SOCIETY OF AMERICAN FORESTERS Western Forester April/May/June 2020 Oregon • Washington State • Alaska Societies Volume 65 • Number 2 Looking to the Past and Future When Managing Invasives BY CATHY LUCERO Clallam County, which is wedged into the northwestern most corner of Washington State, encompasses some of the best tree- growing country in the world! It has also been the battle- ground for some of the most con- tentious environmental conflicts over endangered species, in particular, the spotted owl, but also anadromous fish and many more. By the late nineties, much of our forest industry was scrambling to adjust to lower harvest quotas, complex habitat plans, and stream setbacks. The term “sustain- able” harvest was said everywhere, but PHOTO COURTESY OF CATHY LUCERO just how that was to be determined or In Washington State, the Olympic Invasive Working Group surveys for and removes knotweed, a Class B weed on the noxious weed list. achieved was hotly debated. This was the setting when, 20 years rogue ornamentals, as well as seem- tial regulatory action; five on this mon- ago, I became the first noxious weed ingly helpful, but increasingly harmful, itor list are trees. control coordinator for the recently non-natives that had spread far How is it that so many plant species activated Clallam County weed board. beyond their intended range. As became problematic, and why will the I had a newly minted environmental awareness of these effects on an noxious weed list continue to grow? We science degree and a background in increasingly diverse range of habitats all know that even the best-intentioned botany. Most of the 100-plus weeds on grew, so did Washington’s agro-centric actions can yield unpredictable results. the list were weedy species that colo- weed list. In 1997, there were 106 inva- For example, broadcasting non-native nized open disturbed areas and sive plants species on the noxious species like everlasting pea-vine, as a caused significant agricultural impacts weed list; fast forward to 2020 and good wildlife forage (not!) as well as and economic losses. Therefore, most there are now over 160. Many are erosion control, (too good!) has enabled of our efforts focused on infestations shade tolerant, and at least four non- this resourceful pioneer species to in and around agricultural lands. native invasive trees have been added. become an overpowering competitor in However, a slow and nearly invisible There are 51 species sitting on a moni- young reprod units. invasion that begun decades ago tor list as we collect more information picked up momentum. Scientists were and ponder whether these “monitor” Even forests are vulnerable now sounding the alarm about pro- species are aggressive and harmful For decades, usually only Scotch found ecosystem impacts caused by enough to warrant listing and poten- (CONTINUED ON PAGE 2) In This Issue: Invasives become more evident with time, but knotweed is not. Instead knotweed Looking to the Past so has our recognition of the value of spp. are running rampant along many and Future When healthy forests in our community, in river corridors, creating living walls Managing Invasives terms of jobs, economy, and renew- that halt forest succession, altering (CONTINUED FROM FRONT PAGE) able resource and sustainability. By stream flow, disrupting complex food 2004, a serious threat to tree produc- webs, and creating a biological desert. broom and some of the thistles were tion and forested habitats emerged in Long thought to only readily colonize recognized by the forest industry as the form of an assemblage of woody, open habitats, our experience in problematic for tree regeneration, but invasive Polygonum species, often Washington has proved otherwise. these problems could be addressed lumped together and called Japanese Over the years, knotweed thickets have with routine site preparation. In the knotweed. Closer investigation formed massive monocultures span- dense forests of my region, most revealed not one, but several distinct ning hundreds of acres containing lit- foresters viewed invasives as simple although closely related species: tle to no other vegetation, including nuisances that would drop away as Japanese, Giant, and the aptly named, trees. Invasive knotweeds have proved soon as the canopy closed. Bohemian, a particularly aggressive to be remarkably persistent, and like It turns out forests aren’t as immune hybrid of Japanese and Giant most noxious weed problems, require as we thought. The impact and burden knotweed parents. a consistent, multi-faceted, long-term of invasive species on forests has only Much has been written about commitment to combat successfully. knotweeds, as if straight from a script for a ’50s horror film of an experiment Building partnerships around invasives gone terribly wrong. These prize-win- ning ornamentals were introduced As the magnitude of threats posed to into the United States in the late 1800s, forests by knotweed and a