Category: Invasive Plants
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Compost Heaps in the Backyard Forest
What should we do with all of those invasive plants after we’ve pulled them out of the ground? My preference is to compost them on site to help maintain local soil fertility, and I’ve developed a few preferences that I thought might be worth sharing.
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Weed Whacking Bad Edges — Some Pros and Cons
Last year, I began weed whacking a few “bad edges” to see if it would help prevent the weeds from recolonizing adjacent “good areas.” I have some preliminary opinions on some pros and cons of this practice.
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Trailing Blackberry X Himalayan Blackberry Hybrids
Does the native Trailing Blackberry hybridize with the invasive Himalayan Blackberry, and if so, what does this mean for backyard forest restoration?
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The Bradley Method
Published in Australia in 2002, “Bringing Back the Bush – The Bradley Method of Bush Regeneration” encapsulates the principles and methods developed by sisters Eileen and Joan Bradley based on their years of work restoring portions of a natural area in Sydney.
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Hedera Etcetera, Part Two
In terms of controlling erosion, is it better to allow existing blankets of “Seattle’s worst weed” to remain on steep slopes?
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Hedera Etcetera, Part One
Backyard forest restoration begins with the removal of Ivy. There are two main types growing wild in Northwest forests. Is it important to be able to tell the difference?
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Ranunculus Repens (Creeping Buttercup)
Ranunculus repens has been creeping up on me for thirty years.
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September Himalayan Blackberry
Himalayan Blackberry is one of those invasive weeds whose removal is important, but not urgent. It can be put off for a while, but not forever. September, the end of the dry season, is not my ideal time to work on it, but lacking any urgent tasks in the forest, I was able to get…
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Pulling Stinging Nettle in Patches of Hedge Bindweed
As I fight my way through tall vegetation removing masses of Hedge Bindweed, I also pull out any Stinging Nettle I come across even though it may be native to the Pacific Northwest.
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It’s Not too Late for Hedge Bindweed
I know it has already started blooming, but I don’t think it’s too late to work on the Hedge Bindweed. Since I don’t know how to eradicate this invasive, I’m only trying to contain it . . .
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Nipplewort and Wall Lettuce
The ideal strategy for controlling both Nipplewort and Wall Lettuce is to remove them during that very brief period between the initial shooting-up of the flower stalks and emergence of the flower buds.
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The Bradley Method of Bushland Regeneration
I thank Luke McGuff (who works at North Beach Park) for telling me about the Bradley Method of “bushland regeneration.” The method is named after two sisters, Eileen and Joan Bradley, who developed a successful method of restoring native vegetation to degraded natural areas in Australia. Their ideas are relevant anywhere, including our backyard forests…
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Three April Weeds to Pull (Before They Flower in May)
I’m patrolling edges this month, removing invasive annuals and biennials. My top priority is Herb Robert, a.k.a. Stinky Bob, Death-Come-Quickly, and numerous other amusing common names.
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Forest Edges — Problems and Possibilities
Since the edges of the forest are often sunny, they provide the opportunity to grow a large diversity of native plants, but weeds can be a problem.
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How Much Time Will it Take to Restore Your Backyard Forest?
Like many residents in the Puget lowland, you may have infestations of invasive plants in your backyard forest that you want to tackle – more than you can remove in an afternoon, and perhaps more than you can remove in a dozen afternoons. You could just dive in and start pulling weeds, but you may…
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What’s Up?
One of the joys of backyard forest restoration is watching the native flowers come up in the Spring.
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Garlic Mustard Tops the State’s List of Backyard Baddies
Recently, the State of Washington’s Noxious Weed Control Board completed its annual update to the list of Class A, B, and C Noxious Weeds. I spent time studying the State’s list and related County lists to see if they affected my forest restoration work.
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Evergreens in the Land of Rain
The Douglas Firs, Western Redcedars, and Western Hemlocks are the royalty of the Pacific Northwest forests, and this is their season.
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The Persistence of English Holly
I once came across a large English Holly growing on its side.
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Himalayan Blackberry Versus Salmonberry
The last few days I’ve been removing Himalayan Blackberry from a patch of Salmonberry shrubs. The poor Salmonberry is taking a real beating. Why?