Transcript The Maryland/District of Columbia Chapter of the Nature

The Maryland/District of
Columbia Chapter of the
Nature Conservancy
presents…
The Weed Watcher/Buster
Program
by
Donnelle Keech
Deborah Barber
Virginia McDaniel
Meredith Malone
What are invasive, exotic plants?

Invasive plant - a plant whose growth
habit has a detrimental effect on natural
ecosystems

Invasive, exotic plant - lives outside its
historic range AND has a detrimental
effect on natural ecosystems
Invasive, exotic plant
Invasive, native plant
Japanese honeysuckle
(Lonicera japonica)
Pokeberry
(Phytolacca americana)
originally from Asia
originally from N. America
Virginia Tech Weed Identification Guide
Characteristics of invasive, exotic plants
Rapid growth and maturity
 Prolific seed production
 Highly successful seed dispersal,
germination and colonization
 Rampant vegetative growth
» Ability to out-compete native species
» High cost and effort to remove or
control

What have we done to
manage this problem?
The Goal of the Weed
Watchers/Busters Program
To locate and manage recently
emerged infestations of invasive,
exotic plants on high priority sites
in Maryland and the District of
Columbia with assistance from an
extensive network of volunteers
How does it work?
Weed Watchers
Find the infestations
and report them
Weed Busters
Implement the plans
that TNC develops
TNC staff
Prioritize the infestations
and determine
management options
The Weed Watchers

The goal of the Weed Watchers is to
locate and inform staff of new or
unknown occurrences of invasive, exotic
plants on TNC preserves in Maryland.
The Hit List

We determined the most threatening
invasive, exotic species to Maryland/D.C.
TNC sites and developed a short list on
which to focus

The list helped us:
 prioritize our management efforts and
prevent volunteers from feeling overwhelmed
by a large number of plants to identify
The Hit List

We determined which species to target by:
 surveying invasive plant management
professionals throughout Maryland and
 researching current literature

We settled on 13 invasive, exotic species...
The Hit List species are...
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Tree-of heaven
Garlic Mustard
Autumn Olive
Japanese
honeysuckle
Bush honeysuckle
Purple loosestrife
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Japanese stiltgrass
Canary reedgrass
Common reed
Japanese knotweed
Mile-a-minute
Lesser celandine
Multiflora rose
Volunteers- an essential resource
22 volunteers were:
assigned high priority sites to monitor,
 trained to identify the hit list species
and report occurrences to TNC,
 taught compass and topographical map
reading skills, AND
 accompanied to their site for an
orientation visit.

The “Lecture”
Slide show/MS Power Point presentation

Reviewed the Weed Watcher Manual

practiced infestation reporting methods (i.e. visit
and hit reports)

reviewed flagging and mapping techniques to
document the exact location of infested area
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Practiced plant identification using dried specimens
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Practiced compass and topography reading
The “Lab”
A trip to Rock Creek Park

Practiced plant identification and navigational skills
Weed Watchers identify the Tree-of-heaven
The Test

to ensure that all Weed Watchers were
adequately trained
The following spring...
The Weed
Watcher reports
came rolling in!
Prioritization of Infestations

Once we received Weed Watcher reports,
we needed a method of management
prioritization

We consulted The Nature Conservancy’s
Wildland Invasive Species Team (WIST)
http://tncweeds.ucdavis.edu
Our prioritization guidelines
based on
WIST’s Weed Management Plan template
What is the current extent of the
species on or near the site?
 What are the current and potential
impacts of the species?
 What is the value of the habitats/areas
that the species infests or may infest?
 How difficult is the infestation to
control?

Different Goals
Depending on your organization’s goals,
the guidelines you follow when
prioritizing the management of
infestations may differ from ours.
The Weed Busters

The goal of the Weed Busters is to
implement weed management/control
plans on Weed Watcher/Buster sites.
Once infestations are:
1) found by the Weed Watchers, and
2) identified as high priority for
management, the Weed Busters attack!
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Who are the Weed Busters?
 Anyone

can be a Weed Buster!
Volunteers sign up for Weed Buster workdays
advertised in our volunteer newsletter, The
Oracle

“On-call” volunteers join an email listserve
and are notified of weed control workdays
which are scheduled with little notice.
The results...
We began to manage many infestations...
… on the land we protect!
What have we accomplished?

During the summer of 2001, Weed
Watchers and Weed Busters located
AND began to control 19 different
invasive, exotic species infestations on 5
TNC preserves in Maryland.
Interested in developing your
own Weed Watcher/Buster
Program?
Resources to consider
Access to volunteers and possibly interns
 Time
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to supervise volunteers and interns,
to review and prioritize Weed Watcher reports, &
to research the latest weed control methodologies
Herbicides and safety equipment, if permitted by
your state
 Funding
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Information Sources: Multi-regional
Websites

TNC’s Wildland Invasive Species Team
http://tncweeds.ucdavis.edu
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National Plants Database
http://plants.usda.gov
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Department of Agriculture
http://invasivespecies.gov
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University of Montana’s INVADERS Database
http://invader.dbs.umt.edu
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Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants
http://plants.ifas.ufl.edu
Information Sources: Mid-Atlantic
Websites
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Virginia Natural Heritage Program
http://www.dcr.state.va.us/dnh/invlist.htm
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Maryland Native Plants Society
http://www.mdflora.org
Information Sources: Organizations
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Maryland Invasive Species Council
email [email protected] to learn more
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Mid-Atlantic Exotic Pest Plant Council
send blank email to ma-eppc-subscribe
@yahoogroups.com to join listserve
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TNC’s Invasive Species Listserve Digest
email Barry Rice with name & state/country at
[email protected]
Herbicides
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State restrictions
Find out what your state’s restrictions are before
preparing to apply
If your state’s laws do not prohibit herbicide
use on the land you protect, see TNC’s
“Guidelines for Herbicide Use” at:
http://tncweeds.ucdavis.edu/handbook.html
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Remember...
Weed management requires ongoing
reevaluations and adjustments.
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Shifting priorities will alter management
objectives.
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Learn which control methods are most
effective through trial and error.
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New species may be added to your hit
list.
Share your invasive plant management
experiences, so we can learn from one another.
Questions anyone?
Contact us at the Maryland/District of
Columbia Chapter of the Nature Conservancy:
5410 Grosvenor Lane, Suite 100
Bethesda, Maryland 20814
(301) 897-8570
or email
Deborah Barber at [email protected]