The following is the outline for the talk I gave on April 18, 2016 to the Lapeer Horticulture Society
Poor perspectives about non-native
plants
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| Dames Rocket |
One can repair an ecosystem to its original state by
removing or preventing non-natives and planting only natives.
What’s original? 100
years, 500 years? Disregards human influence, changes to soil,
weather air quality People have moved
plants into the area since the land bridge.
Native americans imported crops from South and central America. Change is constant in nature and one cannot
re-create the past effectively
Native plants have evolved to be the best plants for a
particular environment.
In
any area evolution can only work with the species it has. Without competition or stresses evolution is
slower. But evolution can work pretty
fast too. When a better suited plant that evolved somewhere else gets
introduced nature may make it the “queen”.
Nature likes success. Often
non-natives enhance environments and lead to more species coming to an area and
diversity is always preferable
Non-native plants always cause the extinction of other
species.
With the exception of islands and inland lakes, non-native
plants do not cause extinction on their own.
In a few cases they may hasten extinction if changing environment is
occurring. Elimination of a species
from a limited area doesn’t mean extinction of the species. Animals, particularly insects are a different
story.
Non-native plants disrupt the ecology and are bad for other
species of plants and animals.
Its change, not disruption.
Many times non-natives enhance ecologies, in many cases there’s no
effect. Minor adjustments may need to be
made. Time usually makes things work
out. Animals learn to utilize new food and shelter sources.
Pollinators prefer native plants and must have them to
survive.
There are a few specialists, but native pollinators adjust
to new sources of food easily. They will drink from human feeders, why not new
flowers? Even larvae food sources
change. Many butterflies/moths use
non-native plants to lay on. Many
pollinators we are worried about are non-native themselves. Should we get rid of honey bees?
One should always remove non-native plants growing in the
wild.
It’s not necessary to remove most non-natives. Maybe
a few for health and safety.
Nature will sort it out. There
are judgement calls usually based on preference of humans. We have the right and would be expected to by
nature to defend ourselves from harm.
Man and other species both develop poisons to aid species survival. But is losing oak trees or ash trees going to
harm us?
We should only plant native plants, they are always better
for the environment.
That’s
just not true. Some non-native plants complement the existing ecology. When we talk about gardens especially, you
should plant the best plant for the spot.
Gardens are not natural environments-humans change the whole equation.
Pollinators love non-native plants, buddleia, petunias, various mints, autumn
olive, dames rocket. If you plant a
garden of any species, you’ll help other species exist
People are always the cause for bringing non-natives into
the environment.
We spend millions of dollars controlling non-native plants,
therefore they are a threat.
We do spend millions but usually we are taking sides in a
war- protecting one non-native over another.
Crop weeds, lawn pests- don’t these species and our use of them cause
considerable damage to the environment?
Are we on the right side? It’s
like saying it cost us millions of dollars to conquer the first people, and
that’s why they were a threat. If we
bring in a species for our own use and then have to battle native and
non-native species with toxic chemicals and GMO should we then use that cost
against non-natives? Can our money be
spent in better ways?
Most non-native damage outside of lawn, garden and ag use is
negligible, overestimated and anecdotal.
Japanese knotweed doesn’t cause
any more damage than trumpet vine.
Native species cause as much if not more damage, both in and out of
gardens - it’s all perception.
Besides- non-native control is a big business from invasive
biology students/workers/teachers/ researchers
to chemical companies like Monsanto and control companies like True
green and Orkin the invasive/non-native war supports thousands of people, brings
billions into the economy
Should we off set expenses for true needed controls against
income generated?
In conclusion
Some non-native- and native species need to be controlled
for the safety of our species. Every
species has the right to protect itself.
IE mosquitoes, dangerous diseases, In other cases we just don’t like the
change or don’t want to see the loss of a species so we interfere with
nature. Those are the things we need to
be more objective and less reactive about.
Nature has the remarkable ability to heal itself even from dramatic
abuses such as Chernobyl. We can’t
predict the changes. Nature creates new,
novel ecosystems by re-arranging species.
If you want to create a Japanese garden in Michigan, its
fine. An English cottage garden-
fine. Plant trees and shrubs and
flowers, all are better than planting nothing.
Don’t do anything illegal. Try
not to let non-native plants invade wild areas.
If you want to volunteer to pull dames rocket or autumn olive or garlic
mustard fine but realize you are choosing one species over another, not helping
nature.
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Better perspectives on non-native
plants
 |
| Purple Loosestrife |
Nature doesn’t recognize invasive plants, only successful
ones. She welcomes diversity and change.
Using the term “Invasive plants” is wrong -native plants can
be as invasive and as economically devastating as non-natives. Example- Trumpet vine vs Japanese
knotweed.
Using only native plants in your garden is the same as only
using red flowering plants, or succulents , or herbs. It’s a form of human selection of plants
called gardening.
The best plant to plant is one that’s right for the
conditions and right for the use you have in mind for it.
A garden should bring all sorts of cultures and types into
peaceful harmony; it is the art of graceful assimilation.
There is little relationship between the amount of native
flora in a garden or ecosystem and the animal life it supports. The more diverse the ecosystem the more
resilient and productive it is.
Those who advocate the elimination of “invasive plants” often advocate bull dozers,
chain saws and pesticides/ poisons to eliminate them – which is worse for our
environment?
 |
| Multiflora rose |
Non-native plants are often the plants we are trying to
protect from other non-natives. Examples-
our crop plants, lawn grasses. Some of
those plants have harmed the natural ecology of the country far more than
garden escapees and non-native weeds.
Why should humans determine which species is better than another?
Suggested Reading
Jay Gould examines the native plant concept
Native plant enthusiasm- ecological
panacea or xenophobia?
Weed Whackers, Monsanto, glyphosate, and the war on invasive
species
Non-native plants that are great for pollinators
The true story of Kudzu, the vine
that never ate the south
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/ist/?next=/science-nature/true-story-kudzu-vine-ate-south-180956325/
British Ecological Society (BES). "Native plants alone
may not be the best option for pollinating insects in UK gardens."
ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 11 August 2015. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/08/150811092048.htm.
University of York. "Non-native plants are 'not a
threat' to floral diversity." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 23 March 2015. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/03/150323150617.htm
American Journal of Botany. "Are invasive plants a
threat to native biodiversity? It depends on the spatial scale."
ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 11 April 2011. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110408163917.htm.
Uncommon Ground:
Rethinking the Human Place in Nature- William Cronon
Invasion Biology:
Critique of a Pseudoscience,- David Theodoropoulos,
The New Wild: Why
invasive species will be nature's salvation, Fred Pearce
An Evolutionary Perspective on Strengths,
Fallacies, and Confusions in the Concept of Native Plants, Stephen jay
Gould,
Novel Ecosystems:
Intervening in the New Ecological World Order by Richard J. Hobbs , Eric S. Higgs , Carol Hall
Invasive Species:
What Everyone Needs to Know - Daniel Simberloff
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