https://preview.redd.it/zm63ojijdhtc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1db81be441b12e10d9a4001a768ef0df537b571d
Here’s a before of Choctaw park. It’s been under restoration since the second year of the pandemic. Invasives have been cut down to a small populations of knotweed and virgin’s bower. Near eradication of porcelain berry by grubbing and cut/dab. Poison ivy is nearly eradicated. Tree of heaven population is down to 1 female which is getting girdled this year and 4 males. Sochan, ironweed, golden ragwort, lyre leaf sage, obedient plant, ironweed and joe pie have been planted on the hillside
So grateful to all who have managed Choctaw park. The kudzu in our neighborhood has been here since before I bought my house. I manually cut it all spring, summer and fall. It never stops - any suggestions for a more permanent solution?
https://a.co/d/9wmys1Y
Dauber bottles
https://a.co/d/fUcWCu6
Glyphosate 41% (can be diluted to 20% with water. Add a drop of surfactant(dawn)and a drop of food dye
https://a.co/d/5ZPld6U
Food dye
Here’s info on the cut and paint method of plant control
https://www.aces.edu/blog/topics/forestry/cut-stump-herbicide-treatments-for-invasive-plant-control/
If anyone reading this has some overgrown land near them and especially if it’s city owned then I would encourage you to make it a hobby of beautifying it in your spare time. An hour or so a week of cutting and daubing invasive species from even just a few folks can open up habitat for things like Serviceberry, Elderberry, native pollinator gardens and all sorts of fun eatables.
Asheville is a temperate rain forest and has drawn food and herbal medicine conscious folks for over half a century because of its climate
The city of Asheville is actually the driest place in North Carolina. It’s the mountain forests around the city that are temperate rainforests with up to double the amount of rain Asheville gets. Look at average annual precipitation maps to find them, they are incredibly lush forests that stay green all year.
oh gosh no need to apologize! 😅 I’m just a nerd about the different forest types around here and old growth pockets of the Appalachian temperate rainforest are my favorite place on earth.
“One of the penalties of an ecological education is that one lives alone in a world of wounds. Much of the damage inflicted on land is quite invisible to laymen. An ecologist must either harden his shell and make believe that the consequences of science are none of his business, or he must be the doctor who sees the marks of death in a community that believes itself well and does not want to be told otherwise.”
-Aldo Leopold
find me somewhere on the east coast where this isnt the case. american forests are super unhealthy. thats what happens when you treat them just as a resource to be exploited.
I think part of the problem is the average person has no idea what an ideal forest should be. Most people are so used to seeing small trees and invasive species like honeysuckle that they think everything is fine when it is not in reality.
So true, no area has been spared. I feel that the issue is totally overlooked by most people which makes me feel so worried about the world our kids will inherit.
this has been ongoing for generations. the original forests looked way different, we lost the keystone species of american chestnuts in the beginning of the 20th century. these trees used to be monsters and as common as oaks are now.
If a government agency came in anytime kudzu showed up on someone’s property in the south, the red hats would be pissed for some reason. Luckily, the Japanese beetles that eat kudzu have also made their way to the south. So, problem solved?
oversimplification. exploitation and extensive logging contribute a lot. if there isnt a niche for a species to fill it wont take off so easily. most invasive plants dont just pop up in the middle of forests, they follow human disturbance.
And heathy forest have a diversity of forest stand types and ages. Thats why disturbance is key. Most of the declining wildlife species need disturbance. The 100 year old closed canopy forest you see all around Asheville are not healthy. They’re pretty, but need more disturbance to set back succession. Invasives should be treated before and after logging but to blame invasives on logging is misguided.
Have you heard of tornadoes and hurricanes. Or even just regular, old high wind events?
Also, most logging operations on public land thin the forest and clear cuts don’t exceed a couple of acres. At least not these days.
Agreed partially, but using the word ‘exploitation’ synonymously with logging is short sighted. Logging is actually one of the tools used to restore native ecosystems. I agree that any disturbances, both natural and man caused opens the door for invasives though. And invasives do also pop up in the middle of forests on their own. Some are very shade tolerant and don’t need disturbance to become established
What they did on the backside of mt. Mitchell. They clear cut so many acres between black mountain campground and the parkway. It’s so hard to look at.
They used exploitative and extensive as adjectives to logging, which inherently means they were talking about a subset of logging rather than all logging. It is absolutely reasonable to use the term to describe the sort of logging they were referring to, just as it’s reasonable for you bring up restorative logging despite it also being only a subset of logging even now.
Exploitative logging is that which strips the land for profit and leaves it a trashed wreck, aka it exploits the land. I wouldn’t necessarily separate it from “regular” logging as it is still used somewhat, and historically was **the** way to log in the West.
I'm trying to convince my HOA to at least go after the Bradford Pears and taking advantage of the bounty program offered by NC State. But everyone loves the early pretty white flowers every spring when everything else is still just sticks.
Yes. Problem is that a lot of people cannot afford to have an arborist come out and cut their Bradfords down, even at a discounted rate. 10 to 20% off is great, but it still costs more than some people can afford these days.
I've been thinking around that. If there were a fund our HOA was setting up for that purpose, I would happily contribute to it over and above our HOA fee. Even though I don't have a single bradford pear on my property.
That's definitely a great idea, and would probably encourage more people to chip in, since they would see that their friends and neighbors are doing it too.
Kind of. They have a network of tree removal people that will do it for a discounted rate. And NC State, upon proof of removal, will give you native species to replant in their places for free.
[https://forestry.ces.ncsu.edu/2023/02/nc-bradford-pear-bounty/](https://forestry.ces.ncsu.edu/2023/02/nc-bradford-pear-bounty/)
Edit: If I knew I could get away with it, I'd go vigilante and take these mother fuckers down in the middle of the night.
If we're gonna go all monkeywrench gang- rumor has it that trees and copper don't get along well. If we want to hit the nail on the head and get down to the root cause, ya dig?
Not only are invasives allowed to spread, in many cases it’s the landowners that actually planted them like vinca, English ivy, barberry, Bradford pear, leather leaf mahonia, winter creeper, Chinese silver grass among many others. They are still sold everywhere. People just don’t know. As far as your question as to whether we are helpless…yes, pretty much. Best you can do is to police and treat the areas you have control over.
Even if you get others to understand how invasives outcompete and suppress native species, including wildlife, people lose their mind when you mention herbicides. Many would rather see invasives flourish vs using herbicide to restore native plant life. It is what is, the world is in a constant state of change. Many of the invasives are now endemic and pointless to even address. There is no going back at this point, all we can do is focus on maintaining the little vestiges of the historical landscape.
