Category: Invasive Plants

Kudzu’s Entanglement of South Begins to Unravel

by Dan Chapman - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution  • 
Kudzu, the nightmare weed that gobbled the South, is disappearing. Slowly, inexorably, the scientists, foresters, farmers and goats — yes, goats — are gaining the upper hand on the slinky, creepy green vine that makes abandoned homes and utility poles disappear seemingly overnight. Kudzu’s decline is difficult for a Southerner to grasp. Drive down that…  More 

Controlling Cogongrass

by Stephanie Worley Firley, Eastern Threat Center  • 
Has cogongrass invaded your land? The first step — and the easiest — is identifying the plant itself, which the U.S. federal government and multiple states list as a noxious weed. Cogongrass has some features that make it fairly easy to identify. Compared to the deep green hues of other grasses typically found in the South, the…  More 

Cogongrass Can Be Stopped

by Zoё Hoyle, SRS Science Communications  • 
Over the past decade, U.S. Forest Service researchers have been working with university cooperators to find some way to slow down or stop the relentless spread of cogongrass. In late 2014, Auburn University researchers reported results that demonstrated, for the first time, that patches of cogongrass can be eliminated completely within three years — showing…  More 

Cogongrass Continues to Invade the South

by Stephanie Worley Firley, Eastern Threat Center  • 
It grows on every continent except Antarctica and has earned a reputation as one of the worst weeds on earth — and according to U.S. Forest Service emeritus scientist Jim Miller, cogongrass (Imperata cylindrica) is without doubt one of the most threatening invasive species in the South. In addition to cogongrass, it goes by  other…  More 

When Privet’s Removed, Native Plants and Pollinators Return

by Zoё Hoyle, SRS Science Communications  • 
Forests infested with privet invoke a kind of despair in people attuned to the problem of invasive plants. Privet invades a forest quickly, sprawling across the understory and growing into thickets that crowd out native plants and change the very ecology of an area. Even if the woody shrub can be removed effectively, can a…  More 

The Mid-South Forests of Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas

by Zoё Hoyle, SRS Science Delivery Group  • 
Like most regions of the U.S., the future of the Mid-South forests of Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas is one of challenge. A report by the U.S. Forest Service Southern Research Station outlines those challenges and presents options for managing forests over the next half century. The Southern Forest Futures Project (SFFP) started in 2008 as…  More 

Native Trees Naturally Fight Invasives in Some Eastern Forests

by Stephanie Worley Firley, Eastern Threat Center  • 
In this modern society, non-stop movement of people and goods means that invasive species will continue to move and spread, too. Recent research indicates that invasive plants can be found in nearly half of the forests of the eastern United States, raising concerns about the sustainability of these ecosystems and the benefits and services they…  More 

A Big-Picture View of the Invasive Plant Problem

by Sarah Workman and Stephanie Worley Firley  • 
Invasive plants are increasingly altering the structure and function of our natural environment, and now researchers have determined how far-reaching the problem has become. According to a study conducted by U.S. Forest Service and university scientists and published in the journal NeoBiota, at least one invasive species is present in 39 percent of forested plots sampled nationwide…  More 

Plant Invasions Across the United States: Patterns and Clues

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Delivery  • 
Garlic mustard, Japanese stiltgrass, Oriental bittersweet, and other non-native invasive plants are creeping across backyards, parks, forests, and roadsides throughout the southeastern U.S. Scientists are still trying to understand what drives their relentless spread. Invasions are often assessed by measuring species richness, or the number of non-native species known to grow in a certain area.…  More 

Field Guide to Invasive Plants in Southern Forests

by Zoё Hoyle, SRS Science Delivery  • 
The U.S. Forest Service Southern Research Station publication A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests provides a comprehensive identification guide to nonnative trees, shrubs, vines, grasses, ferns and forbs currently invading forests and other natural areas of the southeastern United States. The information included in the guide is also available as an…  More