Burns Environmental » Invasive plants http://burnsenvironmental.com/information For Environment, For Infrastructure Tue, 23 Feb 2010 03:35:59 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 Our DIRECT Approach to Creating a Backyard Habitat http://burnsenvironmental.com/information/2008/09/our-direct-approach-to-creating-a-backyard-habitat/ http://burnsenvironmental.com/information/2008/09/our-direct-approach-to-creating-a-backyard-habitat/#comments Wed, 03 Sep 2008 00:14:23 +0000 james http://burnsenvironmental.com/information/?p=96 There are many ways you can approach your backyard habitat project, some of them can be a little confusing. We have developed the following approach. We even created an acronym to make it easy to remember. D-I-R-E-C-T:

Decide>Identify>Remove>Encourage>Construct>Transplant

  • Decide what you want to accomplish.

Is this to be a bird sanctuary, a small animal habitat, or do you simply want to attract butterflies? To some extent, by following these guidelines, you will have some of all.

  • Identify what you already have.

What is already good about your landscape, and what is bad? What invasive non native plants are in the way? What will you need to do to get rid of them, and what will you use to replace them? This may cause you to want to modify what you initially wanted, as the opportunities expand. Keep in mind that you are dealing with living things, and that your project may evolve just as nature evolves.

  • Remove the plants that are non native, or at least the ones that tend to be invasive.

It has been our experience, that wildlife can survive in a mixed habitat of natives and non native plant life, but that any non natives tend to throw things out of balance. Some birds will eat their fill of of non native berries or seed, and not be physically benefited. They will tend to seek out better nourishment, even if it is somewhere else. Remember, that you have limited space, so everything that grows, should benefit wildlife, or the wildlife will go.

  • Encourage the plants that are native and beneficial.

There are several ways that this can be done, including a little pruning, and some of the other cultural practices that are normally used with landscape plants.

  • Construct any additional structures, and water features.

You may need to provide extra cover, water, and food for the wildlife. It could be something as simple as a bird or bat house,a rock den area,a feeder for supplemental feedings, or a water feature complete with falls for the wildlife to drink from and wash in.

  • Transplant any native plants needed to round out the habitat.

If you have done the things on the rest of the list, you may find that you need some other plants to help round out the native wildlife diet. Planting an extra seed bearing tree, or a few shrubs that might be the favorite food of one of your winged or furry friends, might be just the thing to encourage them to spend time at your place. Just make sure it is native.

Residential Habitat Services In East Texas

]]> http://burnsenvironmental.com/information/2008/09/our-direct-approach-to-creating-a-backyard-habitat/feed/ 1 Invasive Exotic Plant “Sleeper Cells” http://burnsenvironmental.com/information/2008/09/invasive-exotic-plant-sleeper-cells/ http://burnsenvironmental.com/information/2008/09/invasive-exotic-plant-sleeper-cells/#comments Tue, 02 Sep 2008 00:40:44 +0000 james http://burnsenvironmental.com/information/?p=82

Invasive Exotic Plant “Sleeper Cells”.

What was once, a group of “non invasive” exotic landscape plants, have now become destroyers. It happened while we were sleeping. They seemed innocent enough, but something, or some things, have changed, and now we have some serious thinking to do, about an increasingly serious problem.

A growing invasive species problem.

My years of continuous experience in the forests of East Texas and other areas, in a variety of capacities, have shown me that the problem is increasing geometrically. Plant populations of such seemingly innocuous species as Honeysuckle, (a Japanese import) Japanese Silk Tree, (mistakenly called mimosa by many) China Berry, Wisteria, and Oriental Privet are now eating forests at an incredible rate of speed!

Landscape plants join the invasion.

I mention these in particular, because they were once used as landscape plants, and even after release into the native flora, remained relatively low profile for the majority of my life, until now! Their seeming dormancy for years underscores one of the problems with non native flora. They may be innocuous, until conditions change slightly. Weather patterns, symbiotic relationships between newly introduced flora, and other factors may turn them from small sleeper cells, to major armies!

Bigger problems, mega invaders.

Those are the little problems, which amount to large problems when taken together. The serious problems are such plants as Kudzu, from China, Giant Salvinia , and Water Hyacinth from South America, Hydrilla, and Eurasian Milfoil from Europe, Asia, and Africa.

These plants have had relatively short times in the Southern U.S., but have caused colossal difficulty, costing billions in damage and control efforts during their short stay. Kudzu, like almost all such invaders, was relatively tame in the Northern portions of the country, where it was imported as a forage plant. When it was introduced into the South for forage, and erosion control, things changed. The warmer temperatures, fertile soils, high humidity, and longer growing seasons sent it into a growing frenzy, eating millions of acres as it grew. The same is true of the other plants mentioned above.


There are more in the wings!

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