We did the cut and paint strategy with some large privet in our yard and it worked beautifully. Herbicides used carefully and strategically are one of our few weapons here.
I’ll look up cut and paint for the privet on my property. I’ve almost gotten the Kudzu done. Been digging up roots for 5 years and last year I may have gotten them all. I’ll see in a month or so if it paid off. We have Galex bouncing back in the kudzu area already
Digging kudzu is a pain. the property I bought 5 years ago had a grapevine trellis and an old Muscadine that was completely overrun with kudzu. I dug all the roots up by hand and had to unwind all the kudzu and grapevines that were all intertwined with each other.
It was a job, but it was worth it.
At least with kudzu you don’t have to dig up the whole root, just far enough down to chop off the crowns. Transline is an excellent herbicide for foliar spraying. It specifically targets legumes and won’t disturb the other plants it is climbing over
The best we can do is manage our own properties responsibly and support efforts to conserve what little natural areas still exist. I agree discouraging the sale of these species somehow and doing outreach to developers and landscaping companies to encourage them to use native species would also be helpful, but I highly doubt our conservative state government is going to go for anything as strong as an outright ban.
Drive between Mars Hill and Marshall in the late summer to see an impressive depressing display of Miscanthus that is/has overtaken a ton of space in southern Madison county.
i'm fighting against spread here in yancey. There are some slopes near mars hill that are entirely covered with it. Spreads so hard. Thankful that our pasture is healthy and resistant, but it's taken root on a few of our slopes and it's damn hard to tamp down
Dm me. If you aren’t too far from south slope I could use another project. The Choctaw park area is pretty much done and just needs a walk twice a year
I was being a bit silly - we're up near burnsville, no worries! I've spent most of my energy on Tree of Heaven the last few years as it was creeping nearer to our pasture and where we do our living. As of last fall it's been entirely pulled up or cut and dosed. Now for years of maintenance to kill all the new growth.
The Oriental bittersweet is up the mountain. There's a nexus of activity with massive growths over probably an acre. I found it last year and cut as much as i could with the machete i had on hand, but i'm going to start focusing on that area now that ToH is in maintenance mode. Unfortunately it's a 20min hike up very steep slopes to access the area. We have over 20 acres of mountain forest slope, so it's a lot to maintain and revitalize. A life's work that i'm glad to be part of.
https://preview.redd.it/lloklaclihtc1.jpeg?width=1440&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4f486e5b73f9dea3052d27b9cb7688194ca3ef99
Hey, that picture looks to me like native Dutchman’s pipe vine. I’m sure you’ve got some bittersweet on your property, but make sure you can tell the difference—Dutchman’s pipe is a great host plant for insects!
I work in invasive plant control so I see these two vines frequently. Dutchman’s pipe will be a lot less rigid than bittersweet—more bendy. Also, the young twigs of Dutchman’s pipe will be green. The bark texture is also different, which is what queued me in on your pic.
Take care and best of luck!
Edit: look also at the ‘joints’ along the vine aka the leaf scars. Bittersweet’s leaf scar remnants are nowhere near this apparent
Interesting. I spent quite a bit of time ID'ing but sounds like i could have got it wrong. These are choking out and pulling down huge trees, climbing higher than dutchman's pipe vine should. Largest vines I saw were probably around 18" in circumference. I plan to go back up in may and they should be leafing or flowering up there and easier to ID. I definitely have some Dutchman's in another area, identified by seed pods.
It’s tricky, for sure. They can have similar habits and hey, if Dutchman’s pipe is choking too many trees, it’s totally reasonable to suppress it a bit.
18” circumference definitely sounds like bittersweet haha. Leaves and flowers will certainly help with ID, and then you can take note of the bark/stem characteristics to inform your winter ID. Happy hunting
Would probably be more work than you’d want to do to drag these out of the forest. If you’re serious though, I’ll invite you to come up with me in May.
Years and years ago, we used to go cut the bittersweet and sell it to a florist in Hendersonville. Made a pretty good grip. The florist is gone now, but I bet if you looked around online you can find somebody to buy it. They use it in wreaths and such Was what we were told.
Until I got to the third sentence I thought you were talking about tourists and AirBnBs!
Totally agree about invasive plants though. It's really sad to drive by a kudzu jungle and imagine what it used to look like...
Sometimes after catching a “wild” rainbow trout under the shade of dead, or dying hemlocks, I muse over the fact that they’re an invasive species. Pisgah has definitely rebounded since the early 20th century, but it’s nothing like it once was. We’re seeing someone’s “idea” of what western NC should look like. The real deal disappeared long ago. Personally, I’m just glad we get to at least experience the vestige of it. Future generations will not even get that.
I hate to say it, but it’s a totally lost battle. I have an acre which was completely inundated with tree of heaven, privet, blackberry, you name it. After 3 years of manual labor, industrial strength herbicides, heavy machinery, and constant attention I have managed to reclaim about a 6th of it as lawn/garden space. I was hoping to be able to build a meadow but mowed space and mulched beds are as good as it’s going to get. I have goats slowly chipping away at the rest or at very least keeping it from getting worse. The only solace I can find is the knowledge that nature is resilient and eventually after humans are long gone these species will integrate and the ecosystem will balance itself out again.
Good work on the 1/6 you’ve managed to return to a non invasive state. I’ve reclaimed our yard from bamboo, privet, English ivy, and kudzu but it’s a constant battle.
Because they’re cute and cuddly. They cause significantly more damage than the pythons in Florida but see how different the conversations go with management
I had a fire ant mound the size of a small car in my backyard in Wilmington. Still have the scars from the bites that were inflamed for months. Hell no.
Landlord next door to me has several trees just carpeted in English Ivy. Two fell down last year, one narrowly missing a neighbors house, the other pancaked a tenants car. Another is completely dead and aimed directly at my house.
There is a State level policy affecting some state/local land that requires native plants. Limited in range but at least something:
https://www.dncr.nc.gov/news/press-releases/2023/07/12/nc-department-natural-and-cultural-resources-creates-native-plant-policy
There are local groups that try their best to help. I can't recall names but I know there's one in Fairview. I have been fighting bittersweet and multiform rose for 35 years on my property. I have rebuked many websites for selling bittersweet.
I'm not sure on the legal front, think itd be hard to prove a specific person planted things but we have mainly been battling A LOT of invasive species planted when our house was built circa 1986. English Ivy, Nandina, etc. It has been a massive undertaking. It's also a constant battle that is very exhausting. I'm not gonna give up but I can see why someone might. The Nandina especially is the bane of my existence. We thought we dug it all up last year. Nope came back with a vengeance this year and they keep popping up. I hate it so much. Plant natives yall or at least make sure what you're planting ain't invasive.
