Invasive Plant Information for Private Forest Land Ownersby Ernie Sellentin, Coastal Invasive Plant Committee,

Project Coordinator

Topics

1) Background2) Control Methods3) Values To Protect4) Preventative Practices5) Tools to Use

Acknowledgement of the Issue

Facts: Invasive alien species are the second most significant threat to

global biodiversity (behind human population growth and its related activities)

Invasive plants have far-reaching impacts, permanently altering landscapes and ecosystem functions, and costing the Canadian economy a few billion dollars each year

~1855 ha of land are invaded each day by invasive plants in the US

Once native plant communities are overtaken and replaced by invasive plants, impacts are often irreversible and restoration can be extremely difficult and expensive

Preventing invasive plant introduction and spread is critical

Assessing Site Risk Level

Landscape Level:

Highest Risk CDFmm, CWHxm(drier, more open forests & where most of the people live)

Moderate Risk CWH – ds, dm, ms, mm, ws

Lowest Risk CWH – wm, vm, wh (closed, wet forests, few people) MH – mm, wh

Assessing Site Risk Level

Local Level: Parks & protected areas / Ecological reserves

Endangered ecosystems e.g. Garry Oak Ecosystems (CDF)

Wildlife Habitat Areas (WHAs) / Ungulate Winter Ranges

First Nations spiritual use & native plant collection areas(food, medicine etc.)

Along banks of wetlands (including marshes, swamps, fens or bogs, lakes, ponds, rivers, streams, or ditch lines)

Uncultivated agricultural land – pastures, rangelands etc.

Gravel pits

Assessing Species Priority

Depends on the Species:

length of time in a given area i.e. how well established it is

how geographically dispersed it is

whether it is under biological control (i.e. insects, parasites and pathogens that have been introduced to reduce a target plant population below a desired level)

potential ecological, economic and/or social impacts

Species of Importance

Current FRPA Species: Near Future Weed Control Act Species

Giant Knotweed Bohemian Knotweed Gorse Butterfly BushJapanese Knotweed DaphnePurple Loosestrife English HollyScotch Broom English IvyYellow Flag Iris Giant Hogweed

Himalayan BlackberryHimalayan KnotweedPoliceman’s Helmet (Himalayan

Balsam).....

Manual / Mechanical Control

But there are tradeoffs…….

For Some Plants…….

Biological Control

Dalmation toadflax, Mecnus janthus

Bio-control in a Decade Year 1

Year 2

Year 10

Chemical Control

Cut & Insert

Stem Injection

Foliar Backpack Spraying

Combining Treatment Methods

Examples:

1. Manual treatment – then - Backpack foliar spray

2. Establish containment line & use bio-control inside it - then - Manual treatments for “escapes” outside the line

3. Stem inject down PFZ - then - Mechanical control down to the high water mark of a riparian area – then prompt restoration with native species

Ungulate Winter Ranges

Mountain Goat

Black Tailed Deer

Roosevelt Elk

Wildlife Habitat Areas

Red Legged FrogScouler`s Corydalis Marbled Murrelet

South Island Forest District WHA Statistics

Scotch Broom Needs Only 1” Soil

Old Growth Management Areas

Wildlife Tree Patches

Riparian Zone Health Threats

Policeman’s Helmet

Yellow Flag Iris

Community Watersheds

First Nations Values

Recreation Trails

Permanent Sample Plots (G&Y, BEC etc.)

Pacific Yew – Cancer Cure

Connecting the Dots

Butterfly Bush Along a Forest Service Road

Dowsing Flaming Embers

Dowsing More Flaming Embers

Some Preventative Practices

1. Avoid parking, turning around or staging equipment in invasive plant infested areas

2. Procure gravel that is weed free (seeds or plant parts)

3. Inspect clothing, and vehicle/equipment undercarriages, then clean thoroughly if working in an area infested with high priority IPs (e.g. SK)

4. Treat high priority invasive plants on road building and timber harvesting projects before activities commence

5. Minimize roadside disturbance & retain desirable vegetation e.g. when ditch cleaning, side cast to spread a thin layer of material to allow native plants to continue to survive (as opposed to smothering them)

6. Educate mowing & brushing equipment operators to recognize high priority invasive plants so that they are not spread (e.g. JK reproduces primarily by cuttings, and mowing and ditch cleaning operations can exacerbate spread)

7. Place warning signs for unlawful dumping of garden or household waste and its consequences in strategic locations

 

 

Prompt Re-vegetation is Key

So what defines “prompt”?!• Concurrent grass seeding & fertilizing after soil

disturbance along or in areas not scheduled for reforestation

• 2 growing season months is a good general rule but where priority invasive are close by, it should be more immediate, where this is not the case, there is less urgency

Grass Seed MixturesAgronomic Seed

Where? - Most roadside / post-harvest scenarios - There is no immediate adjacency to a high risk site (there are lots of invasives anyhow) But ensure:

- Seed is ecologically-suited to the BEC zone- Use a grade of seed that is Common No. 1 Forage Mixture

Grass Seed MixturesAgronomic Seed Cont’d

Sodgrass Dominant Mixtures Forms continuous mat to better resist IP spread Useful around culverts & other erosion prone areas Useful in areas with close proximity to already

established IP populations

Bunchgrass Dominant Mixtures Allow native plants to fill in amongst the clumps Useful in areas more distant from established IP

populations

Grass Seed MixturesNative Seed

Where? - Adjacency to high value ecological areas where

retention of local biodiversity is vital e.g. WHA

Remember: - To select for BEC/altitude/biome - Bunchgrasses allow for better ingress than sodgrasses - Native seed is much more expensive than agronomic

AVOID WILDFLOWER MIXTURES

LOADED with invasive plant seeds !!

Dames Rocket Hesperis matronalis

Chicory Cichorium intybus

Sanitation Measures

Never stockpile contaminated soil or plant material within 10 m of a watercourse

Clean vehicles/equipment used in infested areas

Note: in other jurisdictions cleaning is via expensive, portable units that spray pressure treated water which is captured and run through a settlement tank to remove any soil before passing it through a very fine mesh sieve to remove seeds or plant material . Captured seeds & plant parts are sent to the landfill.

Disposal – The Often Overlooked Measure

Remember - Priority Invasive Plants Typically Possess: very hard, viable, hooked, winged, floating seeds ability to reproduce vegetatively

Therefore: Either treat and dispose of plant in situ or move to a

common disposal area e.g. a landfill At landfill – use deep burial, do NOT put IPs (or

contaminated soil) in the compost stream

Options

Shade

Tools to Learn to Use - IAPP Application

Sign up for free, all day IAPP Training here at DSI at end of April / first of May 2011

Tools to Learn to Use – Map Display

Tools to Learn to Use – Report-A-Weed (3 easy steps)

1. Enter species location as:• UTM Zone, Easting and Northing or• Longitude (DMS) and Latitude (DMS) or• Use standard map tools to zoom & mark position on map

2. Pick species from drop down menu – Enter area (m2) – Give a location description & comments

3. Confirm above and press “Enter”

Winter abrasive stockpile

Powell River

JK

Common Gravel Pit Species

KnotweedsGorse

Scotch BroomSpanish BroomBuddleja davidii

Spotted KnapweedMeadow Knapweed

Tansy RagwortCommon TansyCanada thistle

Bull thistleDalmatian toadflax

Himalayan blackberryOxeye daisy

St Johns WortHawkweeds

Golden Bamboo, Texada Island, Imperial Limestone Quarry

Thank You

eselntin@shaw.ca or

invasivespeciesspecialist@gmail.com

250-702-2492

“Everyone Can Be Part of the Solution”