Re: seed import permits

Connie,
I have not said anything because my experience with voicing opinions and lists
(not with this one so far) has been to get flamed, so I do a lot of lurking with
an occasional neutral comment.
I did  want to say I agree with Mark   I have to admit that when I first looked
at an alien/invasive plant list and compared it to my garden I couldn't believe
how many of the plants I had.  I have been trying to become more educated about
natives and select them when looking for plants.  I think that if we all did
this, we would be suprised at what we can find that we like!
>
> Date: Wed, 28 Nov 2001 12:45:32 -0500
> From: "Mark Stephens" <markws@one.net>
> Subject: Re: seed import permits
>
> Quite frankly I disagree and that is why I did not respond.
>
> When I look out my back yard in Ohio right now I see the sickly green of all
> the non-native plants that are taking over our woodlands.   The average
> gardener is not qualified to understand if a plant is invasive or not.  They
> make non-scientific observations that it doesn't seem to reproduce,
> meanwhile a stray plant in the woods somewhere gets started.  Fifty to a
> hundred years later the plant becomes invasive.  Look at the history of
> Garlic mustard for an example.
>
> What really gets me is that many of these people claim to be wildlife
> friendly, birders even.  They don't seem to connect habitat changes with
> killing sensitive species.  Let me tell you, if you take a woodland
> understory of Spicebush and replace it with non-native Honeysuckle you might
> as well hunt down the Woodthrush and kill them yourself (more of a food
> source than a nesting issue in this case).
>
> I don't understand why people don't see this and I have become tired of
> arguing about it.  If in doubt keep it out sounds completely reasonable to
> me.  What bothers me is government involvement ... those honeysuckle were
> brought here care of USDA.
>
> Next time don't ask, I don't like making enemies :)
>
> mark stephens
> http://backyardforest.org
>
--
Debby Williams
Author of Fruit and Urban Kitchen Gardening e-zines at:
http://wz.com/homegarden/GardensPlants.html
Regional Advisor at http://www.thevegetablepatch.com/
Oakland County, Michigan USA;USDA Hardiness Zones 5b/6a

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