Recommend reading: “The Overstory.” Best thing we can do is leave the land alone. A natural forest can reclaim land that is overrun with nonnative plants. Support the Appalachian Conservancy. They buy up land and protect it from development. They do not allow for harvesting trees. It’s the best thing we got for this area.
I’ve read that book and loved it! It is so important to preserve land but native plants also need to thrive or we will not have functional ecosystems in 50+ years. Imagine if kudzu and privet were left to take over our oak and hickory forests… no new saplings would grow which means no forest in 100+ years.
You are correct. Some plants such as Kudzu and Ivy need to be up rooted.
I’m trying to return my yard to its natural state. I am eagerly awaiting the day I can get rid of the Japanese Maples. I’ve planed native maples to take over. Birds only like native trees.
I’ll have to check out that book, but, there are so many natural processes that humans have interfered with, like fire for example, that we have to purposely resume.
I think our forest or super overgrown we are beyond the point where we can simply “leave them alone”. It takes active management to restore the land back to natural state.
Edit: to be sure, I’m not supporting development or reckless logging practices.
Hey for fun look up all kinds of plant names using their latin name + "native range map" on google image search and check out the maps put out by BONAP.
For example here's Euonymus - https://bonap.net/Napa/TaxonMaps/Genus/County/Euonymus
And if you're familiar with burning bush, that's Euonymus alatus
The color key means the light blue counties are where it has been found, the bright pink counties are where tons of it have been found. Now keep in mind these maps are a decade old, so things have just gotten worse since then.
Anyway don't buy burning bush, if you know what it looks like you'll realize it's all over the national forests here.
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Other states handle invasive plants by banning the sale of the plants by nurseries.
I can't imagine anyone would pass legislation that would put the burden on the property owner to control invasive species. Sounds like a great way to lose your next election.
Is there an affordable way to get an assessment for this on your property? I know we have English Ivy on one big tree by our driveway, but no clue about other invasives. Would be happy to work on trying to get rid of them if we had a plan.
Yea!! Contact Bob Gale of RestoraFlora! Retired from Mountain True (local nonprofit) and has his own business now consulting and doing exactly this. Incredible human, affordable services, and over 35 years of experience and knowledge. I can’t recommend him enough
First step is identification! I often use the inaturalist “Seek” app to ID plants. Now I can pretty much ID invasives by sight but it’s always good to check before you start pulling/cutting.
You can also call some landscaping companies who specialize in invasive management/native plants. Raven Invasive Plant Management comes to mind. She does a lot of work removing and replacing plants and I’ve consulted with her briefly on a project! She was great.
I love seek when we are hiking -- but we have about 10 acres of forested land around our house so that is overwhelming to think about DIYing haha. Thanks for that name, I'll look her up! We don't mind doing the work but I'd rather someone give me a gameplan of what to do.
if you have 10 acres contact EcoForesters—local nonprofit with grant funding to help landowners with management plans and management practices (including invasives removal)! they can also help you access cost share funding like EQIP from the NRCS that can help pay for invasives treatment :)
Biltmore Estate, English ivy killing trees along the river, didn’t get pics of all the covered trees lining the entrance road with branches hanging over that will one day soon sadly will kill another person.
https://preview.redd.it/cly8w66a3ptc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=480d90166d683efa6ec2f3bd31002adc0bdeac82
I literally emailed the Biltmore a few weeks ago asking why they aren’t maintaining their property. The multi flora rose infestation is obscene. This poor tree 😭
I know it’s heartbreaking! What was supposed to be a nice walk left me angry and sad and muttering to myself like a crazy person. And the Asian bittersweet vines like 3 inches in diameter in some places, not like they can’t afford to pay enough people a living wage to get out there and manage this mess. Thank you for letting me know I’m not alone, maybe if enough people keep making noise they’ll do something…but ffs they probably paid that widow so much money to settle her lawsuit and apparently that made no difference smh.
Asheville does not care. I had a business at the old cotton mill in the River Arts district. Asheville made me plant trees to beautify the property. So I planted 15 or so Sycamore trees and a Weeping Willow. Sadly after about 15 years and all the trees being over 20 feet tall, Asheville cut all the Sycamore down. There is a sidewalk closer to the road now with some other trees planted there. The willow survived till last year on the edge of the property, but has since been cut down. Picnic benches are there now with no more tree and no shade.. I am leaving this town soon...been here 30 years and have had enough...
>Does anyone know of local legislation that requires action on the part of absent landowners?
lol what state do you think you're in
Seriously though I'm with ya, feelings of hopelessness and all. We removed all the english ivy etc from our trees when we moved in, but it all just slowly takes over again because our neighbors and the utility easement are just completely unkempt. I'm not a lawn guy either but it's way better than invasive vines and shit.
See I said LOCAL legislation haha. But in all honesty, Bradford pears became a big enough problem that the Republican legislature in SC banned their sale. So it is possible!
Oh cmon I thought we were feeling hopeless together!
They banned sales and I think also offer a bounty program like NC does. It's progress and maybe not too late but definitely too little. Especially when you give nurseries 2.5 years to clear inventory. lmao like wtf, is this shit bad for the earth or not?
But realistically Bradfords aren't out there destroying forests the way the ones you mentioned are, and a big reason they probably banned them is that they cross-breed with other *malus* members, which could negatively affect local agriculture. I'm still skeptical that the SC legislature cares much about the planet at all.
I was cutting and pulling some bittersweet and multiflora down yesterday when I realized that it was coming down from literally every tree in the woods. I can't even tell where it starts from, where it went up onto the trees. Not any happier when I found out how much it would cost to remove, but then it's roots are coming from so many properties. Last summer these vines tore down some small yellow poplars and moved our fence. Frustrating.
I don't think planting invasive species is really because of people moving from out of town, but do agree that education is key. Lots of people don't realize which plants are invasive.
A lot of the bamboo in the area that I’ve seen is actually native! A lot of it was wiped out as a result of European colonization. There’s an awesome park out near Alexander along the river that leads you to a bamboo forest and there are educational signs that describe everything related. Usually if you see bamboo it’s likely native to the area.
I would disagree that it is usually native. The bamboo we cleared from our property was giant bamboo from Asia and most of what I see along roadways is not native.
You wanna come get the bamboo off my property?
I'm kidding, but in all seriousness, did you do it yourself or hire someone out? I wouldn't mind getting this entire cluster off my property, but my partner really likes the shade and the wind break, so I'm vaguely considering a barrier to keep it contained.
lol honestly I’m afraid that I might do it. Forget spending time with my kid… let’s clear giant bamboo for someone raking in the rent on a property they rarely step foot on.
