As Used on the Backyard Forest Restoration Website
Categories of Plant Species
Native Plants — Species of plants that have been growing in the local ecosystem for thousands of years. The term “indigenous plants” is synonymous.
Non-native Plants — Species of plants that never grew in the local ecosystem prior to European exploration and colonization. The term “introduced plants” is generally synonymous.
Weeds — Species of non-native plants growing where they are not wanted.
Naturalized Plants — Species of non-native plants that successfully reproduce in the local ecosystem. Arguably, some of these may have limited negative effects, but many are invasive or noxious.
Invasive Plants — Species of non-native plants that grow so rampantly and reproduce so successfully in the local ecosystem that they deter and/or displace native plants.
Noxious Weeds — Species of invasive plants for which removal and/or control is recommended and sometimes required by state and/or county law.
Rescue Plants — Native plants growing in inopportune spots, that can be “rescued” by transplanting. The term “salvage plants” is generally synonymous.
General Terms / Main Concepts
Forest Restoration — An ongoing effort to conserve and improve the local forest ecosystem by systematically removing invasive plants and other weeds and nurturing the growth of native plants.
Forest Restoration Areas — Specific, defined areas in which restoration efforts are ongoing. Examples include select portions of forested public lands and individual backyard forests.
The Bradley Method — A strategy for native plant restoration developed by Joan and Eileen Bradley based on years of work restoring portions of Ashton Park in Sydney, Australia.
Good Areas and Bad Areas — In the terminology of the Bradley Method, “good areas” are dominated by native plants and “bad areas” are dominated by weeds.
Weed Break — A strip of cleared ground around good areas that helps deter the spread of invasive plants and other weeds from adjacent bad areas. The term “Bradley Line” is synonymous.
Vicious Circle of Weeding – An ongoing, repetitive cycle caused by the rapid colonization of weeds in disturbed ground. Removing weeds disturbs the ground, causing more weeds to grow. Removing these weeds disturbs the ground again, resulting in another flush of weeds. This cycle can continue indefinitely.
Overclearing — A situation in which too much ground is cleared at any one time, making it impractical to keep up with the vicious circle of weeding.
Puget Lowlands — The low-elevation areas (generally less than 500’) around the Puget Sound (a.k.a. the “Salish Sea”). This area is almost entirely within the Seattle Metropolitan Area. The term “Puget Sound Region” is generally synonymous.
Three Seasons in the Puget Lowlands
Wet Season — The time of year after most of the leaves have fallen and frequent rains have saturated the soil. In the Puget Lowlands this typically lasts from November into March and is usually interspersed with short spells of winter weather.
Growing Season — The time of year when plants are most actively growing. In the Puget Lowlands this typically lasts from March through July.
Dry Season — The time of year when rains have diminished and most of the plants have finished producing seeds. In the Puget Lowlands this typically lasts from August through October, though climate change is tending towards making the dry seasons longer, hotter, and drier.
Other Terms in Alphabetical Order
Blanket Ivy — Ivy that covers the ground so thickly that it chokes out other plants leaving mostly bare ground if it is removed.
Duff — The thin layer of decaying plant matter that covers the ground between plants. Disturbing this duff and exposing bare soil invites colonization by other plants, mostly weeds.
Forest Steward — Anyone working to restore the forest.
Groundcover — The layer of low-growing plants on the forest floor.
Input-Free Turf — An area in which the only maintenance is regular mowing. No fertilizer or herbicides are used. The turf is not irrigated but allowed to go dormant in the dry season.
Natural Regeneration — The spread of native plants naturally through seed germination, rhizomes, stolons, or layering.
Artificial Regeneration — The establishment of native plants through installations of plants propagated outside the restoration areas or by transplanting rescue plants.
Pry and Pop – A technique to remove a deeply rooted invasive plant like Himalayan Blackberry. First, sink a shovel into the ground as deeply as possible, about 6” back from the base of the plant. Next, pull back on the shovel handle to loosen the soil and apply upward pressure on the taproot. Pull back until a “pop” signals that the taproot has pulled loose. Tilt the shovel back up to an upright position and remove it from the ground with minimal disruption to the surface of the soil. Reach down, get a good grip on the main stem of the plant, and “wiggle and pull” it out of the ground. Note that the same technique using a hand trowel or weed dagger can be used on small weeds.
Soil Disturbance — Anything that disturbs the duff and top layer of soil. Soil disturbance promotes the growth of weeds.
Soil Seed Bank — The myriad of seeds of both native and non-native plants that persist for many years in the duff and top layer of soil. These seeds lie dormant until the right conditions exist to trigger their germination.
Under Canopy — The shaded areas beneath mature stands of trees.
Understory — The shrubs and groundcover plants growing under the canopy.
Wiggle and Pull – A technique to remove a weed in which the main stem is grasped close to the ground and simultaneously “wiggled and pulled” to work the plant out of the ground with its roots still intact.