host of other but in Washington State were noted more recent non-native invaders has only as far back as the ’30s in close emerged, so has a coalition of unlikely Providing information about trees and forests association with railroads and logging partners. As my job title suggests, I am activity. The theory of origin in always looking to coordinate and bring Tom Hanson the people solution to bear on the inva- [email protected] Washington is that very young shoots were cultivated by camp cooks for use sive problem. To that end, in my little 206 300 9711 as early spring greens. Nearly 90 years corner of the world, the Olympic www.arborinfo.com later, the camps are gone, but Peninsula, we have formed a coopera- tive weed management area (CWMA), dubbed the Olympic Knotweed Working Group. Fifteen years later, and Western Forester much expanded, we’re now the Olympic Invasive Working Group. Land Society of American Foresters managers of both public and private PO Box 82836 • Portland, OR 97282 • 503-224-8046 www.nwoffice.forestry.org/northwest-office/western-forester-archive forests, environmental groups, Native American tribes, governmental agen- Editor: Andrea Watts, [email protected] cies and regulators work collaboratively Western Forester is published four times a year by the Oregon, Washington State, and Alaska Societies’ SAF Northwest Office to combat common adversaries that know no jurisdictional boundaries. We State Society Chairs Northwest SAF Board Members share information about what works Oregon: Jeff Grogan, CF, 541-912-8279, District 1: Tom Hanson, Forestry and and what doesn’t, as well as new threats [email protected] Arboriculture Consultant, ArborInfo LLC, posed by invasive plants and some- 206-300-9711, [email protected]; Washington State: Wes Tracy, 360-489- www.ArborInfo.com 2556, [email protected] District 2: Mark Buckbee, 541-580-2227, Alaska: John Yarie, CF, 907-474-5650, [email protected] LORENZ [email protected] FORESTRY Please send change of address to: CHUCK LORENZ, CF 1770 Society of American Foresters, 10100 Laureate Way, Bethesda, MD 20814 [email protected] Forest Management Planning & Operations, Inventory, Valuation Anyone is at liberty to make fair use of the material in this publication. To reprint or make multiple reproduc- for over 40 years tions, permission must be obtained from the editor. Proper notice of copyright and credit to the Western Forester must appear on all copies made. Permission is granted to quote from the Western Forester if the customary acknowledgement accompanies the quote. Other than general editing, the articles appearing in this publication have not been peer reviewed for techni- 360-951-0117 cal accuracy. The individual authors are primarily responsible for the content and opinions expressed herein. [email protected] Next Issue: Workforce Development 2 WESTERN FORESTER N APRIL/MAY/JUNE 2020 times animals. We pool our workforces when we can and inspire each other to be alert and keep up the effort. This Editor’s Note loose consortium is designed to sup- BY ANDREA WATTS port and empower individual partners with crafting an effective response to As the new editor of the Western Forester, it is serendipitous that my first invasive weeds on lands they manage issue is on invasives. I found my way to forestry by volunteering with Green while taking into account their organi- Seattle Partnership work parties to remove invasive plants in Seattle’s parks. I zational structure, resources, and spe- hadn’t known that the Himalayan and evergreen blackberry clumps growing cific management goals. around Grays Harbor County were in fact invasives plant. Since they were For the forests in Clallam County everywhere, I assumed they were natives. Having seen the detrimental effects and elsewhere in the Pacific Northwest, of invasive plants, such as English ivy, English holly, and blackberry, upon a significant vector for invasives is con- native plants in Seattle’s parks, I was determined to remove invasive plants taminated road-building materials. For from the family property. My dad downplayed how widespread the English that reason, most federal, and many holly was in our forest, but the five-foot-high pile of English holly that my Washington State agencies now younger sister and I piled on the burn pile changed his mind. include weed-free material language In this issue, there are several articles featuring management strategies to and standards in their contracts. contain the spread of invasive plants, such as choke cherry in Alaska and false Clallam County Weed Control Board brome on the Willamette National Forest. The “Invasives on the Horizon” article staff, funded by the Olympic National is a compilation of future invasives we should be aware of. And to provide Forest and the Clallam County Road much-needed positivity around this topic, there are several success stories. Department, is authorized to inspect Thank you to the authors who contributed to this issue.