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invasive vines

16 years ago

I recently read that Poison Ivy has become more aggressive and more toxic. I have noticed more invasion by ALL vines on our prairie remnants in recent years: Virginia Creeper, grapes, Morning Glories and other bindweeds, and a new one with three oval pointed leaves that is behaving like Kudzu, blanketing everything in the woods and savannas. Is it just my imagination, or has anyone else noticed this?

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Comments (5)

theresa2
16 years ago
It could be that certain plants, poison ivy being one of them, might be benefiting from rising levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Here is a link that might be useful: Climate change and poison ivy
loris
16 years ago
I'll get a bit nit-picky here and mention that Virginia Creeper is native to much of the US (I haven't checked IL), so many people here would refer to it as an aggressive native plant, not invasive. It's less likely to hurt ecosystems. I hope you don't mind my pointing that out, but I don't want somebody avoiding Virginia Creeper for that reason.
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I let my yard go for years (Tucker GA / NE Atlanta). I don’t have expert knowledge, but this is what I have done. Ignore the spam on my name (I will probably see any replies). I have privets, Chinese honeysuckle, Greenbriars, and of course poison ivy. Two years ago about 10 pine trees were cut down, and all these invasive species exploded in the backyard. In two years time the privets are 20 feet tall, some of them wrapped in poison ivy and Honeysuckle vines). Two years ago I chopped the large poison ivy vines from the pine trees, and I sprayed the poison ivy leaves that were growing around those trees. Two years later all that poison ivy is gone. The same round up that works on poison ivy has no effect whatsoever on greenbriars nor privets (and strike3, very little effect if any of the honeysuckle). I could mix the poison and stronger, BUT ITS POISON (so I don’t want to do that for spraying). So I bought a plastic paint can and about 50% strength concentrated poison, that I plan to use [strategically rather than sprayed it everywhere] to paint the stump of vines after I cut them. And to girdle some of the privets. In the last few weeks I have cleared about half of my backyard (I put a metal blade in a string trimmer, and it will chew up the vines and the greenbriars that like to twist around each other, but not the privets). Of course the first part of the yard I cleared already has 2 foot weeds growing again. After I cleared this area there are so many roots on the ground from the honeysuckle that the whole yard looks like a plate of spaghetti. I’m thinking about hiring a contractor to use a skid steer to scrape off the vines, then maybe I could plant some grass and get the mower in there for regular maintenance.
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Spraying it won't work - I speak from experience. The only way to get rid of it is to cut it down to a stump, then paint the surface of the stump with Round Up or a brush killer, full strength. You've got to kill the roots, and in an established plant, the roots seem to go to China. Perhaps you can speak with your neighbor about keeping the blasted stuff in their yard, by keeping it under control. It's dreadful stuff.
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I am certain that it is bittersweet which does have variable leaf shape. Scroll down about half the page on this link : https://www.marylandbiodiversity.com/viewSpecies.php?species=2217 https://www.minnesotawildflowers.info/shrub/oriental-bittersweet https://www.ncwildflower.org/plant_galleries/details/celastrus-orbiculatus
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Yes it is and they have roots that go practically to the center of the earth. I've found that the best way to get rid of it is to keep pulling it up, getting as much root as you can each time (which isn't much). Takes a couple of years but I've gotten rid of most of mine, which seems to have come in on a load of mulch.
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Iris GW
16 years ago
Larry, that might be Kudzu - have you tried to id it?
terrene
16 years ago
I don't know about whether vines are growing more vigorously in the context of climate change. Both Virginia creeper and Poison ivy are native, and not particularly aggressive here in my area - at least they aren't killing trees that I've observed.

What IS becoming a huge problem is Oriental bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus) - it is very vigorous, grows multiple feet per year, girdles trees, and topples them from their sheer weight. It makes tons of berries and spread like wildfire because the birds (like Robins and Starlings) spread them everywhere. Such a scourge! I have battled it for 5 years in my yard and even cut it throughout the neighborhood. With measured success - at least in my yard, most of the fruiting vines are cut (and poisoned). But there are still hundreds of smaller vines and seedlings sprouting all the time. It's discouraging.
theresa2
16 years ago
You are so right loris. Here in Wisconsin/Illinois VC and PI are both native plants. I'm cultivating Virginia creeper up a rather long bare tree-trunk in my yard, but I'm careful not to let it spread because I want to preserve valuable real estate for other plants I adore. Just to add to the discussion, two outstanding features for both VC and PI is their outstanding fall color and colorful berries that birds love.

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