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FW: Popular butterfly bush added to Oregon's noxious weed list

Title: FW: Popular butterfly bush added to Oregon's noxious weed list


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To: "Maritime Pacific Northwest Gardeners" <pacnwgardn@u.washington.edu>
Subject: Popular butterfly bush added to Oregon's noxious weed list

FYI.  The following announcement was forwarded to me, with permission to
relay the info along.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

State Weed Board takes action on invasive plant that can harm reforestation
efforts

Popular butterfly bush added to noxious weed list

February 25, 2004. . . Sunday morning garden shows often promote the
butterfly bush as a desirable ornamental plant for homeowners.  After all,
its flowers are attractive and its nectar alluring to butterflies and
hummingbirds.  But the plant apparently has an evil flip side.  That's why
the State Weed Board has added butterfly bush to its noxious weed "B" list.

"It's a popular ornamental plant, but it has extreme invasive qualities,"
says Tim Butler, supervisor of the Oregon Department of Agriculture's
Noxious Weed Program.  "Like other noxious weeds, it is very competitive
with native plants."

With its showy flowers, fast growth, and ability to grow in poor soil
conditions, it hardly seems right that butterfly bush should end up on a
list with such nasty-sounding plants as bull thistle and medusahead rye.
But it has been a huge problem in New Zealand and the United Kingdom.  Now
it has negatively impacted the United States.  In Washington, escaped
butterfly bushes have been known to grow in the cracks of pavement or
sidewalks, reaching as high as ten feet tall.

"B" designated weeds can have an economic impact and are regionally
abundant, but may have limited distribution in some counties. Eradication is
probably not viable, but control efforts are very much a part of the state's
strategic plan.

Even though the butterfly bush species itself (Buddleja davidii) has been
listed, there are a number of commercial cultivars with most of the same
qualities but not considered to be an invasive risk at this time.  Officials
will concentrate on wild populations of butterfly bush that are harming the
natural environment.

"We are not going to ask someone to pull out a prize butterfly bush from
their yard," says Butler.  "The plant is not on a quarantine list and is not
prohibited at this time.  However, it still is a big concern to us."

A trip to Coos County last year opened the eyes of state weed control
officials.  While visiting private timber land, Butler and others observed
large populations of butterfly bush outcompeting young Douglas fir seedlings
that were planted as part of a reforestation effort.  The site was miles
away from any residential areas where butterfly bush might be planted,
suggesting that the wind can carry seed a long distance.

A letter from the Coos County Commission was sent to the State Weed Board
urging that butterfly bush be listed as a noxious weed.  Last week, the
board complied.

ODA conducted a statewide survey this past fall to see if butterfly bush was
a problem elsewhere.  Populations were found all around western Oregon,
including the Portland area.  Again, it appears seeds have unintentionally
spread from ornamental plants in someone's yard.  There is evidence that
intentional dumping of yard debris can lead to the introduction of butterfly
bush in remote areas.

"We see it as an escaped plant that has gotten away from landscapes," says
Don Richards, a nursery industry representative on the State Weed Board.
Richards has consulted with the industry about the problem and says
nurseries are in agreement with the listing, even though some actually
produce and sell butterfly bush varieties.

"The largest growers of butterfly bush in the northern Willamette Valley are
very supportive of a control program that might eliminate a problem," says
Richards.  "The growers want to make sure there isn't some other ornamental
variety that might become a weed problem in Oregon.  There are many
cultivars of the plant.  If some are found to be a problem, growers just
won't produce them anymore."

ODA research funds directed to the nursery industry are helping to identify
any other varieties of butterfly bush other than Buddleja davidii as a
potential invasive species.  Cultivars of butterfly bush are common and the
plant is easy to hybridize.  But in that hybridization, it's not always
clear if some of the undesirable characteristics of the original plant are
passed on to the new variety.

"We are looking at the relative invasiveness of cultivated species," says
James Altland of Oregon State University's North Willamette Research and
Extension Center.  "There appear to be differences in the number of seeds
produced, their germination, and many other factors when cultivars are
compared to the species davidii.  We will visit nurseries that are producing
these cultivars to see if they are escaping the site.  We want to know if
cultivars can be grown safely without threatening the natural environment."

In the meantime, only the original species of butterfly bush, Buddleja
davidii, is subject to the noxious weed listing.  That's enough to keep
officials busy.

"Butterfly bush is not going to be easy to eradicate," says ODA agronomist
Glenn Miller.   "It seems to come back after herbicide treatment.  It could
be a tough customer."

The message to homeowners and gardeners does not include a plea to pull
butterfly bush out of the ground.  It does include general awareness.

"We want people to select cultivated varieties, not the straight species,"
says Richards.  "Also, they should observe any spread of young seedlings
away from the initial plant.  If they do see the spread of butterfly bush,
they should try to keep it under control."

For more information: <http://oda.state.or.us/Plant/weed_control/index.html>
or contact Tim Butler at (503) 986-4625.


 
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