April 19, 2007

By Lauren Heaton

In the early days of spring when the sun is sending messages to green and color the earth, it may seem cruel and unnecessary to think of weeding any of those wonderfully perfumed honeysuckle bushes growing along the bikepath or those vibrant purple loosestrife at the water’s edge. Attractive they may be, but don’t be fooled. These and several other plant species that are nonnative to Ohio are aggressively choking out a wide range of native wildflowers, plants and even trees all over Yellow Springs. And the number one culprit in the wooded preserve in Glen Helen is garlic mustard.

Garlic mustard is a particularly nasty plant, according to Nick Boutis, director of the Glen Helen Ecology Institute. It shoots up seeds that spread everywhere and last forever, no critters like to eat it, and it is able to lay waste to native landscapes by destroying the natural habitat of native plants.

“Like other invasives, garlic mustard has spoiled our fair state with the best of intentions, and it has become a tightening noose around the best habitats for birds and wildflowers,” Boutis said. “Gradually our ability to provide habitat for the profusion of trillium and dutchman’s britches is being increasingly diminished.”

According to Mary Lamborg, a Glen Helen volunteer, getting control over an invasive that has taken as big a foothold as garlic mustard has on the Glen requires nothing less than a sustained community effort to pull out patches not only in the Glen, but also in backyards throughout the village. And a good place to get educated about what to look for and how to weed it is the Glen’s Earth Day potluck and garlic mustard pull this Saturday, April 21.

The day will begin with a potluck lunch at noon in the Glen Helen Building, for which eco-friendly participants are asked to bring their own place settings. After lunch, Macy Reynolds will give a short lecture on non-native species, and then Glen staff member George Bieri, Glen Helen Association member Jan Foiles, and other Glen guides will lead groups to various areas in the preserve and demonstrate how to properly weed the garlic mustard plants. Free childcare, including stories, crafts and a scavenger hunt, will be available for children ages 4 to 10 at the Trailside Museum from 12:45 until 3 p.m.

According to information fron the Nature Conservancy, garlic mustard is a European shade herb that was introduced to the U.S. in the 1800s as a food crop. In its first year, this garlic smelling weed grows a rosette of lily pad-like leaves and generally stays under a foot tall. In the second year the plant flowers with tiny white petals clustered atop stems that can grow to four feet tall with spiney-edged, heart-shaped leaves.

Garlic mustard is especially pestilent because it spreads quickly and produces a large amount of seeds that can survive up to seven years before germinating. It is heartier and pushier than the native wildflowers, which get crowded further out of the preserve each year, and it also has a singular talent for killing a fungus that helps hardwood trees absorb nutrients from the soil.

According to Bieri, garlic mustard now grows in enough density to harm about 40 percent of the Glen’s forest floor. The plant has rapidly invaded what Boutis called the “oak triangle,” where Yellow Springs and Birch creeks meet, which also happens to be the Glen’s best habitat for birds and wildflowers, he said.

But invasives don’t stop at garlic mustard. According to Boutis, wintercreeper euonymus and bush honeysuckle follow at a close second and third in their pervasiveness and ability to harm the Glen’s natural ecosystem. Euonymus is a six-inch evergreen groundcover, which can smother the forest floor and scramble 40 to 70 feet high if allowed to climb on other bushes and trees. Perhaps even more pervasive than garlic mustard is honeysuckle, which is found in about 80 percent of the Glen and completely dominates at least 30 acres, Boutis said.

“If the honeysuckle were left unchecked, we would lose the forest altogether and we’d be left with just a savannah,” he said. “Therefore, we need to maintain a level of diligence in pulling it out.”

The Glen got serious about tackling invasive plants when Bieri came on board in 1999 and began an aggressive campaign to restore the natural biodiversity in the preserve, Boutis said. Glen staff does as much weeding as it can, and volunteers have helped on a regular basis, including some, such as Foiles, who have come to clear daily during the warmer weather.

The effort has helped to keep the problem from getting worse, but it has not been enough to push back the percentage of invasives that are already there, said Boutis, who is particularly concerned with the Glen’s most pristine 250 acres in the river valley corridor that connects the Cascades to the Yellow Spring and the swinging bridge. The National Park Service has identified the area as a national landmark because it has never been farmed or heavily logged or grazed.

“In order to make a difference we must make a concerted, persistent effort in areas that are most vulnerable, our best habitats,” he said.

The Glen now has five weed wrenches of various sizes, some big enough to pluck out a 20-foot tree or a stubborn honeysuckle bush. Community members are invited to use this equipment in the Glen, and to come to regular invasive clearing events scheduled twice a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

“I’m glad it’s getting darker later because it means Jan is able to stay and get a bit more done out there,” Boutis said.

According to a brochure from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, about 22 percent of plant species that typically grow in Ohio are considered invasive, or nonnative plants that have been introduced from other states or countries. The most aggressive of them spread quickly and can displace native species in habitats including woodlands, wetlands and prairies.

If nothing else can be said about garlic mustard, a culinary guide “From Pest to Pesto,” published by Kalamazoo College, suggests large amounts of it can be used to make tasty dishes, such as garlic mustard pesto, garlic mustard salsa, caramelized onion and garlic mustard soup and peppered lamb loin with dumplings and garlic mustard. It is the one time when taking something from the Glen doesn’t hurt it, and may also save its life.

Contact: lheaton@ysnews.com