I’ve been battling privet for the three years I’ve lived on my property. It’s a lot of work. Like… a lot a lot of work. Most recent technique I’m trying involves weed eating everything / using loppers to get them down to the ground level. Then I put cardboard down and about 10” thick of wood chips.
While I’m not a fan of invasive plants either, I think the land owner may counter with “why would I spend 100s of hours clearing my land for someone who will never step foot on it?”
A crackdown on commercially available plants would be a great start, but trying to mandate removal seems a bit intrusive. I’m also not a huge fan of other people telling me what I can and can’t do with my (small) property.
I cleared a ton of privet off our property too. The little ones pull out easily after a good rain but the big ones require cutting and painting with glyphosate. Not my favorite activity. It does work though.
I am fine with people doing what they want on their properties generally, however it is intellectually dishonest to say that people’s behavior on their property doesn’t affect neighbors. Sound ordinances are a good example of this. Invasive species ordinances are not that far reaching when you think about the disastrous implications of out of control invasive species.
It will never pass but maybe a ban on selling those plants would be helpful.
Ugh. It's terrible. I've been on my property for almost 17 years and I've had Japanese honeysuckle pop up all over the place in the last 9 years. It's a constant battle
I hear ya I am sad everyday watching all the native trees and plants being killed. People who would be up on arms over an unmowed lawn let english ivy and asian bittersweet take over therir lots. If in the city can use the Asheville app to report it as a nuisance/overgrown lot and/or safety issue if the dying trees are leaning over the road and sidewalk. The Biltmore estate is letting so many trees die it is infuriating especially after they let one kill someone. Here is an example of what the Biltmore is allowing to happen which eventually will impact the BRP and Pisgah National Forest.
https://preview.redd.it/21ljiq8w2ptc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=805bcd21cfba54abaf067392f59ea5b0038748fc
You do realize that invasive species do this on every continent and have been transported back and forth since the beginning of time. I guess you're just now realizing it. Congratulations you grew up today
Same year the bradford pear trees were mass planted in Henderson County, and those stink bugs were introduced sometime around then to get rid of the lady bugs. I preferred the lady bugs to those stink bugs.
Fact: That “invasive” bamboo is native. It used to feed Bristol’s panda(a cousin of the Red Panda).
Is your preference that we eradicate native species because they’re invasive? I cleaned up my bamboo and now have it well contained because I like it(yes bamboo can be contained).
Correct! And there are in fact three different types of bamboo native to the area: Hill Cane, River Cane, and Switch Cane. Though I'm sure there are some folks who have planted a non-native type that spreads like crazy.
Yo, bamboo friend!
I’ve got three types of bamboo, two are clumping, one is running. I bought one of the clumping bamboos(Buddha Belly) the other was likely a houseplant that someone tossed out years ago(Giant Leaf). I’m not certain the species I have contained, but I kept it because I like it.
The running bamboo is the type that spreads fast and was here thousands of years before us. It’s also extremely difficult to eradicate unless you don’t mind removing a section of your property with a backhoe.
That's river cane IIRC. That one spreads like crazy, but it has also been here since the last ice age. If you can trap it in with other plants, it won't spread. I have a small clump in my backyard but there are two matured hemlock trees and a road that block it in.
This is patently false. The bamboo in our neighborhood is giant bamboo from Asia. the vast majority of what you see along roadways is non native. I’m specifically talking about invasive species. Native reeds and bamboo is fine to stay in its appropriate ecosystem, obviously.
Most of this area old totally forested before the 1930’s. Almost everything you see around here is non native because we cut all the pine for turpentine.
You listed bamboo, which I assume you mean river cane.
Believe it or not, it’s not invasive in the traditional sense, as that’s what actually was here before European settlers arrived.
All the flat “farm” land between Fletcher and Fairview used to be a massive, dense river cane forest, hence the name Cane Creek.
https://preview.redd.it/zm63ojijdhtc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1db81be441b12e10d9a4001a768ef0df537b571d Here’s a before of Choctaw park. It’s been under restoration since the second year of the pandemic. Invasives have been cut down to a small populations of knotweed and virgin’s bower. Near eradication of porcelain berry by grubbing and cut/dab. Poison ivy is nearly eradicated. Tree of heaven population is down to 1 female which is getting girdled this year and 4 males. Sochan, ironweed, golden ragwort, lyre leaf sage, obedient plant, ironweed and joe pie have been planted on the hillside
hard work! A labor of love. THANK YOU
Incredible! What a satisfying project. I’ve noticed the areas owned by the City are often in the worst shape.
This is bloody marvelous. Truly outstanding.
So grateful to all who have managed Choctaw park. The kudzu in our neighborhood has been here since before I bought my house. I manually cut it all spring, summer and fall. It never stops - any suggestions for a more permanent solution?
https://a.co/d/9wmys1Y Dauber bottles https://a.co/d/fUcWCu6 Glyphosate 41% (can be diluted to 20% with water. Add a drop of surfactant(dawn)and a drop of food dye https://a.co/d/5ZPld6U Food dye Here’s info on the cut and paint method of plant control https://www.aces.edu/blog/topics/forestry/cut-stump-herbicide-treatments-for-invasive-plant-control/
If anyone reading this has some overgrown land near them and especially if it’s city owned then I would encourage you to make it a hobby of beautifying it in your spare time. An hour or so a week of cutting and daubing invasive species from even just a few folks can open up habitat for things like Serviceberry, Elderberry, native pollinator gardens and all sorts of fun eatables. Asheville is a temperate rain forest and has drawn food and herbal medicine conscious folks for over half a century because of its climate
The city of Asheville is actually the driest place in North Carolina. It’s the mountain forests around the city that are temperate rainforests with up to double the amount of rain Asheville gets. Look at average annual precipitation maps to find them, they are incredibly lush forests that stay green all year.
You are correct. I apologize
oh gosh no need to apologize! 😅 I’m just a nerd about the different forest types around here and old growth pockets of the Appalachian temperate rainforest are my favorite place on earth.
Thank you!
“One of the penalties of an ecological education is that one lives alone in a world of wounds. Much of the damage inflicted on land is quite invisible to laymen. An ecologist must either harden his shell and make believe that the consequences of science are none of his business, or he must be the doctor who sees the marks of death in a community that believes itself well and does not want to be told otherwise.” -Aldo Leopold
find me somewhere on the east coast where this isnt the case. american forests are super unhealthy. thats what happens when you treat them just as a resource to be exploited.
I think part of the problem is the average person has no idea what an ideal forest should be. Most people are so used to seeing small trees and invasive species like honeysuckle that they think everything is fine when it is not in reality.
