Vol. 19, No. 3 Fall 2011 Cal-IPC News Protecting California’s Natural Areas from Wildland Weeds Quarterly Newsletter of the California Invasive Plant Council CCal-IPCal-IPC celebratescelebrates 2020 years!years! At one of Cal-IPC’s fi eld trips at the 20th Annual Inside: Symposium participants biked to the Upper Truckee Marsh, the largest tributary of Lake Perennial pepperweed decision guide ..4 Tahoe. Perennial pepperweed invaded the adjoin- ing meadow in the 1980s and has been under Long-term broom management ...........6 control for more than a decade. 2011 Symposium in photos ..................8 Invasive plants in nurseries ...............12 Interview with Mike Kelly ..................13 From the Director’s Desk What’s in a word? Cal-IPC rticles have been fl ying around news outlets lately questioning the concept of “invasive species” and the utility of ecological restoration work. Is it “Time to Stop 1442-A Walnut Street, #462 A Berkeley, CA 94709 Worrying about Invasive Species” as suggested by Scientifi c American (6/8/11)? ph (510) 843-3902 fax (510) 217-3500 www.cal-ipc.org [email protected] The primary provocation for these articles is a short opinion piece called “Don’t A California 501(c)3 nonprofi t organization judge species on their origins” from June’s Nature magazine. The basic thesis of the Protecting California’s lands and waters from ecologically-damaging invasive plants piece is hardly revolutionary; it is that not all non-native species are bad. Unfortunately through science, education, and policy. the authors imply that this is indeed revolutionary news, that land managers are STAFF operating with blinders trying to “restore ecosystems to some ‘rightful’ historical state.” Doug Johnson, Executive Director Elizabeth Brusati, Science Program Manager (It is also troubling that the authors place importance in the fact that “introduction of Alice Chung, Training Program Specialist non-native species has almost always increased the number of species in a region.” Or in Heather DeQuincy, Outreach Program Manager the fact that tamarisk uses the same amount of groundwater as native willows—per leaf Ginny King, Program Assistant Agustín Luna, Business Manager area, and guess which has a lot more leaf area?) Bertha McKinley, Program Assistant As for the basic point of the piece, I agree with the authors: some non-native plants Dana Morawitz, Mapping Program Manager Tony Morosco, Mapping Specialist can play a harmless, potentially even useful role in ecological function. In setting Cynthia Powell, Mapping & Modeling Specialist priorities, land managers target non-natives whose impact is apparent, while leaving Falk Schuetzenmeister, Mapping & Modeling Specialist less damaging invasives. And in cases where non-native plants may be playing a role in Arpita Sinha, Training Program Specialist Jen Stern, Training Program Manager supporting other species, land managers design their work accordingly. Working with DIRECTORS non-native species as part of the mix will be increasingly important for conservation as Jason Giessow, President climate change results in shifting vegetation communities, Dendra, Inc. John Knapp, Vice-President The challenge remains determining the impacts – harmful or benefi cial – of a Native Range, Inc. Doug Gibson, Treasurer particular species. As Carla D’Antonio, keynote speaker at our recent Symposium, San Elijo Lagoon Conservancy pointed out, one scientifi c defi nition of “invasive” is simply “a non-native species that Julie Horenstein, Secretary California Department of Fish & Game is spreading.” It’s when an organization like Cal-IPC adds “and causes ecological harm” Edith Allen University of California-Riverside to the equation that the accounting gets more diffi cult. Published studies of impacts are Peter Beesley limited, and placing a value on impacts becomes subjective. I expect that attributing Pacifi c Gas and Electric benefi cial ecological impacts is equally challenging. Jason Casanova Council for Watershed Health Edmund Duarte The authors’ recommendation to “organize priorities around whether species are Alameda County Department of Agriculture producing benefi ts or harm to biodiversity, human health, ecological services and Valerie Eviner University of California-Davis economies… and much less on where they originated” is not news to land managers. Kim Hayes Though the authors and media may prefer to treat the topic as revelatory, it is closer to Elkhorn Slough Foundation Sue Hubbard common sense. Federal Employee Brent Johnson Pinnacles National Monument Shawn Kelly Southern California Wetlands Recovery Project Shea O’Keefe Natural Resources Conservation Service Peter Schuyler Ecological Consultant Andrea Williams Marin Municipal Water District STUDENT LIAISONS Chelsea Carey, UC Merced Kai Palenscar, UC Riverside Affi liations for identifi cation purposes only. Cal-IPC News Fall 2011 - Volume 19, Number 3 Editors: Doug Johnson, Elizabeth Brusati, Heather DeQuincy Cal-IPC News is published quarterly by the California Invasive Plant Council. Articles may be reprinted with permission from the editors. Submissions are welcome. Mention of commercial products does not imply endorsement by Cal-IPC. We reserve the right to edit all work. Symposium attendees making connections. See page 8 for more photos. Cal-IPC is an equal opportunity employer. 