Two weeks ago, I drove up the Taconic State Parkway towards Albany and
saw along nearly the entire edge of the highway and into the woods
nothing but wild honeysuckle, now in full (yellow) bloom, not to be
confused with the native North American species. Soon, birds will be
eating the paired red and black berries and "planting" them everywhere:
the shrubs in my woods, my "lower garden," places where they've never
been before.
As with other invasives, they were brought here from afar for their
beauty or to plant along highways to control erosion, etc. If you've
seen the kudzu vines down south, you know what can happen, though in
different ways. They grow very, very fast and our native species cannot
usually compete.
Now, yes, now, is the time for all of us to do something. Each one of us
who is able can avoid thousands, even millions, of them to multiply.
Even pruning off some branches can help, and the shallow-rooted shrubs
are easy to pull up when small, even if they're a bit larger. Since
they're not yet in the berry stage, they can be piled up, but with roots
"in the air" so they can't grab hold and grow.
For larger ones, some of them very large shrubs, lop them off near
bottom, saw them off, or whatever, or even cut off all of the blossoming
branches. (Obviously, it's most important to get out the roots, if
possible.) After lopping or sawing them off near the base, as with other
invasives, it's important to get into the roots. I take a drill, drill a
hole in the center of the "trunk(s)" and pour in full-strength, not
diluted, weed killer. (Though some may object, for those near roads I
pour in about a tablespoon of gasoline -- not much compared with
"traffic droppings"!)
Having seen the field near the end of my road nearly taken over in a
very few years, but not one to scare easily, I am more than a little
distressed about our current situation, and I know very well the power
of the individual. I'd also love to see highway workers, Youth
Conservation Corps, all groups possible, do what they can, though I'm
well aware of what some already do, with the invasive Japanese knotweed
and others.
Many thanks for anything you can do, and our native species would
certainly be thankful if it were possible.
DiMario lives in Fayston.
