Join the March and Protest Invasive Plants!

Virginia is full of invasive plants. These have been brought to the US from foreign countries as ornamental plants for landscaping. The native Virginia plants haven’t developed any defenses against the spread of the invasives, and they take over (think kudzu) and crowd out the Virginia plants. They jump the yard fence and kill the forests and meadows. Trees—Colliery Pear (looks like a slim Bradford pear and spreads every way possible), Tree of Heaven (actually from the other direction), shrubs—Autumn olive (not an olive anywhere, spreads like dandelions in open land), vines—kudzu and oriental bittersweet found everywhere in Warrenton and killing our trees), and flowers—purple loosestrife which looks quite pretty and kills out meadow and stream-bed plants. See Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas by the National Park Service and the US Fish and Wildlife Service (the good guys).  There are invaders in our midst! Gather the troops! Give out prizes for identifying invasives in your yard. Travel to a park and locate some. Hint: there’s plenty at Whitney Forest on the edge of town and the Greenway. But don’t bother to whack them down. They come right back with vengeance. You’ll need some research into what will take them out for good and when and how to engage that weapon.  Contact the Fauquier-Rapp Master Gardeners Help Desk at 540.341.7950 x 1 and get the master’s advice. Stay safe! Prepared for you by the Green Team, welcoming new members. Contact Ruth Fugee at ruth.fugee@gmail.com.