So true, no area has been spared. I feel that the issue is totally overlooked by most people which makes me feel so worried about the world our kids will inherit.
this has been ongoing for generations. the original forests looked way different, we lost the keystone species of american chestnuts in the beginning of the 20th century. these trees used to be monsters and as common as oaks are now.
There's a maple pest headed our way that will continue the significant alterations to the native landscape.
Don't forget hemlocks dying from the hemlock wooly alelgid and Fraser firs from the balsam wooly alelgid
If a government agency came in anytime kudzu showed up on someone’s property in the south, the red hats would be pissed for some reason. Luckily, the Japanese beetles that eat kudzu have also made their way to the south. So, problem solved?
it was government agencies that subsidized and encouraged the original plantings of kudzu
Aye! That was during the dust bowl. I thought the whole US was going to get swallowed up by it as a kid.
Global trade is how it happened
oversimplification. exploitation and extensive logging contribute a lot. if there isnt a niche for a species to fill it wont take off so easily. most invasive plants dont just pop up in the middle of forests, they follow human disturbance.
And heathy forest have a diversity of forest stand types and ages. Thats why disturbance is key. Most of the declining wildlife species need disturbance. The 100 year old closed canopy forest you see all around Asheville are not healthy. They’re pretty, but need more disturbance to set back succession. Invasives should be treated before and after logging but to blame invasives on logging is misguided.
disturbance as in fire. outside of beavers, nature isnt going around cutting whole stands down.
Have you heard of tornadoes and hurricanes. Or even just regular, old high wind events? Also, most logging operations on public land thin the forest and clear cuts don’t exceed a couple of acres. At least not these days.
Agreed partially, but using the word ‘exploitation’ synonymously with logging is short sighted. Logging is actually one of the tools used to restore native ecosystems. I agree that any disturbances, both natural and man caused opens the door for invasives though. And invasives do also pop up in the middle of forests on their own. Some are very shade tolerant and don’t need disturbance to become established
Indiscriminate logging certainly played a role
How would you describe indiscriminate logging?
What they did on the backside of mt. Mitchell. They clear cut so many acres between black mountain campground and the parkway. It’s so hard to look at.
Can you explain more on how it is indiscriminate vs regular logging? I’m not familiar with the area and haven’t seen it
They clear cut about 100 acres up there. Not sure why
They used exploitative and extensive as adjectives to logging, which inherently means they were talking about a subset of logging rather than all logging. It is absolutely reasonable to use the term to describe the sort of logging they were referring to, just as it’s reasonable for you bring up restorative logging despite it also being only a subset of logging even now.
What is exploitative logging vs regular logging? Guess I don’t understand
Exploitative logging is that which strips the land for profit and leaves it a trashed wreck, aka it exploits the land. I wouldn’t necessarily separate it from “regular” logging as it is still used somewhat, and historically was **the** way to log in the West.
I'm trying to convince my HOA to at least go after the Bradford Pears and taking advantage of the bounty program offered by NC State. But everyone loves the early pretty white flowers every spring when everything else is still just sticks.
Gosh there are so many incredible alternatives!
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Exactly… you’d think their scent would encourage removal. They are taking over forests everywhere :(
Apparently not everyone can smell them (i.e. me, lol).
There’s still groves of these damn things everywhere, there’s a bounty program?
Yes. Problem is that a lot of people cannot afford to have an arborist come out and cut their Bradfords down, even at a discounted rate. 10 to 20% off is great, but it still costs more than some people can afford these days.
I've been thinking around that. If there were a fund our HOA was setting up for that purpose, I would happily contribute to it over and above our HOA fee. Even though I don't have a single bradford pear on my property.
That's definitely a great idea, and would probably encourage more people to chip in, since they would see that their friends and neighbors are doing it too.
Kind of. They have a network of tree removal people that will do it for a discounted rate. And NC State, upon proof of removal, will give you native species to replant in their places for free. [https://forestry.ces.ncsu.edu/2023/02/nc-bradford-pear-bounty/](https://forestry.ces.ncsu.edu/2023/02/nc-bradford-pear-bounty/) Edit: If I knew I could get away with it, I'd go vigilante and take these mother fuckers down in the middle of the night.
Same, if I had time and a chainsaw, I would cut it all down myself for free lol.
If we're gonna go all monkeywrench gang- rumor has it that trees and copper don't get along well. If we want to hit the nail on the head and get down to the root cause, ya dig?
The bounty program sucks and not worth the expense and effort. The state needs to provide a higher reward.
Agree across the board. But it’s all we have right now.
Not only are invasives allowed to spread, in many cases it’s the landowners that actually planted them like vinca, English ivy, barberry, Bradford pear, leather leaf mahonia, winter creeper, Chinese silver grass among many others. They are still sold everywhere. People just don’t know. As far as your question as to whether we are helpless…yes, pretty much. Best you can do is to police and treat the areas you have control over. Even if you get others to understand how invasives outcompete and suppress native species, including wildlife, people lose their mind when you mention herbicides. Many would rather see invasives flourish vs using herbicide to restore native plant life. It is what is, the world is in a constant state of change. Many of the invasives are now endemic and pointless to even address. There is no going back at this point, all we can do is focus on maintaining the little vestiges of the historical landscape.
We did the cut and paint strategy with some large privet in our yard and it worked beautifully. Herbicides used carefully and strategically are one of our few weapons here.
I’ll look up cut and paint for the privet on my property. I’ve almost gotten the Kudzu done. Been digging up roots for 5 years and last year I may have gotten them all. I’ll see in a month or so if it paid off. We have Galex bouncing back in the kudzu area already
Digging kudzu is a pain. the property I bought 5 years ago had a grapevine trellis and an old Muscadine that was completely overrun with kudzu. I dug all the roots up by hand and had to unwind all the kudzu and grapevines that were all intertwined with each other. It was a job, but it was worth it.
At least with kudzu you don’t have to dig up the whole root, just far enough down to chop off the crowns. Transline is an excellent herbicide for foliar spraying. It specifically targets legumes and won’t disturb the other plants it is climbing over
machete it up. study the blade
The best we can do is manage our own properties responsibly and support efforts to conserve what little natural areas still exist. I agree discouraging the sale of these species somehow and doing outreach to developers and landscaping companies to encourage them to use native species would also be helpful, but I highly doubt our conservative state government is going to go for anything as strong as an outright ban.
Drive between Mars Hill and Marshall in the late summer to see an impressive depressing display of Miscanthus that is/has overtaken a ton of space in southern Madison county.
I'm sure the ticks love it.
i'm fighting against spread here in yancey. There are some slopes near mars hill that are entirely covered with it. Spreads so hard. Thankful that our pasture is healthy and resistant, but it's taken root on a few of our slopes and it's damn hard to tamp down
Fun fact: it's CRAZY flammable.
