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Re: Warning- diatribe was Re: Opinions please.

Lisa, I applaud you for your diatribe.  Well put.  I agree with you
wholeheartedly.  

Lest some of you on the list think others have gone over the edge on this
issue, let me assure you that the problems Lisa describes are all too real.
Don't take our word for it.  If you haven't already seen the damage, go take a
look for yourself.  I did and what I saw shocked me.

This summer I visited many of the natural communities in the St. Louis area
reputed to be our most pristine.  My field notebook is a testament to the
extent of the honeysuckle problem -- Lonicera maackii was noted at every
single woodland site!  In some cases it is just beginning, in others it is the
dominant understory vegetation.  In any case, it is clear that biodiversity is
threatened.  Amur Honeysuckle was brought here from Manchuria and Korea in the
mid 1800s for garden use, and later cultivars of Lonicera maackii were
introduced by the U.S.D.A. Soil Conservation Service.  

Among the other horrors I observed -- a glade where native wild flowers had
been completely overtaken by Crown Vetch cv. Penn Gift.  This "gift" from the
University of Pennsylvania was hydroseeded along many miles of U.S. roadsides
by well-intentioned highway departments in the 1970s.  Crown Vetch is also a
popular garden plant. 

I could give many other examples, but the pattern is already clear.  As Lisa
has already pointed out -- we are all to blame.  The government, nurseries and
garden centers, and even gardeners have contributed.  It is easy to point
fingers, but much more difficult to do something about a problem.  It is time
for all of us to stop taking the easy way out.  We share the problem, we share
the guilt, we should share the solution.

Many of you have expressed distain for government involvement.  The government
bashing so very popular among U.S. citizens is a bit unseemly because  this is
a democracy and we, the people, ARE the government.  Government is not
inherently bad.  Without it there would be chaos and lawlessness.  It is not
perfect.  People are never perfect.  But we all benefit from public roads,
schools, police and fire protection and countless other governmental
necessities in our daily lives.  There is a place for government.  It works
best when we are involved.  

We all have a voice, and with mine I would like to say that I think President
Clinton's executive order is in order if it will help to stop government
agencies from promoting invasive plant species.  

Also, nurseries and garden centers need to stop selling known noxious
invasives.  They do their customers no favor by selling them, as these plants
create problems in the garden as well as in the wild.  It is not realistic to
expect the industry to voluntarily do this.  I think we need laws.  Without
them the ethical businesses who do not sell such plants will lose business to
those that continue to sell them.  Voluntary bans won't work, and they aren't
fair.

And finally, we as gardeners need to change our ways and not continue to
contribute to the problem.  In addition, we need to speak out and let our
elected officials know how we feel.  This is an election year so we also need
to consider environmental issues when we vote for those who will represent us.

Remember, if you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem.
Lisa for one, and I for two, intend to be part of the solution.  I hope you
will join us!  

--Janis


In a message dated 98-08-20 17:08:58 EDT, Lisa wrote:

<< Looking out on my woods, infested with bush honeysuckle and multiflora
 rose, in a state where these plants, as well as Euonymus alatus and
 fortunei, various species of Rhamnus, and crown vetch, are still sold,
 doesn't give me much confidence in the USDA, regional DNRs or the ability
 of all nurserys to voluntarily police themselves.  I can open the catalog
 of a well known mail order nursery and find for sale alien plants grown
 from seed collected within the last 3 years. Sometimes the species
 designation is in doubt or missing altogether.  There is no way these
 plants could have been evaluated for invasiveness.  This does not strike me
 as voluntary responsibility.  We gardeners aren't much better-the owner is
 a frequent speaker at gardening symposiums around the country; the owner's
 name is considered a draw.
  What do I do?  I don't buy any plants from local nurseries that sell known
 local invasives(invasivness varies from place to place).  I am choosy about
 mail order sources (crown vetch is invasive everywhere).  I don't plant
 non-native, berrying shrubs and trees, and I am very cautious with new
 perennials and annuals, deadheading the non natives to avoid spread. There
 are a lot of aliens that I am fond of and I do not want to see the stream
 of new plants dry up.  I agree we should keep the government out of as much
 as possible, but it took me 34 years to recognize the dangers inherent in
 invasive flora and in the meantime I planted things I now regret.  I think
 it would be great if everyone was aware, responsible, and educated in
 issues, but it just ain't so. Some people don't know, some don't care, some
 figure their one little plant isn't a problem. As long as people will buy a
 plant, and it is legal, someone will sell it, voluntary standards to the
 contrary. Perhaps we do need some standards to evaluate invasiveness, and
 perhaps they should be required.  I worry; after all, kudzu is just 100
 miles from me and moving fast.   Lisa, zone 6 IL<<
 
Connie wrote:
 
>> * The Clinton Administration is preparing an executive order on
 >> invasive plant species. ANLA fears the order could erode USDA-
 >> APHIS’ autonomy to make plant pest prevention decisions and
 >> threaten plant introductions in the nursery industry. ANLA hopes to
 >> work with the Weed Science Society of America and the American
 >> Assoc. of Botanic Gardens and Arboreta to develop voluntary
 >> “standards of conduct” for evaluating invasiveness when introducing
 >> plants.
 >>
 > >>
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