One long-term effect of invasive non-native What Can You Do to Help? species is to degrade habitat for native plants and Maine’s You can promote native plants by refusing to animals. These plants choke out native vegetation, purchase or transplant purple loosestrife and diminish the availability of food plants for wildlife, other invasive plants. Native Landscape and alter the behavior of native animals such as Grow plants that do not “jump the fence” or aine’s landscape is famous for its pollinators, plant-eating insects and fruit-eating escape from the garden. variety. Within the state one can find birds. Unchecked, invasion by non-natives could Try growing some native species as ornamentals ocean beaches, lakes, rivers, mountains drive some species to extinction. This is why non- and as food for birds and pollinators. and forests. Maine is locally influenced by both native plants are a major concern to people who M Eliminate invasive non-natives from your coastal and inland weather patterns. This creates want to protect native species and natural areas. yard and garden. Remove the plant, including relatively mild areas, and areas that are almost all roots, from the soil. arctic within the state’s 300 mile length and 200 Urge your garden center managers to expand mile width. Maine rises from sea level to over Plants to Avoid and Why their selection of propagated 5,000 feet in elevation at the top of Mount Katahdin. Most familiar nursery plants are not invasive and native plants. This wide range of elevation results in a diversity are appropriate for planting. However, a few popular of habitats including flat sandy plains, rolling species, including purple loosestrife and Japanese hills, rounded summits and craggy mountains with barberry, are highly invasive. A single purple shear cliffs. Maine’s forests vary from spruce and loosestrife plant can produce three million seeds in a fir near the coast, to hardwoods in the western single season! Even the tiniest root fragments can and northern hills. More than 100 types of habitats grow into new plants. Japanese barberry is invading have been identified with about 1500 native plant Maine’s forests and wetlands because birds disperse species spread across the state’s varied landscape. its seeds over long distances. Both species are very difficult to eradicate once they become established. Bunchberry What are Native Versus Non-native Looking for Native Plants at Your Plant Species, and Why Should I Care? Non-nnative plants considered Garden Center Native plants are those species that either arrived Native plants are well adapted to Maine’s climate in Maine without human intervention, perhaps most invasive in Maine include: and are therefore hardy. Most plants in the Native thousands of years ago, or originated here. Non- Plant Recommendations table (over) are available native species were brought intentionally for H purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria) at local garden centers, where the staff can usually horticultural or other uses, or came accidentally in H Japanese barberry (Berberis thunbergii) help customers with plant selection. Ask if their ships’ ballasts, crop seed or in soil. Some non- H Oriental bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus) native plants are nursery-propagated. Collecting native plants continue to escape from cultivation H Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica) plants, cuttings, seeds, or sods from the wild can and become naturalized in wetlands, lakes, H smooth and common buckthorn (Frangula alnus devastate natural populations. If the nursery woods, fields or roadsides. and Rhamnus cathartica) cannot guarantee that its native plants are nursery- Natural predators and diseases are left behind H non-native honeysuckles (Lonicera spp.) propagated, purchase your plants elsewhere. when non-native plants are introduced here. H garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata) Therefore, their spread is uncontrolled and such For more information about Maine native plants, see H multiflora rose (Rosa multiflora) Bulletin #2502, “Native Plants: A Maine Source List.” non-native species as purple loosestrife, Japanese H small-flowered tickle-grass (Deschampsia “Gardening to Conserve Maine’s Landscape,” “Native barberry and Asian honeysuckle can become cespitosa ssp. parviflora) serious pests. Plants: A Maine Source List,” and the Maine Invasive H common reed (Phragmites australis) Plants fact sheet series are also available online at www.umext.maine.edu/publications/homegarden.htm. paper with soy-based ink. soy-based with paper Printed on 100% recycled 100% on Printed 1-800-287-1495 William H. Drury, Jr. Drury, H. William (207) 474-9622 (207) and employment. 