Control of Invasive Species in the Forest Matt Arndt Photo Credit: eeekeverywhere.wordpress.com

Major Species Autumn olive Bush honeysuckle Chinese pear Garlic mustard Japanese honeysuckle Japanese hops Multiflora rose Tree-of-heaven en.rl8st.com media.arkansasonline.com Many infestations are associated with disturbance or old homesites Several species are more shade tolerant -- i.e. bush honeysuckle and garlic mustard – and occur in the forest interior; others are less so and typically occur on edges or in fields and openings – i.e. autumn olive and chinese pear Nearly all species are abundant seed producers gocolumbiamo.com nps.gov invasivore.org blog.mass.gov dnr.wi.gov nps.gov

Benefits and drawbacks to each Control Options Foliar Treatment Cutting Stem Injection Grinding (bullhog) Pulling Bulldozer Goats! Foliar - PHOTO – will use a lot of chemical for blanket applications - Best with spot treatments - backpack sprayer; tank sprayer; backpack mist blower; UTV mounted mist blower; helicoptor - aerial spraying with helicopter has been reported as low as $60/ac - minimally selective Cutting - PHOTO – can be impossible for some species - can be very expensive, depending on severity of infestation - Some species are nearly impossible to cut (japanese hops, garlic mustard) or are very unpleasant (multiflora rose) - selective treatment Hack & Squirt - PHOTO – can be a tremendous amount of stems - very effective on woody species - leaves standing skeletons, which makes follow-up treatments difficult Grinding - PHOTO - Need access for machinery; sometimes not possible - immediate results - limited by slope and tree densities - does not treat roots - non-selective Pulling - PHOTO – can be difficult for large plants - very effective, particularly on small bush honeysuckle in moist soil - very selective, but time consuming Dozer - Very blunt instrument – can be the only effective option Goats - PHOTO – will eat nearly anything, but can be labor intensive and costly to build/ maintain fence - very promising, natural control by defoliation - Has real potential, especially on smaller tract sizes myweb.loras.edu gobiologic.com eeekeverywhere.wordpress.com Thestreettree.com Pecva.org Bayjournal.com Benefits and drawbacks to each

This slide and next do not show invasives, but show the impact goats can have goatsonthego.com

Multiflora rose is better quality forage than alfalfa goatsonthego.com

Bottom Line Treatment protocols will need to be fitted to each individual project based on a variety of factors Cost Tract size Severity of infestation Location Species Available resources Desired season of treatment Many projects will involve multiple treatment types Very unlikely to be a one-and-done treatment Multiple types – e.g. cutting of larger plants, pulling of smaller; grinding of flat areas, foliar application on steep; hack & squirt of dense stands, foliar spray on sporadic plants; grinding as first treatment, foliar spray of resprouts

If all else fails… Embrace it! goingtoseedinzone5.com