2 Cal-IPC News Fall 2011 Wildland Weed NewsNewsNewsNewsNews The state of California adopted a currently spent to control species such as Japanese dodder has been detected “Strategic Framework for Protecting Burmese pythons and Asian carp. in Lompoc, Santa Barbara County, California from Invasive Species”. www.news.ucdavis.edu for the fi rst time. This parasitic plant Leaders of six agencies signed off on the UC Davis research has found that looks like bright orange spaghetti and document, which makes 46 recommenda- organic herbicides can be effective when can infest street trees, other ornamental tions for strengthening a coordinated weeds are small and environmental plants, and agricultural crops. It is response to invasive species. The docu- conditions are optimum. However, much larger than similar native spe- ment was developed by the state’s advisory organic herbicides only kill contacted cies of dodder. See www.dodder.org for committee on invasive species. The group tissue, good organic herbicide coverage is photos and more information. Report will now begin work on implementation. essential. Organic herbicides only burn sightings of this species to your county www.iscc.ca.gov back the tops of perennial weeds, and agricultural commissioner’s offi ce. www. Risk assessments to block invasive they recover quickly. Organic herbicides kionrightnow.com/story/15379612/ wildlife would pay off. A UC Davis have no residual activity on subsequent invasive-plant-found-in-lompoc study recently published in the journal weed emergence. Researchers tested “Noninvasive” cultivars may not be Ecological Economics estimated that a several organic herbicides in agricultural as safe as advertised. Researchers at nationwide risk-screening system would situations so it is uncertain how well Washington University and the Chicago yield net benefi ts ranging from approxi- the results would translate to wildlands. Botanic Garden, studying woody mately $54,000 to $141,000 per species. ucanr.org/blogs/blogcore/postdetail. ornamental plants, found that claims of They based their estimate on money cfm?postnum=5623 environmental safety are in most cases based on misleading evidence that greatly underestimates the plants’ invasive Cal-IPC Updates New tools from Cal-IPC! potential. What is more, the offspring See page 7 for information on the of cultivars do not usually “breed true” Board election results “Prevention Best Management Practices and may reproduce more than their Please welcome new board for Land Managers” manual and page 11 parents, especially if they cross with members Dan Knapp (Los Angeles for infomation on the CalWeedMapper plants from nearby wildland popula- Conservation Corps) and Chris website. tions. Even a 95% reduction in seed McDonald (UC Cooperative production may not be enough to make Extension, San Bernardino, an ornamental cultivar non-invasive. Riverside, and Imperial Counties), www.aibs.org/bioscience-press-releases who will begin their terms in The National Biological Information January. Peter Beesley, Jason Infrastructure (NBII) is a victim of Giessow, and Peter Schuyler were budget cuts. A program of the US re-elected. Offi cers for 2012 will Geological Survey, NBII includes be John Knapp (President), Jason resources such as maps of the vegeta- Casanova (Vice-President), Julie tion in National Parks; the “National Horenstein (Secretary), and Doug Framework for Early Detection, Rapid Gibson (Treasurer). Valerie Eviner, Assessment, and Rapid Response to Brent Johnson, and Shea O’Keefe will Invasive Species”; and the Gap Analysis leave the board in December 2011. New t-shirts At the symposium we offered new Program with digital species distribu- New grants long-sleeved t-shirts. The dark brown tion maps. All of its projects and its We have received a grant from the shirts can be ordered from our website website will end in January 2012. www. Marisla Foundation to support the at www.cal-ipc.org/shop/index.php or call nbii.gov training program. (510) 843-3902. Sizes L, XL, and XXL A new aerial survey method shows that Staff changes are available (the shirts run small). leafy spurge is expanding after fi re in Suzanne Harmon has left Cal-IPC Membership renewal Idaho. Very Large Scale Aerial Imagery, to manage an organic farm in It’s time to renew your membership for or VLSA, is a new way to collect Sonoma County, with sheep for 2012. Make it easy and renew online high-resolution photos automatically weed control! now. www.cal-ipc.org/about/membership ...continued page 14 Cal-IPC News Fall 2011 3 Perennial pepperweed control decision guide by Christine Whitcraft, CSU Long Beach erennial pepperweed (Lepidium Platifolium) is a non-native crucifer (mustard family) that was introduced to California from southeastern Eurasia in the 1930s. By 1993, perennial pep- perweed was viewed as a major weed throughout the western states in a variety of habitats (Young et al.