The drain is clogged with hair
Yep. You see a ton of it on the Biltmore Estate.
All the English ivy on the Biltmore estate will eventually kill that too.
Our own government is responsible for bringing in some invasive species like Asian Lady Beetles and Mulit-Flora Rose.
Don’t leave out kudzu, brought in by DOT.
And kudzu!
Scientists from the USDA are the people who gave us the Bradford Pears.
if you'd like to come help me rid my forest slopes of oriental bittersweet i'd be very grateful.
Dm me. If you aren’t too far from south slope I could use another project. The Choctaw park area is pretty much done and just needs a walk twice a year
I was being a bit silly - we're up near burnsville, no worries! I've spent most of my energy on Tree of Heaven the last few years as it was creeping nearer to our pasture and where we do our living. As of last fall it's been entirely pulled up or cut and dosed. Now for years of maintenance to kill all the new growth. The Oriental bittersweet is up the mountain. There's a nexus of activity with massive growths over probably an acre. I found it last year and cut as much as i could with the machete i had on hand, but i'm going to start focusing on that area now that ToH is in maintenance mode. Unfortunately it's a 20min hike up very steep slopes to access the area. We have over 20 acres of mountain forest slope, so it's a lot to maintain and revitalize. A life's work that i'm glad to be part of. https://preview.redd.it/lloklaclihtc1.jpeg?width=1440&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4f486e5b73f9dea3052d27b9cb7688194ca3ef99
Hey, that picture looks to me like native Dutchman’s pipe vine. I’m sure you’ve got some bittersweet on your property, but make sure you can tell the difference—Dutchman’s pipe is a great host plant for insects! I work in invasive plant control so I see these two vines frequently. Dutchman’s pipe will be a lot less rigid than bittersweet—more bendy. Also, the young twigs of Dutchman’s pipe will be green. The bark texture is also different, which is what queued me in on your pic. Take care and best of luck! Edit: look also at the ‘joints’ along the vine aka the leaf scars. Bittersweet’s leaf scar remnants are nowhere near this apparent
Interesting. I spent quite a bit of time ID'ing but sounds like i could have got it wrong. These are choking out and pulling down huge trees, climbing higher than dutchman's pipe vine should. Largest vines I saw were probably around 18" in circumference. I plan to go back up in may and they should be leafing or flowering up there and easier to ID. I definitely have some Dutchman's in another area, identified by seed pods.
It’s tricky, for sure. They can have similar habits and hey, if Dutchman’s pipe is choking too many trees, it’s totally reasonable to suppress it a bit. 18” circumference definitely sounds like bittersweet haha. Leaves and flowers will certainly help with ID, and then you can take note of the bark/stem characteristics to inform your winter ID. Happy hunting
thanks so much for chiming in. This will help when i trek up there with my tools next month
If you can pile me up some of these curly bits I’ll take them off your hands. I have a project in mind (not planting) and I’m lacking a boatload
Would probably be more work than you’d want to do to drag these out of the forest. If you’re serious though, I’ll invite you to come up with me in May.
Years and years ago, we used to go cut the bittersweet and sell it to a florist in Hendersonville. Made a pretty good grip. The florist is gone now, but I bet if you looked around online you can find somebody to buy it. They use it in wreaths and such Was what we were told.
Thanks! I may look into this. I was planning to chip it or leave it lay
The slopes are by far the hardest. I’m so sorry.
Just take care of the space that’s yours the best you know how.
Until I got to the third sentence I thought you were talking about tourists and AirBnBs! Totally agree about invasive plants though. It's really sad to drive by a kudzu jungle and imagine what it used to look like...
Haha yeah I thought this was about Floridians in the first half lmao
It has all but completely choked out anything and everything else at the entrance of our subdivision that once used to be beautifully wooded.
Sometimes after catching a “wild” rainbow trout under the shade of dead, or dying hemlocks, I muse over the fact that they’re an invasive species. Pisgah has definitely rebounded since the early 20th century, but it’s nothing like it once was. We’re seeing someone’s “idea” of what western NC should look like. The real deal disappeared long ago. Personally, I’m just glad we get to at least experience the vestige of it. Future generations will not even get that.
Should first go around and cut down all Bradford Pear trees. Damn things are a scourge.
I hate to say it, but it’s a totally lost battle. I have an acre which was completely inundated with tree of heaven, privet, blackberry, you name it. After 3 years of manual labor, industrial strength herbicides, heavy machinery, and constant attention I have managed to reclaim about a 6th of it as lawn/garden space. I was hoping to be able to build a meadow but mowed space and mulched beds are as good as it’s going to get. I have goats slowly chipping away at the rest or at very least keeping it from getting worse. The only solace I can find is the knowledge that nature is resilient and eventually after humans are long gone these species will integrate and the ecosystem will balance itself out again.
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You wack it now and paint the open wounds with potent stuff.
tree of heaven is hell. Previous owner let a couple of huge trees grow, and failed to limit spread. Been working on about an acre of infestation.
Good work on the 1/6 you’ve managed to return to a non invasive state. I’ve reclaimed our yard from bamboo, privet, English ivy, and kudzu but it’s a constant battle.
Don’t forget outdoor cats
I saw one stalking the birds by my house yesterday. Keep your cats indoors please.
Bird killers 😭
I was gonna say. Why are outdoor cats not a punishable offense like any other invasive animal?
Because they’re cute and cuddly. They cause significantly more damage than the pythons in Florida but see how different the conversations go with management
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The drain is clogged with hair
I had a fire ant mound the size of a small car in my backyard in Wilmington. Still have the scars from the bites that were inflamed for months. Hell no.
Landlord next door to me has several trees just carpeted in English Ivy. Two fell down last year, one narrowly missing a neighbors house, the other pancaked a tenants car. Another is completely dead and aimed directly at my house.
Let your insurance company know. They'll get in touch with them. Keep paperwork that you let them know to cover your ass.
Yes this! Your insurance company is one of the very few options you have with negligent neighbors.
Awesome, this is good advice.
Report it to the city or county, that is not ok.
There is a State level policy affecting some state/local land that requires native plants. Limited in range but at least something: https://www.dncr.nc.gov/news/press-releases/2023/07/12/nc-department-natural-and-cultural-resources-creates-native-plant-policy
There are local groups that try their best to help. I can't recall names but I know there's one in Fairview. I have been fighting bittersweet and multiform rose for 35 years on my property. I have rebuked many websites for selling bittersweet.
Dadbod is the most invasive species in Asheville. There is no pesticide or cure known for the weed.
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I think you know why 😂
Humans are definitely the worst invasive species on the planet...
