Horticulture2

CHOICES FOR GARDENERS: NATIVE PLANTS AND THEIR CULTIVARS:

ALTERNATIVES FOR INVASIVE EXOTIC SPECIES

· NATIVE = SPECIES NATURALLY OCCURRING IN A REGION (INDIGENOUS PLANTS)

· EXOTIC = SPECIES INTRODUCED BY HUMAN ACTION (ALIEN, NON-NATIVE PLANTS)

What is the problem?

Invasive non-native species (a.k.a. exotic pest plants) threaten our native flora. In the Pacific Northwest, Hedera helix (English Ivy) has become a menace, strangling trees and smothering wildflowers in forested urban areas. In the Southeast, Wisteria sinensis (Chinese Wisteria) dangles from utility wires, while Melaleuca quinquenervia (Melaleuca) has turned 450,000 acres of Florida marshland into swamp forest, choking out native vegetation. In the Mid-Atlantic, Ailanthus altissima (Tree-of-Heaven) has escaped cultivation, displacing native species and damaging sewers and foundations with its root system. In California, thirty of fifty-three federally listed endangered plant species are threatened by exotic pest plants. Minnesota has established a state agency to deal with the rampant wetland perennial Lythrum salicaria (Purple Loosestrife).

What can we as gardeners do about invasive non-native plants?

The first step is to educate ourselves. In today's world, the basics of gardening need to include knowledge of invasive non-native plants, particularly the ornamentals that are escaping from our gardens. Note: The majority of exotics are well-behaved, deserving a place in our gardens. Only a small number have become "pest" plants.

1. Recognize the characteristics of an invasive non-native species:

Grows quickly to maturity

Reproduces rapidly and prolifically

Spreads aggressively

Disrupts native ecosystems

Often attractive enough to encourage human distribution

2. Identify problem plants in your area.

3. Eradicate known invasive exotic plants in your garden and in your natural areas.

4. Replace exotic pest plants with natives in order to protect biodiversity. (Caution: Use nursery-propagated

native plant material, instead of digging natives from the wild!)

5. Encourage others to be aware of invasive non-natives and to use native plants and their cultivars as alternatives for landscaping and public plantings.

OUR CHOICES CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

CHOICES FOR GARDENERS: Native Plant Alternatives for Invasive Exotic Plants

Selected Examples for West Virginia (Also includes Kentucky, North Carolina & Virginia)

Invasives

Native Alternatives

Alianthus altissima (Tree-of-Heaven)

Gymnocladus dioicus (Ky. Coffee Tree)

Amelanchier stolonifera (Serviceberry)

Cladrastris lutea (Ky. Yellow-wood)

Cornus florida (Eastern Dogwood)

Halesia carolina (Snowdrop Tree)

H. monticola (Mountain Silver Bell)

Lythrum salicaria (Purple Loosestrife)

Veronicastrum virginicum (Culver's Root)

Liatris spicata (Gayfeather)

Echinacea purpurea (Cone Flower)

Elaeagnus angustifolia (Russian Olive)

Ilex verticillata (Winterberry)

Viburnum prunifolium (Black Haw)

Rhus copallina (Shining Sumac)

Cornus racemosa (Gray Dogwood)

Amelanchier spp. (Serviceberry)

Lonicera japonica (Japanese Honeysuckle)

Parthenocissus quinquefolia (Va. Creeper)

Lonicera sempervirens (Trumpet Honeysuckle)

Clematis virginiana (Woodbine)

Clematis pitcheri (Wild Clematis)

Growing Magnolia Grandiflora from Seeds, by Miss Elizabeth Quarrier

Miss Elizabeth Quarrier joined Kanawha Garden Club in 1938. She was known as an expert gardener. She and her sister, Miss Lucy Quarrier, lived at Glenwood on Orchard Street in Charleston. Glenwood is now owned by the Marshall University College of Graduate Studies.

Plant only in November. Soak seeds in cold water for at least 24 hours. Let seeds dry; do not nick seeds.

Plant seeds in 1 part sand, 1 part leaf mold and 1 part soil, about ¼ inch deep. Press down. Keep moist at 60 degrees. Plant 1 inch apart in 8 inch seed pans. If not in greenhouse, place glass over seed pan.

Seeds take about 3 months to germinate. After sprouting, place newspaper over pans or keep moderately shaded until three leaves appear (not first leaves).

Only plant or re-pot in the spring.

The Way It Was ~ Fancy Wheels

The Charleston Sunday Gazette Mail ~Sunday, January 19, 2003

The young lady is Elizabeth Quarrier and she is justifiably proud of her new automobile a snazzy 1924 Jordan Playboy. Miss Quarrier was the daughter of a well-to-do Charleston family who lived in the historic Glenwood Mansion that is just west of Stonewall Jackson Junior High School.

Today one of the premier house museums of West Virginia, Glenwood is beautifully preserved and occasionaly open for public tours. Many of the Quarrier family photos and memorabilia are kept in the Glenwood archives, where this happy scene of long ago was found.

A woman had her work cut out driving the old-time cars because power steering or power brakes or even automatic transmissions were unknown. Once you got them rolling, they weren't so bad, but trying to park was a real chore. On the other hand, we must consider that Miss Quarrier grew up with horse and buggy transportation, so her shiny new motorcar was, in the vernacular of the 1920s, the cat's meow.

The photo is black and white so we can only guess at the color, which was two-tone and very stylish. Elizabeth Quarrier lived to a ripe old age. Thanks to her determination to save the memories of a lifetime, we can see exactly the way it was.