pjc6349
Invasive Species Spotted!
On Saturday, June 2, 2018, I took my 5-year old daughter to Greenfield Lake and walked the bike path to go left away from the paddle boats heading towards Turtle Bridge. Along the path, we saw several different species of plants and animals. At 1407 we spotted a very large vine spiraled counterclockwise around a Loblolly Pine (Pinus taeda L.) tree trunk climbing towards the treetop, but about halfway up the vine split and branched over to a neighboring Pond Cypress (Taxodium ascendens). The vine has pulled the two trees together as the new vine climbed to the top of the Pond Cypress. My daughter first thought it was a huge snake climbing a tree, but once I assured her it wasn’t we took a closer look at the interesting plant. My Daughter asked me how the vine was able to reach over and climb the other tree and pull it over. I told her what probably happened was that the vine fell from its tree during a storm and the wind pushed the vine into the near-by tree. She thought the vine just reached over and grabbed, it like in cartoons. After I explained it to her she told me that made more sense and really enjoyed learning about nature.
The vine was an invasive species known as Chinese Wisteria which is different from our native American Wisteria (Wisteria frutescens). The Chinese Wisteria is a deciduous woody vine capable of growing to a height of 40 ft. (12.2 m). Stems can be up to 10 in. (25.4 cm) in diameter with smooth, gray-brown. You can properly identify the Chinese Wisteria by when you are looking down on the vine, it twines in a counterclockwise direction around the host. The Japanese Wisteria (Wisteria floribunda) twines clockwise. The foliage has an Alternate, pinnately compound (7-13 leaflets) leaves which are tapered at the tip with wavy edges. The Leaflets are approximately 7.6 cm in length. Chinese Wisteria flowers lavender, purple or white flowers what that have a pleasant smell. The flowers dangle in clusters in the spring between 15-30 cm in length. The seeds are poisonous and are contained in hairy flattened bean-like pods that are 15.2 cm long. Wisteria prefers full sun and well-drained soils but will grow in less than desirable conditions. Once a native of China, it was first introduced into the United States in 1800’s for ornamental purposes. It is mainly found growing along roadsides, forest edges, and rights-of-ways.
This Invasive species is an ecological threat to our native forests. Chinese Wisteria is highly aggressive and can displace native species. An Individual wisteria plant could survive for more than 50 years. Wisteria can reproduce quickly by rooting at each node and will produce new shoots if cut back or trimmed. Chinese Wisteria can displace native vegetation and kill trees and shrubs by girdling them. The vine can change the structure of a forest by killing large trees and altering the light availability to the forest floor.
After doing some research on Chinese Wisteria, I have noticed it in many of our forests and wonder why gardeners and people would introduce such a devastating plant into our ecosystem. This species has no natural predators in our ecosystem and the only way to manage it is by cutting the stump and applying a 25% solution of glyphosate or triclopyr to the stem or for larger infestations a wisteria foliar herbicide may be necessary. The best time to apply this method is during the spring and summer when the plant is actually growing so that during winter the herbicide can move back into the underground portion as the plant moves sugars back into the roots.
Citations
1. Identification and Biology of Nonnative Plants in Florida’s Natural Areas – Second Edition, by K.A. Langeland, H.M. Cherry, et al. University of Florida-IFAS Publication # SP 257. 2008.
2. Strangers in Paradise, Impact and Management of Nonindigenous Species in Florida, Chapter 2: Florida’s Invasion by Nonindigenous Plants: History, Screening, and Regulation, by D.R. Gordon and K.P. Thomas, pp. 21-37. Island Press, Washington, DC, 1997.
3. Invasive and Non-native Plants You Should Know – Recognition Cards, by A. Richard and V. Ramey. University of Florida-IFAS Publication # SP 431. 2007.
4. Integrated Management of Nonnative Plants in Natural Areas of Florida, by K. A. Langeland, J. A. Ferrell, B. Sellers, G. E. MacDonald, and R. K. Stocker. University of Florida-IFAS Publication # SP 242. 2011.
5. Google. (2018). Google images. Retrieved from Google.
Invasive Species Spotted!
