INVASIVE PLANTS IN THE SOUTHEAST

Note: The management recommendations on this page are for manual, organic removal only. While I don’t advocate or use chemical control, in some instances it may be necessary to save the native habitat. The incorrect use of chemicals can have other negative consequences, particularly to wildlife.
oriental bittersweet
Oriental Bittersweet Vine - A deciduous vine that grows up to 60 feet in into tree crowns forming a thicket over the top of the tree. It's an insidious plant that spreads by birds and other animal dispersed seeds. It loves to appear in the middle of a landscape shrub undetected until it leafs out. It produces a red berry in October that birds love. Clip the vine at the ground level if you find it growing up one of your trees and dig it out with the roots if you can. This vine will choke out native plants if given a chance. It is usually found at the forest edge.

Management: Hand pull the entire plant, including roots when the soil is moist. If fruit is present, bag the entire vine for disposal. Watch for poison ivy while working with this plant. They tend to hang out together. For larger vines climbing up your trees, cut the vine at the base. Stay on top of it or the vines while regrow.
japanese honeysuckle
Japanese Honeysuckle - Another beautiful, aromatic woody vine that will take over your landscape in this region. It trails to 80 feet long, climbs over other plants, and forms an unwelcome arbor. It loves it here in North Carolina.

Management: Repeated pulling of entire vines and root systems. Hand pull seedlings and young plants when the soil is moist. Cut and remove twining vines. Goats also love honeysuckle if you have this option
japanese privit
Japanese Privit - This is an evergreen that grows to about 20 feet. It has a cousin called the Glossy Privit that grows to 35 feet. It sports conical white flowers in the spring and green to purple-black fruit in the summer and winter. This plant, like Kudzu, shades and out competes native species. It's difficult to remove once established.
kudzu
Kudzu - We all know this one. I have yet to experience it in my forest, but I keep a sharp eye out for it. I think Oriental Bittersweet is a bigger problem for most of us.

Management: Cut the vines above ground level and destroy all cut material. The cuttings can be fed to livestock. To completely get rid of it, the entire root system has to be destroyed. Goats will eat the leaves and pigs love the roots.

Usefulness: The blossums of Kudzu can be made into jelly, wine, syrup, and tea. The leaves and young shoots can be boiled like spinach. They can also be made into paper. The woody vines can be used to make baskets, wreaths, and other useful things.
kudzu
Kudzu takes over the world!
garlic mustard
Garlic Mustard - Garlic mustard is a cool-season biennial herb that ranges from 12 to 48 inches in height as an adult flowering plant. Leaves and stems emit the distinctive odor of onion or garlic when crushed (particularly in spring and early summer), and help distinguish the plant from all other woodland mustard plants. When it dies back, it's a particularly ugly plant.

Management: Pull it up before it flowers, or cut the flower stalk as close to the soil as possible just as flowering begins.
Wild Ginger repels Garlic Mustard!