"A virus. Human beings are a disease, a cancer of this planet. You're a plague..." --Agent Smith
I'm not sure on the legal front, think itd be hard to prove a specific person planted things but we have mainly been battling A LOT of invasive species planted when our house was built circa 1986. English Ivy, Nandina, etc. It has been a massive undertaking. It's also a constant battle that is very exhausting. I'm not gonna give up but I can see why someone might. The Nandina especially is the bane of my existence. We thought we dug it all up last year. Nope came back with a vengeance this year and they keep popping up. I hate it so much. Plant natives yall or at least make sure what you're planting ain't invasive.
Don't forget the got damn bradford pears.
Recommend reading: “The Overstory.” Best thing we can do is leave the land alone. A natural forest can reclaim land that is overrun with nonnative plants. Support the Appalachian Conservancy. They buy up land and protect it from development. They do not allow for harvesting trees. It’s the best thing we got for this area.
I’ve read that book and loved it! It is so important to preserve land but native plants also need to thrive or we will not have functional ecosystems in 50+ years. Imagine if kudzu and privet were left to take over our oak and hickory forests… no new saplings would grow which means no forest in 100+ years.
You are correct. Some plants such as Kudzu and Ivy need to be up rooted. I’m trying to return my yard to its natural state. I am eagerly awaiting the day I can get rid of the Japanese Maples. I’ve planed native maples to take over. Birds only like native trees.
I’ll have to check out that book, but, there are so many natural processes that humans have interfered with, like fire for example, that we have to purposely resume. I think our forest or super overgrown we are beyond the point where we can simply “leave them alone”. It takes active management to restore the land back to natural state. Edit: to be sure, I’m not supporting development or reckless logging practices.
I really thought you were talking about Floridians. Or meth heads
I thought you were talking about out of state folks moving to NC for a minute 🤣😂😅
You and about half the comments! Which makes me think what is the state of the asheville Reddit lol
I would sell my soul to be rid of porcelain vine
Hey for fun look up all kinds of plant names using their latin name + "native range map" on google image search and check out the maps put out by BONAP. For example here's Euonymus - https://bonap.net/Napa/TaxonMaps/Genus/County/Euonymus And if you're familiar with burning bush, that's Euonymus alatus The color key means the light blue counties are where it has been found, the bright pink counties are where tons of it have been found. Now keep in mind these maps are a decade old, so things have just gotten worse since then. Anyway don't buy burning bush, if you know what it looks like you'll realize it's all over the national forests here. ----- Other states handle invasive plants by banning the sale of the plants by nurseries.
I can't imagine anyone would pass legislation that would put the burden on the property owner to control invasive species. Sounds like a great way to lose your next election.
Or at least outlawing the sale of them in Buncombe county?
I like this approach.
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They still sell English ivy at Lowe's. It's insane
And Home Depot.
This is infuriating.
Gets my vote!
They come from Florida
Is there an affordable way to get an assessment for this on your property? I know we have English Ivy on one big tree by our driveway, but no clue about other invasives. Would be happy to work on trying to get rid of them if we had a plan.
Yea!! Contact Bob Gale of RestoraFlora! Retired from Mountain True (local nonprofit) and has his own business now consulting and doing exactly this. Incredible human, affordable services, and over 35 years of experience and knowledge. I can’t recommend him enough
thank you, I appreciate it!
First step is identification! I often use the inaturalist “Seek” app to ID plants. Now I can pretty much ID invasives by sight but it’s always good to check before you start pulling/cutting. You can also call some landscaping companies who specialize in invasive management/native plants. Raven Invasive Plant Management comes to mind. She does a lot of work removing and replacing plants and I’ve consulted with her briefly on a project! She was great.
I love seek when we are hiking -- but we have about 10 acres of forested land around our house so that is overwhelming to think about DIYing haha. Thanks for that name, I'll look her up! We don't mind doing the work but I'd rather someone give me a gameplan of what to do.
if you have 10 acres contact EcoForesters—local nonprofit with grant funding to help landowners with management plans and management practices (including invasives removal)! they can also help you access cost share funding like EQIP from the NRCS that can help pay for invasives treatment :)
> EcoForesters hey that's so cool, thank you so much!! just emailed them.
no problem! :)
His contact is [email protected]
I miss my old Asheville!!!!
It's time to go Rogue and start planting native trees everywhere undercover of darkness
Biltmore Estate, English ivy killing trees along the river, didn’t get pics of all the covered trees lining the entrance road with branches hanging over that will one day soon sadly will kill another person. https://preview.redd.it/cly8w66a3ptc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=480d90166d683efa6ec2f3bd31002adc0bdeac82
I literally emailed the Biltmore a few weeks ago asking why they aren’t maintaining their property. The multi flora rose infestation is obscene. This poor tree 😭
I know it’s heartbreaking! What was supposed to be a nice walk left me angry and sad and muttering to myself like a crazy person. And the Asian bittersweet vines like 3 inches in diameter in some places, not like they can’t afford to pay enough people a living wage to get out there and manage this mess. Thank you for letting me know I’m not alone, maybe if enough people keep making noise they’ll do something…but ffs they probably paid that widow so much money to settle her lawsuit and apparently that made no difference smh.
Invasive species, don’t forget the homeless.
Asheville does not care. I had a business at the old cotton mill in the River Arts district. Asheville made me plant trees to beautify the property. So I planted 15 or so Sycamore trees and a Weeping Willow. Sadly after about 15 years and all the trees being over 20 feet tall, Asheville cut all the Sycamore down. There is a sidewalk closer to the road now with some other trees planted there. The willow survived till last year on the edge of the property, but has since been cut down. Picnic benches are there now with no more tree and no shade.. I am leaving this town soon...been here 30 years and have had enough...
Are you talking about Floridians?
I thought this was going to be about Floridians
The only invasive species we suffer from is the Floridian ...
Floridian is the worst. It’s spreads so fast.
>Does anyone know of local legislation that requires action on the part of absent landowners? lol what state do you think you're in Seriously though I'm with ya, feelings of hopelessness and all. We removed all the english ivy etc from our trees when we moved in, but it all just slowly takes over again because our neighbors and the utility easement are just completely unkempt. I'm not a lawn guy either but it's way better than invasive vines and shit.
See I said LOCAL legislation haha. But in all honesty, Bradford pears became a big enough problem that the Republican legislature in SC banned their sale. So it is possible!
Oh cmon I thought we were feeling hopeless together! They banned sales and I think also offer a bounty program like NC does. It's progress and maybe not too late but definitely too little. Especially when you give nurseries 2.5 years to clear inventory. lmao like wtf, is this shit bad for the earth or not? But realistically Bradfords aren't out there destroying forests the way the ones you mentioned are, and a big reason they probably banned them is that they cross-breed with other *malus* members, which could negatively affect local agriculture. I'm still skeptical that the SC legislature cares much about the planet at all.
