Invasive Plants or Trees

In this issue, we look at musk thistle, also known as "nodding thistle," one of four invasive thistles classified as a noxious weed by the Maryland Department of Agriculture. Each plant can spread over 100,000 seeds.

Mile-a-minute is a vigorous invasive that may only have just begun to spread in the United States. One estimate surmises that it is only found in 20% of its potential range in this country.

Twenty-five years of "Branching Out" - read how it all started. Plus, read our "Woodland Wildlife Spotlight" and "Invasives in Your Woodland," and take the Brain Tickler challenge. This and much more inside this issue.

This issue has a year in review, the Woodland Wildlife Spotlight, Invasives in Your Woodland, the Brain Tickler challenge, how native trees and shrubs can benefit wildlife, and more.

This issue features Invasives in Your Woodlands, the Woodland Wildlife Spotlight, the Brain Tickler, and woodland stewardship news from around the region.

Read our features Woodland Wildlife Spotlight, Invasives in Your Woodland, and the Brain Tickler challenge. There's also news about the state Tree Farmer of the Year and much more.

Read about some of the changes to the Woodland Stewardship Education program and News and Notes about stories you might have missed. Our regular features include the Woodland Wildlife Spotlight and Invasives in Your Woodland, and the Brain Tickler challenge. 

Japanese privets are less common than other privets that are more widespread across the eastern U.S. Reported sightings in the mid-Atlantic are sparse, but it may be more widespread, based on its continued use in landscaping.

European buckthorn is a native of Europe and was introduced here as an ornamental plant, perhaps as early as the late 1700s. In the 1900s, it was planted widely to form living fence rows and for wildlife habitat. Since then, it has spread aggressively into a variety of environments.

Autumn olive is now considered an invasive plant species for a variety of reasons. While it is not illegal to sell the plant in every jurisdiction where it exists, many natural resources management agencies and organizations discourage property owners from further planting.