Invasive plants

What is an Invasive Plant?

An invasive plant is any plant that has been introduced, intentionally or unintentionally, by humans to an area outside its native range, and that causes environmental and economic harm to the area it has been introduced to. Invasive plants cause environmental harm by aggressively outcompeting the native plants of the area, which leads to a chain reaction of harming the entire wildlife food chain of a region. Native plants which native insects and animals are reliant on become replaced by non-native plants which the native organisms are not familiar with and will often ignore. This leads to large tracts of land lush with invasive plants, that may sometimes look pretty, but in reality are ecological wastelands. Disturbances in our local food chains are eventually felt economically, and invasive plants directly damage our local economy by disrupting agriculture, erosion control measures, water control measures, and so many more costly human activities. Invasive plants can originate both from the other side of the world or a nearby US State (such as Black Locust which is native to nearby Appalachia).

CHECK OUT THE LIST BELOW TO LEARN WHICH INVASIVE PLANTS MAY BE GROWING IN YOUR BACKYARD

MOST WANTED LIST

(Wanted - Dead or Dead)

The plants listed here are considered by authorities and experts to be the most destructive and problematic introduced plant species in northern Indiana, southwestern Michigan, and surrounding areas.

  • Amur Honeysuckle - Lonicera maackii (Also known as Asian Bush Honeysuckle)

  • Callery Pear - Pyrus calleryana (Also known as Bradford Pear)

  • Burning Bush - Euonymus alatus (Also known as Winged Burning Bush)

  • White Mulberry - Morus alba

  • Oriental Bittersweet - Celastrus orbiculatus (Also known as Asian Bittersweet)

  • Garlic Mustard - Alliara petiolata

  • Autumn Olive - Elaeagnus umbellata

  • Tree of Heaven - Ailanthus altissima

  • Japanese Honeysuckle - Lonicera japonica

  • Black Locust - Robinia pseudoacacia

invasive plants & invasive animals

To make matters worse, invasive plants can even accelerate the spread of destructive invasive animals! When a species of animal utilizes a certain species of plant in its native range, and both species end up being introduced to a new environment together, it only makes sense that the inter-species relationship will continue in their new environment.

Take the Spotted Lanternfly, for example. This invasive insect is spreading across the eastern US, causing devastating results to the native plants it damages and to the native insects it outcompetes. The favorite food source of this bug is the Tree of Heaven (Ailanthus altissima), an invasive tree that’s native to the same region of Asia as the Spotted Lanternfly. These insects are drawn to the Tree of Heaven, and populations of Spotted Lanternflies explode in areas saturated with Trees of Heaven. Thus, destroying Tree of Heaven is crucial in fighting the spread of the Spotted Lanternfly.

Non-Native plants vs. invasive plants

A plant species that isn’t native to my region is growing in my local community. It must be invasive, right? The short answer is NO! Luckily, most plant species will not exhibit invasive traits when they are introduced to places outside their native range. However, even if they aren’t invasive, non-native plants usually fail to provide the same desirable levels of food, pollen, and shelter that native wildlife depend on.

Dandelions are recognizable by everybody, but many people may not know that they are native to Europe. However, Dandelions are generally not regarded as invasive to our ecosystems in the Midwestern US. Although many homeowners who take pride in their manicured lawns may stress over seeing these iconic flowers in their front yard, these flowers do not spread aggressively in wild ecosystems.

Other very popular non-native plants such as Hostas, Coral Bells (Heuchera), and various Hydrangea species are occasionally sold by our nursery in limited quantities, and these all are considered non-invasive. However, while we may offer these, we always recommend their native counterparts to our customers.

when Our native plants go abroad

After reading a bit about what makes a plant invasive, it should come as no surprise that some of our beloved native plant species that serve a valuable ecological purpose in our area may be invasive in other parts of the world.

For example, a popular native flower that we sell, Sand Coreopsis (Coreopsis lanceolata), was introduced to East Asia for ornamental reasons. Now Sand Coreopsis has been observed to be very destructive to the native habitats of East Asia, and the governments in China and Japan have even taken measures on banning their cultivation!

Plants don’t need to spread to the other side of the world to become invasive to their new surroundings, as we stated above. Another example is Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana). This popular small tree is one of the few native evergreen trees of our area, but due to the lack of wildfires that used to control its population, it has spread westward just outside its natural range and is causing environmental distress in parts of the Great Plains.

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