Chainsaw-Wielding Vigilante Takes on Asian Predator
(Photo by Ray Johnson)
Just after Tropical Storm Hanna, we reported on the growing situation with the possibly predatorial plant that is taking over certain parts of Sheepshead Bay. A few weeks later, I interviewed a vigilante property owner, known as Kam, who was single-handedly taking on the culprit.
Without any help from anyone else, Kam cut down and bagged at least 20 feet of this stuff. He said that he does this at least twice a year in a futile attempt to inhibit its growth. Kam didn’t know much about the plant, but what he did know is that it drops its leaves, flowers, stems, and fuzz profusely onto the ground, clogging up the drain. He said that he has had to call plumbers and spend his own money to help with the flooding problem caused when the drain gets clogged.
He’s probably had to incur extra expenses replacing the blades on that chainsaw he uses, because according to the Vegetation Management Guideline written for the Illinois Nature Preserves Commission, “the wood of bush honeysuckles is very tough and easily dulls powertool blades”.
Find out about our vigilante after the jump.
Kam and some of the homeowners who share the easement behind the attached houses, have discussed this problem and possible solutions – but like the fluffy plant droppings from the Asian predator plant, their discussions fall by the wayside. The homeowners feel that since the soil where the wild shrub finds its home is the backyard for a set of apartment buildings owned by a wealthy landowner, they should be responsible (and rich) enough to pay for the cleanup and removal of the plants. He said, “the building super said that he will take care of the shrubs, but no one ever does anything.”
While the plant grows as a trailer on the fence and its flowers face the shared driveway, its roots are firmly grounded in the soil behind the 2820-2868 Ocean Avenue apartment buildings just beyond the concrete barrier that separates the two backyards. He points out that since the only access to the roots of the plants is through the apartment building and it is on their property, then they should take care of the situation.
If this is truly an invasive Bush Honeysuckle, then according to Department of Forestry & Natural Resources at Purdue University, “honeysuckle sprouts vigorously, simply cutting it down will not kill it”. It can only be controlled by removal of the entire shrub and its roots. Not even Kam’s chainsaw will stop it from popping up again next Spring.
According to the Plant Conservation Alliance, Alien Plant Working Group at the National Park Service, these types of plants also negatively affect bird life:
Exotic bush honeysuckles can rapidly invade and overtake a site, forming a dense shrub layer that crowds and shades out native plant species. They alter habitats by decreasing light availability, by depleting soil moisture and nutrients, and possibly by releasing toxic chemicals that prevent other plant species from growing in the vicinity. Exotic bush honeysuckles may compete with native bush honeysuckles for pollinators, resulting in reduced seed set for native species. In addition, the fruits of exotic bush honeysuckles, while abundant and rich in carbohydrates, do not offer migrating birds the high-fat, nutrient-rich food sources needed for long flights, that are supplied by native plant species.
Just imagine our official New York State bird, the Eastern Bluebird, heading off to the South for the winter. He settles on a pretty plant in our Sheepshead Bay backyards and eats up the yummy fuel, not knowing this food won’t sustain him. He flies off, then after a short time, his wings are failing. He’s huffing and puffing, and out of energy. Where will he have to make his unexpected stop? New Jersey. Friends, please don’t do this to him. (Just Teasing, my Jersey friends.)
If you do have this plant in your backyards, for the sake of our birds, go and rip them out of the ground. I’m sure that Kam will be more than happy to put down his chainsaw to shake your hand and welcome you to his vigilante club.