Mississippi Forestry Commission 301 North Lamar Street, Suite 300 Jackson, Mississippi 39201 The Mississippi Forestry Commission provides equal employment opportunity and services to all individuals regardless of disability, race, age, religion, color, gender, creed, national origin, or political affiliation. “In accordance with Federal law and U.S. Department of Agriculture policy, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on bases of race, color, national origin, sex, age or disability. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.)” To file a complaint of discrimination: write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 or call (202) 720-5964 (voice and TDD)/ USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. December 2009 Authors Cogongrass Linda W. Garnett Imperata cylindrica (L.) Palosit Extension Associate, Forestry Mississippi State University Extension Service Japanese Privet Stephen G. Dicke Ligustrum japonicum Thumb. Extension Professor Central MS Research and Extension Center Mississippi State University Extension Service Linda W. Garnett Extension Associate, Forestry Mississippi State University Extension Service Chinese Privet Stephen G. Dicke Ligustrum sinense Lour. Extension Professor Central MS Research and Extension Center Mississippi State University Extension Service Linda W. Garnett Extension Associate, Forestry Mississippi State University Extension Service Japanese Climbing Fern Glenn H. Hughes Lygodium japonicum Extension Professor Coastal Research and Extension Center Mississippi State University Extension Service Kudzu John D. Kushla Pueraria montana (Lour.) Merr. Assoc. Extension/Research Professor North MS Research and Extension Center Mississippi State University Extension Service Chinese Tallowtree Andrew B. Self Triadica sebifera L. Graduate Student, Forestry Mississippi State University Andrew J. Londo Professor/ Extension Forestry Coordinator Mississippi State University Extension Service Editors Linda Garnett Andrew W. Ezell Lisa McReynolds Andrew Londo Graphics Linda Garnett i Table of Contents Cogongrass 1 Imperata cylindrica (L.) Palosit Japanese Privet 5 Ligustrum japonicum Thumb. Chinese Privet 9 Ligustrum sinense Lour. Japanese Climbing Fern 13 Lygodium japonicum Kudzu 17 Pueraria montana (Lour.) Merr. Chinese Tallowtree 21 Triadica sebifera L. References 25 Photography Credits 29 ii Introduction According to Executive Order 13112 signed on February 3, 1999, “alien species” means with respect to a particular ecosystem, any species, including its seeds, eggs, spores, or other biological material capable of propagating that species, that is not native to that ecosystem. Other terms used sometimes interchangeably with “alien” are “exotic” and “non-native” Conversely, “Invasive species” as defined by the same Executive Order, means an alien species whose introduction does or is likely to cause economic or environmental harm or harm to human health. Six (6) species in the later category are covered herein because they have had, and are having, significant impact on the native plants and wildlife in Mississippi. Approximately 4,000 species of exotic plants (Kartesz and Morse 1997) and 500 exotic animals (Office of Technology Assessment 1993) have established free-living populations in the United States. Nearly 700 are known to cause severe harm to agriculture, and over 1,000 exotic plant species have been identified as a threat to our native flora and fauna as a result of their aggressive, invasive characteristics (PCA-APWG, Weeds Gone Wild). Invasive plants are estimated to infest 100 million acres in the U.S., and they spread across an additional 3 million acres each year. Native species that are already on the threatened or endangered list are at an escalated risk because they often occur in small populations or occupy specific niches in an ecosystem. (Wilcove, D.S. et al.,1998) estimated that 42% of the species on the threatened and endangered list are under added pressure from exotics. The price tag for management and control of invasives is extreme. The estimated cost for management and control of invasive plant species alone is $13 billion per year (Westbrooks 1998). When invasive species from all three taxonomic domains (Archaea, Bacteria, and Eukarya) are included, researchers at Cornell University estimate the cost to be $137 billion every year (Pimentel et al. 2000). In Mississippi, nearly 200 plants have been placed on a “draft” plant list of exotics by the Mississippi Exotic Pest Plant Council (MS-EPPC) (http://www.se-eppc.org/mississippi/) The criteria for inclusion on the list may also be found at the above website as well as an online brochure of Mississippi’s “ten worst” --- four of which are addressed in this publication. General characteristics that may signal the invasive nature of a plant as listed by the United States National Arboretum are: 1. Produces large numbers of new plants each season. 