On Saturday, June 2, 2018, I took my 5-year old daughter to Greenfield Lake and walked the bike path to go left away from the paddle boats heading towards Turtle Bridge. Along the path, we saw several different species of plants and animals. At 1407 we spotted a very large vine spiraled counterclockwise around a Loblolly Pine (Pinus taeda L.) tree trunk climbing towards the treetop, but about halfway up the vine split and branched over to a neighboring Pond Cypress (Taxodium ascendens). The vine has pulled the two trees together as the new vine climbed to the top of the Pond Cypress. My daughter first thought it was a huge snake climbing a tree, but once I assured her it wasn’t we took a closer look at the interesting plant. My Daughter asked me how the vine was able to reach over and climb the other tree and pull it over. I told her what probably happened was that the vine fell from its tree during a storm and the wind pushed the vine into the near-by tree. She thought the vine just reached over and grabbed, it like in cartoons. After I explained it to her she told me that made more sense and really enjoyed learning about nature.
The vine was an invasive species known as Chinese Wisteria which is different from our native American Wisteria (Wisteria frutescens). The Chinese Wisteria is a deciduous woody vine capable of growing to a height of 40 ft. (12.2 m). Stems can be up to 10 in. (25.4 cm) in diameter with smooth, gray-brown. You can properly identify the Chinese Wisteria by when you are looking down on the vine, it twines in a counterclockwise direction around the host. The Japanese Wisteria (Wisteria floribunda) twines clockwise. The foliage has an Alternate, pinnately compound (7-13 leaflets) leaves which are tapered at the tip with wavy edges. The Leaflets are approximately 7.6 cm in length. Chinese Wisteria flowers lavender, purple or white flowers what that have a pleasant smell. The flowers dangle in clusters in the spring between 15-30 cm in length. The seeds are poisonous and are contained in hairy flattened bean-like pods that are 15.2 cm long. Wisteria prefers full sun and well-drained soils but will grow in less than desirable conditions. Once a native of China, it was first introduced into the United States in 1800’s for ornamental purposes. It is mainly found growing along roadsides, forest edges, and rights-of-ways.
This Invasive species is an ecological threat to our native forests. Chinese Wisteria is highly aggressive and can displace native species. An Individual wisteria plant could survive for more than 50 years. Wisteria can reproduce quickly by rooting at each node and will produce new shoots if cut back or trimmed. Chinese Wisteria can displace native vegetation and kill trees and shrubs by girdling them. The vine can change the structure of a forest by killing large trees and altering the light availability to the forest floor.
After doing some research on Chinese Wisteria, I have noticed it in many of our forests and wonder why gardeners and people would introduce such a devastating plant into our ecosystem. This species has no natural predators in our ecosystem and the only way to manage it is by cutting the stump and applying a 25% solution of glyphosate or triclopyr to the stem or for larger infestations a wisteria foliar herbicide may be necessary. The best time to apply this method is during the spring and summer when the plant is actually growing so that during winter the herbicide can move back into the underground portion as the plant moves sugars back into the roots.
Citations
1. Identification and Biology of Nonnative Plants in Florida’s Natural Areas – Second Edition, by K.A. Langeland, H.M. Cherry, et al. University of Florida-IFAS Publication # SP 257. 2008.
2. Strangers in Paradise, Impact and Management of Nonindigenous Species in Florida, Chapter 2: Florida’s Invasion by Nonindigenous Plants: History, Screening, and Regulation, by D.R. Gordon and K.P. Thomas, pp. 21-37. Island Press, Washington, DC, 1997.
3. Invasive and Non-native Plants You Should Know – Recognition Cards, by A. Richard and V. Ramey. University of Florida-IFAS Publication # SP 431. 2007.
4. Integrated Management of Nonnative Plants in Natural Areas of Florida, by K. A. Langeland, J. A. Ferrell, B. Sellers, G. E. MacDonald, and R. K. Stocker. University of Florida-IFAS Publication # SP 242. 2011.
5. Google. (2018). Google images. Retrieved from Google.