Stopping invasive plants in your area

Invasive plants are species that can thrive and spread to an excess outside of it’s natural eco-system. For example, if you bring a non-native plant to you area it could thrive and as it spreads it can be an ecological problem i.e., crowding out native plants, increasing erosion, compromising water quality, changing stream flows and more.

To help stop invasive plants in your area do the following:

• Contact your local extension or a local plant nursery for a booklet or list of common invasive plants in your area.You really need a list because some may surprise you – for example, here in parts of Oregon some lilac bushes are considered invasive, which I’d never have thought.
• Select non-invasive plants for your garden.
• Support local nurseries who sell local, non-invasive plants.
• Be careful when trading or accepting free plants from fellow gardeners. If you suspect they may be handing out invasive plants (as a mistake) let them know.
• Do not compost invasive plants as many can flourish in your compost. Instead bag them and put them in the trash – which sucks yeah, but you don’t want them coming back next year.
• Dead head invasive plants when you find them.

[image via stock.xchng]