2. Tolerates many soil types and weather conditions 3. Spreads easily and efficiently, usually by wind, water, or animals. 4. Grows rapidly, allowing them to displace slower growing plants. 5. Spreads rampantly when they are free of the natural checks and balances found in their native range. Some things an individual can do to help slow the advance of these aggressive species are: 1. Learn which invasives are locally important, and learn to identify them. 2. If you find them on your property remove them. 3. If you use exotics in landscaping make sure that they are not “invasives”. 4. Try to find suitable and satisfactory native substitutes for exotics. 5. Share your knowledge at every opportunity. Some plants that are currently categorized as invasives were intentionally introduced for well-meaning purposes such as erosion control, forage, ornamentals, etc.; others were accidental introductions brought in on shipping materials and by travelers. It is important to realize that as economies become more and more global the probability of increasing numbers of exotic introductions will reach 100%. Persistence is key to controlling the spread of invasives that are already here, and vigilance is key to controlling what may arrive in the future. Note: The information in this publication is for educational purposes only. Reference to commercial products or trade names is made with the understanding that no discrimination is intended against other products which may also be suitable and have label clearance. Always read and follow current label restrictions on herbicide use. iii Propagation: seed (cold stratification not Cogongrass required), rhizome expansion, and rhizome Imperata cylindrica (L.) Palosit fragments; believed by some scientists to produce a phenolic compound which may be Leaves: allelopathic inhibiting the growth of other Type: perennial, rhizomatous grass; arises plants directly from or close to the ground; overlapping sheaths; rounded appearance to plant base; not densely clumped; Habitat and Ecology: Size: 1.0” wide; 2.0’ - 4.0’ high Site: thrives in disturbed and marginal habitats Margin: finely serrate, with embedded silica such as roadsides and rights-of-way, ditches crystals and swales, pastureland, golf courses, and Apex: acuminate, tip sharp forest edges (capable of extending into the Base: wedge-shaped; pubescent understory). MacDonald et al. (2006) note that Shape: oblanceolate cogongrass typically does not survive in Color: light green; older leaves becoming actively cultivated lands. orange-brown Soil Texture: fine - coarse Surface: narrow and pubescent at base, flat Soil pH: best at 4.7 acidic soils and glabrous above, Range: In the United States, cogongrass Venation: whitish off-center midvein occurs in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, South Carolina, and Texas --- and also reported in Virginia and Stem: no apparent stem; leaf sheaths Oregon. relatively short, glabrous or pubescent; ligule a membrane, 0.02”- 0.04” long Wildlife Value and/or Impact: Roots: suppresses and eliminates natural vegetation Type: rhizome; whitish, branched, scaly and thereby significantly reducing tree & plant sharp at the tips; can grow from 5.0’ to 10.0’ regeneration, wildlife habitat, forage, and per year ecological diversity. Size: no data Depth: rhizome can penetrate to a depth of 4 Timber Value and/or Impact: feet in the soil; majority are in the top 6 inches changes fuel properties in pinelands of the southeastern United States; produces more Fruit and Flower: standing biomass and litter than native bunch Fruit: grasses, which increases fuel loads and their Seed: spikelet; attached to plumes of long continuity, thereby substantially increasing fire hair-like projections to facilitate wind dispersal hazard in winter months and as many as 3,000 seeds are produced per plant (FIPR 1997, FloriData) Landscaping Info: Don’t Use; Despite Size: 0.039” - 0.05” increased vigilance in the southeastern U.S. in Shape: elliptical regard to cogongrass, varieties of the species Color: orangish-brown such as "Japanese Blood Grass" (I. cylindrica Flower: monoecious; complete; obligate var. koenigii) are still being cultivated and sold out-crosser; narrow, dense terminal panicle, as ornamentals in other parts of the country. white silky and plumelike, 2.0” - 8.0” long and 1.5” wide; blooms late March to mid June, Other Facts: In traditional Asian folk depending on local climate medicine, cogongrass is used as a tonic, an emollient, an anti-inflammatory, and a Physical Attributes: