Native Plants

Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?
A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.
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Wednesday - March 26, 2014
From: Richmond, KY
Region: Mid-Atlantic
Topic: Invasive Plants, Non-Natives, Vines
Title: Eliminating kudzu from Richmond KY
Answered by: Barbara Medford
QUESTION:
I live in Richmond KY, Kirksville area. I have noticed that Kudzu has started to grow in my patch of land next to the creek. How can I get rid of this before it becomes a big problem?ANSWER:
The quicker you get at it, the better chance you have of actually controlling it. Here is a Smarty Plants previous answer on taking on invasive plants, including kudzu. You might want to enlist some neighbors to do the same thing to protect their own properties.
From the Missouri Department of Conservation, here is an article on Kudzu Control. We want to emphasize this sentence from that article:
"All land owners in an infestation area must cooperate in a unified program."
Get it before it gets you. Since we obviously would have no pictures of an invasive non-native in our Native Plant Image Gallery, here are some pictures of kudzu so you can know the enemy. Good luck!
More Non-Natives Questions
Advisability of growing Silybum marianum (Milk thistle)
November 26, 2013 - I just received a load of clay-mix-dirt - and after our recent rains noticed the pile sprouting what looks like "Milk Thistle." Lots of them. The leaves are spiny and variegated - quite pretty. ...
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Replacing non-native invasives with native grasses and wildflowers from Round Rock TX
April 04, 2012 - I have a small piece of property (1.5 AC) East of Austin, Texas that get's overgrown with weedy vegetation (johnson grass, dandelion, and some tall yellow flowering plant that I see all over the medi...
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Yellowing leaves on non-native globe willow in Las Cruces, NM
June 26, 2010 - I live in Las Cruces, NM. I have a good size globe willow tree. The leaves are turning yellow and brown dryness at tips and leaves are falling off. Does it just need water?
view the full question and answer
Problems with non-native Indian hawthorn
April 18, 2009 - We have some Indian Hawthorns that were planted for us by a landscape company. The first year we got a little bit of bloom. Since then the shrubs don't bloom at all. They are in a flower bed up aga...
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Yellow jackets on non-native crape myrtles
September 25, 2008 - Hey Mr. Smarty Plants I have only 1 question. I have several Crape Myrtles that have numerous amounts (alarming) of yellow jacket bees on them. who what where when why etc? Should I be concerned? tha...
view the full question and answer
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