Each month, members from the Master Gardeners of Washington County join us on Ozarks at Large to answer our questions. Mariette Spidel and Caleb Israel recently came to the Bruce and Ann Applegate News Studio to discuss native plants and invasive species.
Mariette says for those of us who didn't grow up in the region, it's important to think twice about planting trees or shrubs in our yard that remind us of home.
Mariette Spidel: There's a good chance that that tree might not be specific to our area, and it doesn't support habitat to our area. So really knowing something — is it really on the invasive list, or does it really provide habitat? Those are some of my qualifications for seeking out a plant that I'm going to dedicate space in my yard to.
Matthew Moore: Caleb, when you hear the term invasive species, and we think about where we are here in Northwest Arkansas, what's the first thing that comes to mind for you?
Caleb Israel: I think misinformation. People just want to plant whatever they want to, and we don't want to reap the repercussions of having these species that take out our homes or our trees or other shrubs. They take things from birds and other plants that need life and growth in that sun. So I think having the right information — knowing what to do with it, how to plant, where to plant — that sort of stuff is vital to making sure that we don't have these invasive species.
Moore: What are some of the most common invasive species we see here in our region, and what are the ones that really stick out to you when you're driving down the road?
Spidel: I think last year's plant bounty was the Callery pear tree for Fayetteville. This year is the mimosa tree. Those really bring it to mind this time of the year because the background of nature is naked and we see these invasive things really just showing themselves quick and early. You can see the mass that they're taking over — not just one or two of their species. We're talking entire thickets. Again, it's really not beneficial to our habitat for something that takes over that kind of space in the soil.
Moore: So when we think about, let's say we've got one of these trees in our yard and we want to get rid of it — what's a way to do it that doesn't harm the soil, doesn't harm our yard, and makes sure that we've got the space to put something there that will actually be supportive of the region?
Israel: You've got to look around and check your surroundings, check what other plants are available there, and make sure you've got pest control as well. We want to look under the dirt. Doing soil samples, taking out any of those invasive species by the roots, making sure you're getting any little small parts from them, throwing those away in their own bag. Do not compost them. Don't put them in your leaf litter. Don't do anything with it. Get rid of them. You've got to make sure that everything's taken care of. And then make sure your lighting is correct, the correct seeds, the temperature of the soil — everything like that.
Spidel: I'm going to add to that. As much as we don't like to use the word herbicide — if you're dealing with a tree, a larger species that already has roots that are established, it's definitely going to be realistic to use an herbicide. You're going to need to cut that tree as closely to the ground as you can, and you're going to use some type of a product that positions itself as a tree stump and stump killer. Not giving out any names here — if you need information and advice on that, we can advise you through the extension office. But a larger tree, if you just cut it down, it's going to still put up auxiliary shoots to where the trunk was. So your problem hasn't really been addressed.
Moore: I think a lot of time during this time of year, the thing that I see most frequently is honeysuckle — you cannot get rid of it. How do you get rid of it? I'm asking for personal advice here.
Spidel: Again, this is one of those things where you have to be persistent. If you're going to go the non-herbicide route, you have to be persistent. Honeysuckle is a plant that sends out its new growth through runners. And those aren't necessarily rhizomes that go under the ground. So the best way to approach those types of viney things is to rake them very vigorously and get them away from the soil so they're not creating new growth. And then you want to take a string trimmer and chop them as closely to the ground as possible, and then from there you might do some manual digging. A lot of those honeysuckle live unfortunately under other trees and greenery in our yards, so if you are too aggressive with an herbicide, it's going to be a question of what you're dealing with and where you're dealing with it. We would be glad to answer that directly at the extension office. But any of those running-type plants — vinca, honeysuckle, all of those — you really need to rake the roots that are there on the runners up off the ground. Very important.
Israel: And the same for English ivy or ivies in general. Those get up on walls. You can pull them a little bit, but they do like to latch, and if they get in the dirt or sand, they will spread as well.
Moore: If we want to try and replace those invasive species with native species, whether it's a tree for a tree or that sort of thing — should there be a period of time where you say, let's let the dirt get a little healthier so we can make sure we're putting in a tree that will actually do well in its place?
Israel: Yeah, I think that's a lot of the preparation for the soil that you have to do. If you put down an herbicide, you do need to let that simmer and make sure it's effective before putting anything in there. I'd wait a little bit.
Spidel: 14 days on the label is mostly 14 days.
Moore: When people are going to stores, when they're going to nurseries, whether they're local nurseries or big box stores looking for plants — especially this time of year — what are some tips you might have for folks to make sure that the thing they're buying is a good fit for our region?
Spidel: That goes back to some homework. There are a lot of catalogs and online places that are very reputable and have been around for a very long time. We aren't really allowed to tout brands, but if you want to give us a call at the extension office, we can direct you to some of those. There are a lot of reputable sites that can recommend plantings and plants that go well together — which ones are the high ones for the back of the garden, the middle and the low front ones. Really as a rule, in the garden, it's kind of like 70 over 30. If 70% of your plantings are native, that's a great goal to have. You don't have to be 100%. The rest can be annuals that you put in, or edible landscapes where you're putting in kale or blueberry bushes or things along those lines that are perennial foods that we can eat.
I know I'm a native lover, and my husband's always vetting every plant that I introduce. He's like, is that native? And I said, it doesn't have to be 100 percent native. We can slide and work with that.
Israel: I think a lot of it is don't trust the tags as well. The tag says water your orchid with ice cubes — I'm a human and I don't even want to be watered with ice cubes. It's not realistic. Any .edu site, a .gov — going through a university — those are much better than .com, .net, .business. Those are trustworthy sources for sure.
Spidel: As I said last time: type "extension" at the end of everything you Google and you're going to get extension information for sure.
Moore: Anything else we should be thinking about when we think about native plants and invasive species right now, when it's most obvious what is invasive and what might be native?
Spidel: A lot of people move into a new house and they don't really know what the plants are. There are a lot of phone apps that do a fairly good job of IDing those, but not always 100 percent on. We just had a horrible hard frost on a lot of tender plants that were coming up, so we might need to wait a little while and really see what they are. Otherwise I would just say, do your research. That's my theme today. Do your research on what is great for this area. And also, do any of the plants you're seeing out in the stores have any hosts that are not friends to other pollinators that you're trying to encourage in your garden?
We touched on milkweed before we began our taping here. There are a couple of milkweeds, and specifically one that really is not best planted here — it's not from our region and it does harbor the tachinid fly, which kills a chrysalis of the monarch.
Israel: And the stink bugs like to come inside and hibernate. You try to catch them and they put off a real bad scent. They like to go back outside in the spring and eat those chrysalises — they liquefy them and kill them.
Spidel: So avoid species that are not native. The Asclepias tuberosa is the lower bunching orange milkweed. Monarchs love it. It's reliable. The common milkweed is great — as we were saying earlier, it can really take some square footage, so you need a larger lot. But it's beautiful. And really, if you plant it, they will come. They will eat it.
Moore: Mariette, Caleb, thank you so much for your time today.
Israel: Absolutely. The more you know, the more you go and grow.
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