainepublic.org/environment-and-outdoors/2023-10-11/dont-be-fooled-by-its-pretty-orange-berries-asiatic-bittersweet-is-a-nasty-invasive

#InvasivePlant Factsheet: #BurningBush / #WingedEuonymus
Euonymus alatus

By Victoria Wallace and Alyssa Siegel-Miles, UConn Extension

Identifying Features

OVERVIEW: Fast growing, deciduous, multi-stemmed, woody shrub. Height 5-15 ft. tall. A popular ornamental known for its bright red fall color, it is still commonly planted along interstate highways, as hedges, and in foundation plantings. In woodlands, winged euonymus forms dense thickets, creating a heavy shade that blocks light to native vegetation.
LEAVES: Opposite, simple, elliptical (football-shaped); 1-2 inches long. Dark green foliage with finely serrated margins turns vibrant red in autumn. Fall color is more pinkish than red in heavy shade.
STEMS: Green stems with prominent raised, corky wings. Wings may follow the stem lengthwise or be slightly whorled around the stem. Stems become more heavily winged as they grow older. Some “escaped” cultivars lack wings.
FLOWERS: Small, in groups of three, and yellowish-green; not showy. Appear in late spring.
FRUIT: Showy cluster of bright red capsules - typically four to a cluster. Fruit pod splits open to expose orange arils with four red-orange seeds inside. Fruit ripens in fall and persists into winter. Fruit is borne on younger stems.
REPRODUCTION/SPREAD: Reproduces abundantly by seed. Fruit is eaten and spread by birds. Can also spread locally through vegetative reproduction.

https://ipm.cahnr.uconn.edu/invasive_plants_burning_bush-winged_euonymus/

So, it turns out that #FloraIncognita mis-identified a plant as Autumn Olive (I took the photo when it was cloudy and wet). Today, I went to the bushy area and tried again, and it turns out the plant in question is Asiatic Meadowsweet -- which isn't Native to #Maine, but not a horrible plant to have around (bees and butterflies love the flowers). However, I did identify Oriental Bittersweet and Burning Bush, which were attempting to take over the patch. I cut the Burning Bush way back (we'll have to dig out the stump at some point), and removed all the Bittersweet strangling other plants underneath. Now the Asian Meadowsweet, Hydranga, and Mock Orange bushes (another bee favorite) will get more light. There are plenty of black cherry trees around, so there's still plenty of berries for everyone -- even if the Burning Bush and Bittersweet are off the menu.
#InvasivePlants #Gardening #GardeningForPollinators

It’s that time of year again: pull up and snap the invasive Himalayan balsam plants before they set seed and crowd out every other plant.