East Kootenay Invasive Plant Council 3rd Annual AGM & Conference - April 7, 2011

While you might think that this post is old news, indeed, it is very timely.  Garden clean up has started and people are thinking about what plants they might want to purchase for their gardens this year.

Did you know that some of the plants that we purchase to put in our gardens are invasive, and have choked out native species. The RDEK offices in Cranbrook has some valuable literature you can pick up to ensure you are planting species that are not invasive.  Some of the invasive plants are:  Butterfly Bush, Common Periwinkle, English Holly, English Ivy, Giant Hogweed (nasty!), Himalayan Blackberry, Knotweeds (Japanese, Giant and Bohemian), Himalayan balsam (Policeman’s Helmet), Purple loosestrife, Scotch Broom, Spurge Laurel/Daphne, Yellow Flag Iris, Dalmation toadflax, Oxeye daisy, and Yellow Archangel/Lamium. People generally want to avoid planting ornamental and food species that can spread out of control to other gardens and surrounding grasslands, forests and parks. 

In 2010 the EKIPC spent roughly $321,400.00 on targeted on-the-ground treatments, which is more money spent than in any previous year, plus additional work done by three crews hired by the Invasive Plant Council of BC through the Hot Spots program. 

The speakers were:

- Michael Keefer (expert in plant science, plant ecology, native plant horticulture, ecological restoration, and ethnobotany) is adjunct Professor at the Centre for Livelihoods and Ecology at Royal Roads University, and President of both Tipi Mountain Native Plants Ltd. and Keefer Ecological Services Ltd.  He talked about partnership building and Ecosystem Restoration. 

- Dr. Matthias Herborg  (Aquatic Invasive Species Coordinator for BC’s Ministry of Environment) is focusing on applying his academic background to applied management problems of aquatic invasive species.

- Katie Villano Spellman (plant ecologist at the Institute of Arctic Biology at the University of Alaska Fairbanks) fuses her experiences as an educator and ecologist and wrote Alaska’s first invasive plants curriculum for elementary schools and conducts teacher training throughout the state.  Her current research focus is insect-invasive plant relationships at northern invasion fronts in Alaska.

- Mollie McCahon (Lakeshore Assessment System Coordinator in Sandpoint, Idaho, for Bonner County) spoke on aquatic invasives, and brought home the importance of transboundary border inspections giving some frightening examples of how unclean boaters, unchecked at the border, are transporting Didymos (an invasive known as rock snot), and zebra and Quagga mussels.

- Tim Ross (professional agrologist who came to the East Kootenays on a three-year contract 20 years ago and operates Ross Range and Reclamation Services) gave the Wigwam Flats Report. He shared some research findings from an ongoing noxious weed control and monitoring project.

The new EKIPC Board has some challenges ahead and are considering expanding the invasive plants by adding aquatics.  The workshop portion was full of very worthy ideas for dealing with the spread of invasives.  Best wishes to the new Board!

Remember – “Weeds are a Pain in the Grass”