Invasive Situation
Invasive Situation
Our environment is under attack!! Head for the hills, the invasive plants are here. It’s getting ugly out here in the land of natives versus everything else. Man the front lines with good gloves, a machete, chain saw, root popper, jug of chemicals, wood chipper and a self-contained biosphere tent. I found myself creating this chaotic, mind numbing vision during an all day invasive species training workshop and realizing this assault on the ecosystem was precipitated by the actions of humans. I really came full circle when all the instructors recommended chemical control as a way to cover up the real culprits of this situation—human behavior and unintended consequences.
Sitting there hearing all about the origins and habits of these invaders actually opened my eyes as a farmer not just a conservation agent. As I thought about life on the landscape back 75 years ago, what were some root causes to our falling prey to these outside attackers? It was the beginning trend towards the loss of topsoil, grasslands, high density grazing animals, crop diversity and farmers. Couple this with a global marketplace where unwelcomed guests could get a free plane or boat ride and you have the seeds of destruction. For me, it seems the slicing and dicing of our soil created a situation for Mother Nature to welcome all visitors to take root and cover her vulnerable surface.
Our own U.S. Soil Conservation Service promoted an invasive as a means to stop erosion in the wake of the Dust Bowl. I’m sure they were called upon to take this drastic measure as the plow was becoming a popular tool. I wonder if they ever considered the long term ramifications of this action in lieu of going back to grassland farming. The red berries of our prolific, pasture predator, the Multi-flora Rose is my constant reminder of man’s skewed decision making in trying to out-smart this biological system. In fairness to the agency, the reason this plant was introduced from Asia was for its ornamental qualities. This historical pattern of people liking and buying bright and shiny new plants is mostly why we are in a fix today.
I learned that my own farm is not only harboring the dreaded rose but several other bad actors as well. Held up in my hedgerows and fields are Common Buckthorn, Honeysuckle, Japanese Barberry, Russian Knapweed, Canada Thistle, Reeds Canary grass and Tall Fescue. To make matters worse I recently planted the invasive Black Locust trees purchased from our state’s yearly tree sale (boy is that ironic!). I was simply trying to grow some sustainable, local fence posts, windbreak and wildlife food to counter purchasing treated posts from several states away and wound up becoming an environmental zealot. My learning now turned to depression.
Have no fear dejected farmer, man has an answer. Once you have recovered from being subjected to guilt mongering from the experts for not taking evasive action and spreading the seeds of despair compliments of your farm’s winged colleagues, you can reach for the latest herbicide to “control” the terrible tubers, import some hungry insects to gobble up the plant or hire eager interns ( so I’m told) to pull root bulbs all day. While these strategies were being highlighted slide after bloody power-point slide and benefitting the chemical company’s wallets, my mind wandered to a place of grazing Zen.
On my grass farm these intruders are known as forage. I say that because I have tested and seen samples collected by Jerry Brunetti on these plants that indicate their greenery have nutritional value similar to Alfalfa and have medicinal qualities that heal animal ailments. I have also read that farmers used to fatten hogs on the pods from locust trees being they had the energy value of corn. I concur that nothing pleases a hungry goat or beef cow much like a smorgasbord of grasses, clovers, dandelions, honeysuckle leaves and knapweed flowers.
In fact, I believe it is this diversity that creates a healthy animal. My native plants seem to thrive by having these deep-rooted foes bringing up nutrients from the subsoil. If the balance of plants gets out of whack, I simply imply a high density, short duration, animal impact grazefest to control the situation and let nature realign the competition. This timed, grazing, browsing animal component is crucial to maintaining a diversified ecosystem and the lack of them and their grazing managers is driving the proliferation towards an invasive landscape. Oh, don’t get me wrong, I don’t see animals grazing in culde sacs as a viable option but with the movement towards producing local food, who knows.
It’s interesting to me to think about a future where keeping a tight sod through controlled grazing and future biomass energy production may become a solution to controlling lost plants. We sure need a better strategy than exerting man’s dominance over all of nature. To tell you the truth, I’m just a little uneasy about how the chemicals, new biological insects and bio-technology will impact our lives in the next 75 years. These practices are built on fixing problems not addressing the root causes. In a natural landscape, species are battling everyday to achieve their supremacy with Mother Nature as the referee. What balance will she strive for as the last batter on the human league? I know this much, she won’t need instant replay. Published in Lancaster Farming 10/17/2009