Welcome
Our most immediate needs are air, water, food, and warmth. The humble plant kingdom is directly needed for air, food, and warmth, so it is not a bad idea to pay attention to what is going on at our feet and in our backyards. In Canada, the cost of controlling invasive plants for our food crops is 2.2 billion a year (1). In the US, it is 138 billion (2). These costs are rising.
This blog is meant to be a reference place for those concerned about the biological pollution created by the introduction of invasive plants in Cape Breton. All higher forms of life depend on plants, so the replacement of a native plant by a non-native one can have far reaching consequences for all living creatures including us.
There are non-native and invasive plants. Many non-natives have naturalized here in ways that add to our enjoyment of Cape Breton, such as Queen Anne's Lace (Ammi majus) (originally from the Nile), Chicory (Cichorium intybus) (Europe), and Lupines (Lupinus sp.). Others are thugs. They threaten the very fabric of an ecosystem.
We hope to help people in Cape Breton understand those that are the worst in hopes that people will see the threat and engage in their removal as a healthful form of exercise that will do some long range good and keep this Island from becoming a place that looks like so many others where people did not care.
WANTED: DEAD
In all cases below, the goal is to prevent spread. The most effective strategy from my experience is to start by killing any isolated plants found along roads, streamside, or windy areas as the first priority is to prevent new infestations. Try to prevent reproduction in all cases. Remove plants by the roots if possible after rainy weather, and if not, strike down flowers before they make seeds.
The top invasives in Cape Breton (focusing on the Baddeck area, because that is where we live) and their status:
Angelica
This is number one because of the speed it is moving, but we believe it is possible to fight it. This can only be done if new areas are not colonized, so everyone needs to recognize it and attack it RIGHT NOW.
We noticed its first appearance in the Baddeck area six years ago.... Being a plantaholic, I notice pretty or unusual plants like a bloodhound. But it was not until we took this photo at Isle Madame, and visiting Louisbourg, where it completely dominates many areas that we started watching closely....
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| Angelica in seed, having overwhelmed a field c. MB Whitcomb 2013 |
It moved the entire length of the Bay Road to Baddeck in three years, and infested the opposite side of the bay in a year. While we were living in Marble Mountain, we watched it advance far faster than the purple loosestrife (which limits itself to wetlands).
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| Marble Mountain 2012 c. MB Whitcomb 2013 |
This year we are frantically pulling it out of the garden, the banks of our stream, the ditches, the fiddlehead fern beds, and every place we can imagine.
I woke up this morning at four realizing that the things I cherish in Cape Breton could disappear. I hope I am wrong about this, but if I didn't share my observations and do my best to get people to try to stop it, I would not be able to look the next generation of children in the eyes and try to describe picking raspberries, or the beauty of a fringed orchid.
It is consuming yards, fields, streams, ditches, and coastal habitats at a rate that keeps me awake at night with worry. Can anyone else see this?
I believe it can be eliminated in areas like Baddeck where it is tightening its grip.
It is the fastest moving invasive we have, spreading along roads and watercourses. It is poorly documented by the media and people think it is "pretty" often mowing around it, or they confuse it with giant Hogweed and people are afraid to touch it.
Fortunately for me, the good people in New Brunswick are paying attention, so that those who only believe what is on the internet and not what the person in front of them is saying: http://www.nbisc.ca/species/angelicasylvestris.html
OUR ASSESSMENT AND APPROACH
Fact Sheets: http://www.weedinfo.ca/en/weed-index/view/id/ANKAT
http://tcpermaculture.blogspot.ca/2012/04/permaculture-plants-wild-angelica.html
http://nativeplants.evergreen.ca/search/view-plant.php?ID=06212
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Angelica sp. c. MB Whitcomb 2013 |
Fact sheets: http://www.restoringthelandscape.com/2010/11/thats-invasive-japanese-barberry.html
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| Berberis thunbergii c. MB Whitcomb 2013 |
Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria): Eats wetlands, eliminating frog and fish nursery habitat by forming tightly laced networks of roots.