6/03 employment. and Alison Dibble Alison Skowhegan, ME 04976-4209 ME Skowhegan, equal opportunities in programs in opportunities equal agencies of the U.S.D.A. provide U.S.D.A. the of agencies Illustrations by Illustrations 7 County Drive County 7 Cooperative Extension and other and Extension Cooperative Somerset County Somerset 1-800-287-1478 U.S.D.A. Forest Service Forest U.S.D.A. Agriculture cooperating. Agriculture (207) 778-4650 (207) and the U.S. Department of Department U.S. the and Horticulture Club Horticulture 1-800-287-1491 04938-6403 ME Farmington, University of the state of Maine of state the of University University of Maine of University Extension, the Land Grant Land the Extension, (207) 564-3301 (207) #2 Road, Falls Farmington 147 University of Maine Cooperative Maine of University Dover-Foxcroft, ME 04426-1396 ME Dover-Foxcroft, County Franklin Cooperative Extension Cooperative Bearberry May 8 and June 30, 1914, by the by 1914, 30, June and 8 May 165 E. Main St. Main E. 165 furtherance of Acts of Congress of Congress of Acts of furtherance University of Maine of University Piscataquis County Piscataquis 1-800-287-1471 Published and distributed in distributed and Published Conservancy (207) 780-4205 (207) University of Maine System Maine of University The Nature The 1-800-287-1485 04104-9300 ME Portland, A Member of the of Member A (207) 942-7396 (207) Ave. Chamberlain 15 Conservation Initiative Conservation Bangor, ME 04401-4331 ME Bangor, 9300 Box PO Native Plant Native 1-800-287-8957 307 Maine Ave. Maine 307 County Cumberland National Park Service Park National Device for the Deaf) the for Device Penobscot County Penobscot TDD (Telecommunications TDD 1-800-287-1469 Wildlife Foundation Wildlife 1-800-287-0274 1-800-287-1482 532-6548 (207) National Fish and Fish National (207) 581-3188 (207) (207) 743-6329 (207) 04730-0008 ME Houlton, Heritage Fund Heritage Orono, ME 04469-5741 ME Orono, South Paris, ME 04281-6402 ME Paris, South 8 Box PO Maine Outdoor Maine 5741 Libby Hall Libby 5741 9 Olson Road Olson 9 Building Central Nursery Association Nursery Administrative Offices Administrative Oxford County Oxford 1-800-287-1462 Maine Landscape and Landscape Maine 1-800-287-153 1-800-244-2104 764-3361 (207) Agriculture (207) 324-2814 (207) (207) 832-0343 (207) 04769-0727 ME Isle, Presque Maine Department of Department Maine Sanford, ME 04073-9502 ME Sanford, Waldoboro, ME 04572 ME Waldoboro, 727 Box PO Conservation 41 Shaw’s Ridge Road Ridge Shaw’s 41 377 Manktown Road Manktown 377 Road Houlton Maine Department of Department Maine York County York Knox and Lincoln Counties Lincoln and Knox Program, 1-800-287-1421 Maine Natural Areas Natural Maine 1-800-287-1542 1-800-287-1481 834-3905 (207) (207) 255-3345 or 255-8640 or 255-3345 (207) (207) 622-7546 (207) 04743-7131 ME Kent, Fort Society Machias, ME 04654 ME Machias, Augusta, ME 04330-5692 ME Augusta, 101 Suite St., Hall 22 Plants to Avoid to Plants Josselyn Botanical Josselyn HC71 Box 640 Box HC71 125 State St., 3rd Floor 3rd St., State 125 County Aroostook Federation of Maine of Federation Washington County Washington Kennebec County Kennebec Plants to Use and Use to Plants Garden Club Garden 1-800-287-1458 1-800-287-1426 1-800-287-1479 353-5550 (207) Friends of Acadia of Friends (207) 342-5971 (207) (207) 667-8212 (207) 04252-1507 ME Falls, Lisbon Landscape: Waldo, ME 04915-3117 ME Waldo, Ellsworth, ME 04605-9540 ME Ellsworth, St. Main 24 : y b e l b i s s o p e d a m 992 Waterville Road Waterville 992 63 Boggy Brook Rd. Brook Boggy 63 Counties Sagadahoc Waldo County Waldo Hancock County Hancock and Androscoggin s a w n o i t a c i l b u p s i h T Maine’s Native Maine’s Or contact your county office of the University of Maine Cooperative Extension. Cooperative Maine of University the of office county your contact Or http://www.state.me.us/doc/nrimc/mnap/home.htm to Conserve to 207/287-8041 Augusta, ME 04333-0093 ME Augusta, 93 State House Station House State 93 Department of Conservation of Department Gardening Maine Natural Areas Program Areas Natural Maine self-addressed envelope to: envelope self-addressed Sumac For more information send a stamped, a send information more For Staghorn UMCE Bulletin #2500 Bulletin UMCE Swallowtail = Light: 6 Moisture: butterfly F=full sunlight H=hydric; wet, periodically or often inundated by water P=partial shade M=mesic; moist, adequate soil moisture Native Plant Recommendations retention all year S=shade S=sub-xeric; moist to dry, seasonally moist, periodically dry X=xeric; dry and drought resistant, little moisture retention, excessively drained Common name Scientific name = 6 Height Comments Balsam fir Abies balsamea F,P M 75' Open growth in hot, dry locations; evergreen Red maple, Swamp maple Acer rubrum F,P M 60' Excellent fall color; tolerates wet spring soils Sugar maple, Rock maple Acer saccharum F,P M 75' Excellent orange-red fall color; beautiful large shade tree Trees Mountain maple Acer spicatum F,P M 30' Useful in naturalizing Yellow birch Betula alleghaniensis F,P M 100' Does best in cool soils and cool summers; beautiful bark; long lived Paper birch Betula papyrifera F M 70' Beautiful white bark year-round; tolerates poor, dry soils Gray birch Betula populifolia F M 40' Does well in poor soils; good for naturalizing American hornbeam, Blue-beech Carpinus caroliniana spp.