Volunteer to help at local parks and natural areas to remove invasives.

Alert people in your neighborhood and place of work about the problem with invasives and what species to watch for.

Pull the weed at the root! Take a Wild Edible class to see if you could eat them! With of course a disclaimer: DO NOT EVER EAT ANYTHING THAT YOU DO NOT KNOW FOR SURE WHAT IT IS!

Scout your own property for invasive species and remove them before they become a problem.

does this plantВ need fullВ sunlight, lots of water or manure compost?)

Ask the nursery which ones will do best in different areas in your garden.

Avoid using non-natives and invasive plants in your yard вЂ“ ask a nursery about natives! (i.e.

*Common Reed or Phragmites (Phragmites australis) *Oriental Bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus) *Reed Canary Grass (Phalaris arundinacea)

Agriculture losses and control costs due to invasive plants are estimated at $15 billion/year in the U.S.Д«ush Honeysuckles вЂ“ Amur, Tartarian, Morrow, (Lonicera maackii, L.

Agencies around Indiana spend hundreds of thousands of dollars each year to eradicate these species and protect our natural areas.

Invasive plants destroy habitat for rare wildflowers and animals they threaten 2/3rds of all endangered species.

The invasives compete with nativeplants for sunlight, space and/or soil nutrients.

Invasive plants hurt wildlife by eliminating the plants our native animals need for food and cover.

There are MANY natives discussed in previous posts. Some of these invasives are still being sold by nurseries and well meaning Hoosiers вЂ“ not realizing the damage it can cause. Most non-natives cause little trouble, but a few aggressive species are responsible for degrading and destroying thousands of acres of natural plant communities in Indiana and are costing hundreds of thousands of dollars each year in control measures.

Of the roughly 2,300 plant species growing outside cultivation in Indiana, 25% are non-native. Usually invasive plants are not native to North America. An вЂњinvasive plantвЂќ is another name for a plant which grows quickly and aggressively, displacing other plants as it spreads and harming diversity of other plants.

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