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nafex - Re: [nafex] Elaeagnus angustifolia

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  • From: mark wessel <growyourown@earthlink.net>
  • To: Jeff Jourdain <ravenwoodsma@yahoo.com>, nafex mailing list at ibiblio <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Cc: Devin Smith <dvidedevo@yahoo.com>
  • Subject: Re: [nafex] Elaeagnus angustifolia
  • Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2014 20:22:03 -0400

Very well said Jeff!





On Mar 31, 2014, at 8:29 AM, Jeff Jourdain wrote:

> To say this is a touchy subject is to say the least. To me it's not a
> question of whether a plant is exotic or not, the invasive issue is does it
> take over the site/habitat. As a forester in Western Massachusetts I can
> take you to places that you can't walk through because of multiflora rose
> or barberry or buckthorn. Places where the threes have suffered
> significant damage from oriental bittersweet. How much 'good' are they
> doing?
>
> Many of these 'invasives' have beneficial attributes. Autumn olive is high
> in vitamin C. Japanese knotweed is known to help with Lyme disease. But do
> miles of the Deerfield River need to have it's banks taken over by it?
> What native shrubs with beneficial attributes have been displaced by the
> knotweed along the river?
>
> Succession of old agricultural sites/fields has been going on in New
> England since the late 1800's. They did just fine then before these plants
> became an issue.
>
> These plants are here because of 'our' doing. They were brought over and
> utilized for many reasons including landscaping or 'living' fences or a
> host of other uses. They do take over disturbed or deficient sites. If
> they weren't here what plants would take over?
>
> Where do we draw the line with 'invasives'? Plants that are here are OK?
> What about the Emerald ash borer or the asian long horned beetle or
> chestnut blight or Dutch elm disease? Or starlings? We brought all of them
> over as well. What if kudzu makes it way up here?
>
> We all have different perspectives and values. Apples are important to
> many of us on this list, but I can say in 30 years of working in the woods
> I have never seen an area overrun or taken over by apples. Even the old
> orchards around old farm sites don't spread out of control.
>
> I know we will never win the war with invasives, but I think there are
> sites and habitats worth fighting for. Instead of planting Autumn olive to
> encourage it [it seems to do pretty well on its own] why not plant some of
> the natives it displaced and encourage more diversity.
>
>
> On Sunday, March 30, 2014 11:15 PM, Devin Smith <dvidedevo@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> Invasive species are clearly a touchy subject. I see them as largely an
> epiphenomenon. Why aren't apple trees considered to displace native
> species? They have naturalized heavily here in New England. Could it be
> that we deem it of value and therefore are willing to overlook its
> "impacts". As I understand it, roughly 40% of all wildflower species in the
> northeast are naturalized "invaders", and yet they seem to form stable
> populations and to interact with the native vegetation in synergistic
> rather than destructive ways. Isn't there likely a time factor at work? If
> the dandelion arrived tomorrow instead of 350 years ago, how would we
> react?
>
>
> Historically, here in New England, two centuries of clear cutting and
> grazing were followed by a century of chemical warfare against nearly all
> shrubs, causing population viability of many shrub species to decline
> precipitously. We have a cultural opposition to shrubby growth habit and
> shrub land environments, thus a tendency to see shrubs of all kinds as
> damaging. Ecological succession itself is considered a nuisance or plague
> by many. In this era, when succession is happening on a mass scale-- as
> cleared land reverts to forested land-- its inevitable that shrubs will
> have a dominate influence.
>
>
> I understand that economic harm and changes in species dynamics result (at
> least in the short term) but I think that those concerned with invasive
> species should consider what it is they are opposing. How about the habitat
> fragmentation that results from our network of paved roads-- an ecosystem
> in the truest sense, but merely one conceived without regard for ecology.
> Isn't this now ubiquitously fragmented disturbed aspect of the American
> landscape more at the root than merely the species who choose to call that
> landscape home.
>
>
> I can appreciate the need to consider the matter of potential to
> naturalize, but given that Autumn Olive is nearly ubiquitous here (in the
> northeast) now, I see no need to hold back planting it, nor its next of
> kin. Nor do I think it is possible to eradicate it in our landscape. In
> fact, I am actively seeking to plant it in part because I am sure that some
> day soon the roadside one's I have been harvesting will all be nuked with
> herbicide, otherwise I would just keep picking those. As ecologically
> conscious individuals, I think we should attempt first and fore most to
> make an honest assessment of what healthy landscapes actually consist of
> and put our efforts primarily into helping ecosystems thrive all around us.
> Nature does not consist solely of the rare, the adorable, and the immense,
> but its also the common, the hidden, and the unvalued. If we aren't
> creating health and resilience in our own environment, how can we suppose
> to act beneficially in the
> larger realm of ecology?
>
> I understand that passions run high around these issues, and its not my
> goal to be divisive. However, other views around "invasive" species seem to
> often to be lacking despite the fact that many intelligent and ecologically
> minded individuals seem to share these views. I offer them up humbly for
> your consideration.
>
> -Devin Smith
> Rockingham, VT
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