Updated Invasive Plant Pages

The Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources has recently updated the invasive plant pages on its website. Now that the "phase out" period has ended, the Prohibited Plant list has been simplified. You can also now view the list sorted by common or scientific name. If you would prefer a print version of this list, you can download it here.

The invasive plant regulations prohibit the sale, trade, purchase, distribution and related activities for all species on the list. If you have questions about the list or the regulations behind it, you can contact jennifer.forman-orth@state.ma.us or call 617-626-1735.

Phase-out period for prohibited plants has ended

The Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources regulates a list of Prohibited Plants, more than 100 non-native species that are considered invasive or noxious weeds. These plants are prohibited from sale, trade, distribution, and related activities in our state. As of January 1, 2009, the following ornamental species, which had been under a phase-out period, now fall under the same regulations as the other species on the list:

• Amur honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii)
  
• Bell’s honeysuckle (Lonicera x bella) [L. morrowii x L. tatarica]
  
• Bishop's weed; goutweed (Aegopodium podagraria)
  
• Burning bush; winged euonymus (Euonymus alatus/alata)
  
• Creeping Jenny; moneywort (Lysimachia nummularia)
  
• Japanese Barberry (Berberis thunbergii)
  
• Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica)
  
• Morrow’s honeysuckle (Lonicera morrowii)
  
• Norway maple (Acer platanoides)
  
• Sycamore maple (Acer pseudoplatanus)
  
• Tatarian honeysuckle (Lonicera tatarica)
  

You can see the entire prohibited plant list sorted by common or scientific name, or download a print version here.

Hydrilla in Hobomock Pond

The invasive plant Hydrilla (Hydrilla verticillata) was discovered this past summer in Hobomock Pond in Pembroke, Massachusetts, only the second known site in our state. A volunteer from the Department of Conservation and Recreation's Weed Watchers Program made the discovery in August and contacted DCR biologists, who confirmed the identification. A survey of the pond found it to be heavily infested. State biologists also surveyed the nearby Furnace Pond, Little Sandy Bottom Pond, Great Sandy Bottom Pond, Mill Pond, Stetson Pond, and Oldham Pond, but did not detect any Hydrilla.

Hydrilla is an extremely aggressive, non-native aquatic plant that has devastated waters in Florida and other southern areas with its lake-choking growth. To date, it has been documented at only one other Massachusetts location, in a pond in Barnstable.

DCR Lakes and Ponds staff have already begun working with the Massachusetts Aquatic Invasive Species Working Group, the Pembroke Ponds Watershed Association, and the Pembroke Conservation Commission to develop and execute a response plan to manage and, it is hoped, eradicate the Hydrilla in Hobomock Pond and prevent its spread.

“The detection of this invasive plant is an excellent example of what can be accomplished through education and partnership with concerned citizens at the local level,” said DCR Commissioner Richard K. Sullivan Jr. “It reinforces the benefit of investing in a group of citizens to help DCR with its mission by serving as the agency’s eyes and ears at lakes and ponds across the state. We are deeply grateful for the help from a private citizen in this particular case.”

Weed Watchers training is a free service provided by DCR to lake associations and other concerned groups. A key goal is to prevent infestation of Massachusetts’s lakes and ponds by non-native, invasive aquatic plants, and to work toward controlling and removing existing populations of invasives. The program trains local groups to monitor their lakes and ponds and to develop a removal plan if an infestation is found.

To find out more about how you can become a Weed Watcher, click here.

Getting to know Giant Hogweed

This time of year, the Massachusetts Introduced Pests Outreach Project's Pest Hotline gets a lot of calls and emails about Giant Hogweed. Giant Hogweed (Heracleum mantegazzianum) is a large, stout plant in the Carrot family, and due to its toxic sap, is a federally listed noxious weed. It has been present in Massachusetts for several years. The Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources is actively managing all hogweed populations with the goal of eradication.

If you think you've seen Giant Hogweed, we encourage you to file a Pest Report or call our Pest Hotline at 617-626-1779. But first, take a look at this excellent resource from IPANE that will help you determine if you've really got Giant Hogweed, or one of several similar-looking plants:



Related resources:

• A list of confirmed sightings in Massachusetts
• Our Giant Hogweed fact sheet
  

(Photo by David Marrison, Ohio State University Extension)