Bradford Pear: A Blessing or Bad Fortune?

A news article on Bradford Pear from SIU's Community Forestry Outreach Program, found on the Illinois Invasive Species Awareness Month blog.

We've all seen them. Driving down roadways, we awe at the rows of trees with beautiful white blossoms, usually some of the first to bloom with the arrival of spring. Their pyramidal shape gives way to an oval form as they mature, lending a manicured appearance. They bring a sense of excitement that nature is once again waking from its slumber in the spring while giving us a bright farewell in the fall with an array of scarlet, purple, and gold foliage. Have you guessed what tree species this is? Yes, it is the bradford pear tree.

Its origins are from the callery pear, Pyrus calleryana, brought over from China, Korea, and Taiwan regions. It was imported to the United States to provide resistance to the fire blight disease, although unsuccessfully. To this day, fire blight is a common problem for pear trees. Bradford pear is the original cultivar from callery pear and remains the most widely known. It was praised for its aesthetic appeal, low maintenance, and resistance to extreme environmental conditions, such as drought, soil compaction, and pollution in urban settings. Its popularity encouraged the development of several other cultivars, including the Aristocrat, Cleveland, Chanticleer, and Redspire. Several years ago, I bought a house with four of these trees bordering my driveway and, like many others, enjoyed the beautiful early blooms and late leaf drop. It is a universal landscape tree and to this day, remains frequently planted......more

Special Application of Herbicides to Control Invasive Plants on Public Lands

From the recent Illinois Pesticide Review Newsletter:

CH. I. Section 250, Subchapter i; effective January 1, 2011

The Illinois Code has been modified to allow volunteers to apply herbicides to control invasive plants on public land without the need for pesticide licensing, though there are some conditions.

First, the volunteers must be at least 18 years old and need to receive at least an hour's worth of training. This training must include a review of the herbicide product or products' label(s) that will be used, what it can/cannot be used on, application rates, application methods, first aid, potential environmental hazards, personal protective equipment, and any other information deemed appropriate by the trainer.

Second, the trainer must have a valid Rights-of-Way applicators license issued by the IL Dept. of Agriculture (IDA), and be a compensated employee of the organization that has direct control of the public lands.
Products must carry the signal word "CAUTION" and not be classified as restricted-use.

Only licensed applicators, including the trainer, can mix and load the product into the application devices. In other words, volunteers are given the application device (sprayers, wands) with the herbicide ready to apply.
Trainers are also required to immediately provide to the IDA a list including name, address, telephone number, and birth date of all individuals who received the training, as well as the sponsoring organization. On top of that, the trainer shall provide IDA the date, location, trainer's name, address, telephone number, pesticide applicator license number and expiration date, trainer's organization and legible copy of the herbicide product label(s) used in the training session.

Trainees will receive a certificate from the IDA, which then allows them to 1) apply those specific products used in the training only on 2) lands identified in the training, and 3) in the calendar year of the training.
If there are ways that we at the Pesticide Safety Education Program can assist with your training needs, please contact Michelle Wiesbrook at buesinge@uiuc.edu or 217-244-4397.

(Submitted by David Robson. This information was distributed by IDA at a recent Interagency Committee on Pesticides meeting.)

Midwest Invasive Plant Network Symposium

Did you miss the Midwest Invasive Plant Network Symposium last December? The coference presentations have now been uploaded to their website

Invasive species discovered in Dutchman Lake

BY THE SOUTHERN

HARRISBURG -- A kayaking trip on Dutchman Lake in early September, 2008, turned into an adventure in early detection and rapid response for Melissa Mead, Student Career Employment Program ecologist for the Shawnee National Forest, when she collected water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes), an invasive aquatic plant species, for the first time on the forest.

Mead collected and pressed the unknown plant for later identification in her Wetland Ecology Course at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. Melissa reported the site to Susan Corey, botanist/ecologist in the Mississippi Bluffs Ranger District and, together, on a cold November day, they removed all of the visible plants from the lake. A total of 14 large trash bags and an estimated 700 pounds of soggy plants were removed.

While removing the water hyacinth, the two discovered the presence of another invasive aquatic plant species, parrot feather watermilfoil (Myriophyllum aquaticum), and also removed it. This was the first documentation of the parrot feather watermilfoil on the Shawnee National Forest.

The collaborative effort between the Shawnee National Forest and the River-to-River Cooperative Weed Management Area (CWMA) developed over the past couple of years has been highly beneficial, not only to the forest, but to all of Southern Illinois.

During the summer of 2008, Chris Evans, coordinator for the CWMA, organized aquatic invasive plant surveys at all boat ramps on impoundments in Southern Illinois. Mead and two seasonal Student Temporary Employment Program employees in the Mississippi Bluffs Ranger District were involved in conducting these surveys on national forest lands.

“This is a great example of effective early detection and rapid response within an agency: find a new plant, identify it as a problem, contact the appropriate persons within the agency, rapidly respond to neutralize the threat and develop a plan to continue monitoring the site to ensure the population remains controlled,” Evans said.

Invasive Species Spotlight: Teasel

There are two teasel species found in Illinois: common teasel and cut-leaved teasel. Both of these are described as biennial herbaceous. The first year, the plant grows as a basal rosette; the second year, both species flower and can grow up to 6 feet tall. Common teasel blooms from June through October (pink or purple flowers), while cut-leaved teasel usually blooms July through September (white flowers). The unique flowers make teasel readily identifiable when blooming.

Native to Europe, these plants were originally used in the 1700’s for combing wool. Due to their unique flower structure, they are now popular in dried flower arrangements and horticultural plantings. However, these plants are persistent invaders of natural areas. They are commonly found along roadsides, but can also be found in disturbed areas. These teasel species are aggressive exotic plants that produce large numbers of seeds and can easily colonize areas, displacing native plants.
Management of teasel includes removing existing plants to prevent seed dispersion. Plants can be dug up and disposed of or several herbicides can be effective if plants are sprayed before flower initiation.

Common Teasel

Cut-leaved Teasel