It takes longer to spread here than other places. The major issue is that, like many of these thugs "It's pretty." I cannot tell you how many people carefully mow around it thinking it is a wildflower.
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| Lythrum salicaria c. MB Whitcomb 2013 |
Fact Sheets: http://www.iowadnr.gov/Portals/idnr/uploads/fish/files/PL%20Fact%20Sheet.pdf
FAQ: http://www.purpleloosestrife.org/faq/
Japanese Knotweed (Polygonum cuspidatum): Locally called "elephant ears," this is the most difficult to remove once it starts growing. Pulling after a rain and taking it to the ground after cutting any flower heads from the stem will keep it from spreading. Britain has had a terrible time with this one.
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| Polygonum cuspidatum c. MB Whitcomb 2013 |
Fact sheets:
http://www.gov.im/lib/docs/daff/japaneseknotweedfactsheetjuly06.pdf
Moneywort (Lysimachia nummularia): Invades stream sides and kills everything else growing near it.
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| Lysimachia nummularia c. MB Whitcomb 2013 |
Fact sheets: http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/cs/groups/public/documents/document/dcnr_010246.pdf
Giant Hogweed (Heracleum mantegazzianum): Not widespread yet. So far, I know of only two places where it grows in the Baddeck area, and those are marked on the interactive map on this site. Perceived to be the biggest immediate threat to humans, from scary media coverage. It does spread, but slowly. Very difficult to eradicate once established, as it is a sturdy perennial.
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| Heracleum mantegazzianum c. MB Whitcomb 2013 |
Fact Sheets:
http://novascotia.ca/natr/wildlife/biodiversity/pdf/hogweedfacts.pdf
http://www.seagrant.sunysb.edu/ais/pdfs/GiantHogweedFactsheet.pdf
Scientific papers: http://www.ontarioweeds.com/media/pdf/page_biology_canada_weeds.pdf
I have been unable to find any toxicological data on the probability of getting a reaction to the hogweed, which is very annoying, given the media coverage. Every scientific paper I have found says that one "may" or "can" react to it.
While I do not recommend this to others, I wanted to know what might happen if I tried working with it, so, in front of a witness, I rubbed myself with a small amount of its sap on the back of my hand and the underside of my wrist when I was hot and sweaty and then exposed it to sunlight for a few hours. There was no reaction whatsoever, except a slight tingling within an hour after exposure. I am not very reactive to poison ivy either, so this is not an invitation to "try this at home," especially if you have been reactive to plant substances in the past (poison ivy or oak, that sort of thing).
Minor or Localized Thugs
Oregano (Oreganum vulgare) Yes, I love it too. But it should never be allowed to flower because it reseeds, then puts down deep roots, crowds out other plants, and then escapes across fields. This is poorly documented except by gardeners. It is on this blog as a minor thug because I have personal experience with it and am 5 years into trying to control it on a property where it was let go.
Removal is a several year process. I cover it with heavy carpet or old plywood for a few months during hot weather. Then fork up soil and remove the major clumps of wiry black roots. Pull out sprouts for the rest of your life.
Bishop's Weed
No fact sheets yet, but this discussion should convince you: http://dangergarden.blogspot.ca/2011/01/bishops-weeddeclaring-war-or-giving-up.html
Ajuga reptans
Common name is bugle-weed. Gorgeous plant. Don't let it suck you in. The least invasive one is this the variety "Burgundy Glow," but even that must be monitored constantly to prevent escape.
Fact sheets:
http://www.invasiveplantatlas.org/subject.html?sub=10094
http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/gardens-gardening/your-garden/plant-finder/plant-details/kc/b200/ajuga-reptans.aspx
(1) http://epe.lac-bac.gc.ca/100/206/301/cfia-acia/2011-09-21/www.inspection.gc.ca/english/plaveg/invenv/techrpt/summrese.shtml#a3
(2)http://www.grida.no/geo/GEO/Geo-2-084.htm
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