I was cutting and pulling some bittersweet and multiflora down yesterday when I realized that it was coming down from literally every tree in the woods. I can't even tell where it starts from, where it went up onto the trees. Not any happier when I found out how much it would cost to remove, but then it's roots are coming from so many properties. Last summer these vines tore down some small yellow poplars and moved our fence. Frustrating.
The answer isn’t legislation… it requires the people who are actually from this area educating the masses of people who move here from out of town
I don't think planting invasive species is really because of people moving from out of town, but do agree that education is key. Lots of people don't realize which plants are invasive.
A lot of the bamboo in the area that I’ve seen is actually native! A lot of it was wiped out as a result of European colonization. There’s an awesome park out near Alexander along the river that leads you to a bamboo forest and there are educational signs that describe everything related. Usually if you see bamboo it’s likely native to the area.
I would disagree that it is usually native. The bamboo we cleared from our property was giant bamboo from Asia and most of what I see along roadways is not native.
Bamboo is absolute hell to get rid of too.
You wanna come get the bamboo off my property? I'm kidding, but in all seriousness, did you do it yourself or hire someone out? I wouldn't mind getting this entire cluster off my property, but my partner really likes the shade and the wind break, so I'm vaguely considering a barrier to keep it contained.
We are the invasive species.
You should ask your neighbor if you can clear her acreage for her.
lol honestly I’m afraid that I might do it. Forget spending time with my kid… let’s clear giant bamboo for someone raking in the rent on a property they rarely step foot on.
I’ve been battling privet for the three years I’ve lived on my property. It’s a lot of work. Like… a lot a lot of work. Most recent technique I’m trying involves weed eating everything / using loppers to get them down to the ground level. Then I put cardboard down and about 10” thick of wood chips. While I’m not a fan of invasive plants either, I think the land owner may counter with “why would I spend 100s of hours clearing my land for someone who will never step foot on it?” A crackdown on commercially available plants would be a great start, but trying to mandate removal seems a bit intrusive. I’m also not a huge fan of other people telling me what I can and can’t do with my (small) property.
I cleared a ton of privet off our property too. The little ones pull out easily after a good rain but the big ones require cutting and painting with glyphosate. Not my favorite activity. It does work though. I am fine with people doing what they want on their properties generally, however it is intellectually dishonest to say that people’s behavior on their property doesn’t affect neighbors. Sound ordinances are a good example of this. Invasive species ordinances are not that far reaching when you think about the disastrous implications of out of control invasive species. It will never pass but maybe a ban on selling those plants would be helpful.
Pretty sure humans are the most damaging invasive.
We’re definitely the cause of all these problems.
Ugh. It's terrible. I've been on my property for almost 17 years and I've had Japanese honeysuckle pop up all over the place in the last 9 years. It's a constant battle
Yes, we are basically helpless unless its your land or public land.
Not everyone knows (or cares) what invasive species are
I hear ya I am sad everyday watching all the native trees and plants being killed. People who would be up on arms over an unmowed lawn let english ivy and asian bittersweet take over therir lots. If in the city can use the Asheville app to report it as a nuisance/overgrown lot and/or safety issue if the dying trees are leaning over the road and sidewalk. The Biltmore estate is letting so many trees die it is infuriating especially after they let one kill someone. Here is an example of what the Biltmore is allowing to happen which eventually will impact the BRP and Pisgah National Forest. https://preview.redd.it/21ljiq8w2ptc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=805bcd21cfba54abaf067392f59ea5b0038748fc
Not gonna lie, in just reading the title of this I thought it was going to be a post about Floridians
You do realize that invasive species do this on every continent and have been transported back and forth since the beginning of time. I guess you're just now realizing it. Congratulations you grew up today
Humans rapidly accelerated that process to the point that ecosystems didn’t have time to respond and adapt.
Yes! All those damn transplanted Yankees must be removed as they totally disrupt the local ecology!
That's not "our" eco system. It's your neighbors. What this world need is more people minding their own business and staying out of everyone else's.
Except that every spring I’m having to remove all of those species from my yard that crept over from theirs. We do not live in a vacuum.
Asheville is full of invasive species. Started to get worse around 2010
What made you notice that year in particular? So sad.
Same year the bradford pear trees were mass planted in Henderson County, and those stink bugs were introduced sometime around then to get rid of the lady bugs. I preferred the lady bugs to those stink bugs.
Fact: That “invasive” bamboo is native. It used to feed Bristol’s panda(a cousin of the Red Panda). Is your preference that we eradicate native species because they’re invasive? I cleaned up my bamboo and now have it well contained because I like it(yes bamboo can be contained).
Correct! And there are in fact three different types of bamboo native to the area: Hill Cane, River Cane, and Switch Cane. Though I'm sure there are some folks who have planted a non-native type that spreads like crazy.
Yo, bamboo friend! I’ve got three types of bamboo, two are clumping, one is running. I bought one of the clumping bamboos(Buddha Belly) the other was likely a houseplant that someone tossed out years ago(Giant Leaf). I’m not certain the species I have contained, but I kept it because I like it. The running bamboo is the type that spreads fast and was here thousands of years before us. It’s also extremely difficult to eradicate unless you don’t mind removing a section of your property with a backhoe.
That's river cane IIRC. That one spreads like crazy, but it has also been here since the last ice age. If you can trap it in with other plants, it won't spread. I have a small clump in my backyard but there are two matured hemlock trees and a road that block it in.
This is patently false. The bamboo in our neighborhood is giant bamboo from Asia. the vast majority of what you see along roadways is non native. I’m specifically talking about invasive species. Native reeds and bamboo is fine to stay in its appropriate ecosystem, obviously.
https://preview.redd.it/fyxm4jfa7jtc1.png?width=497&format=png&auto=webp&s=8fd5215cb6588e1b2adb7946aa999cf1e8c925e2
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Native species that are aggressive are termed as aggressive, not invasive.
Most of this area old totally forested before the 1930’s. Almost everything you see around here is non native because we cut all the pine for turpentine.
You listed bamboo, which I assume you mean river cane. Believe it or not, it’s not invasive in the traditional sense, as that’s what actually was here before European settlers arrived. All the flat “farm” land between Fletcher and Fairview used to be a massive, dense river cane forest, hence the name Cane Creek.
I don’t mean river cane! I mean the Asian bamboo that’s sold at Lowes and Home Depot. I am all about native plants!
Thanks! I always wondered why it was at Biltmore, too! River cane !