Invasive Herbaceous Plants

Since its debut as a regular Branching Out feature in 2016, "Invasives in Your Woodland" has profiled a wide variety of invasive plant species that threated the health of Maryland's ecosystems.

How to identify and manage invasive Japanese stiltgrass using an Integrated Pest Management approach.

Lesser celandine can be an ecological threat. It was introduced to the United States as an ornamental plant in the late 1800s. Although its sale was banned in Maryland in 2017, it may still be available for sale in other states.

Butterflybush is a rarity among non-native, invasive species. It has a wide variety of cultivars and a wide range of supporters among retail outlets as well as some environmental observers. It is also benefitting from positive public relations related to the decline of butterflies. However, it is indeed invasive, and contributes to (rather than mitigates) the decline of pollinators.

Japanese knotweed is an upright, shrubby, herbaceous perennial plant that can grow to over ten feet in height. It commonly invades disturbed areas with full or mostly full sunlight, such as roadsides. However, it can tolerate shade, as well as high temperatures, high salinity, and drought.

Kudzu is a deciduous, climbing, semi-woody perennial vine that grows 35 to 100 feet long. It grows via runners, rhizomes, and from nearly every node that touches the ground. It spreads most rapidly in open areas, including disturbed areas such as abandoned fields, roadsides, and forest edges.

Garlic mustard is a biennial flowering plant in the mustard family that is an aggressive invader of woodlands throughout the United States.