This past Saturday a few of the Master Naturalists assisted Friends of the Rappahannock (FOR) to remove Japanese Honeysuckle along Mabe’s Trail. We assisted last year, and everywhere we had grubbed out the honeysuckle, spring ephemerals flourished. Things like Dutchman’s Breeches, Virginia Blue Bells, May Apple, Trout Lily and the odd Spring Beauty.
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| VMN Volunteers |
The picture below is just a small pile of the bags pulled. FOR received volunteers not just from VMN, but elsewhere as well. It may have been a chilly day, but knowing the beauty hidden under the honeysuckle made it all worth it. The honeysuckle can be found all along the trail and with so many other plants to protects, manually grubbing is the best.
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| Bagged Honeysuckle |
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| Happily Hand Grubbing |
This time of year, it is just about the only thing green and a good time to grub it out. Make sure you put it in trash bags for disposal. You cannot recycle this plant as it will spread due to seeds being viable for an extended period of time.
Some Japanese Honeysuckle facts:
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| Japanese Honeysuckle along Mabe's Tr. |
- Native to eastern Asia
- Introduced to North America in 1862, used for erosion control
- You can still purchase it in many plant centers as an ornamental. Any hybrids are equally as invasive. DO NOT PLANT.
- Considered a noxious weed in Virginia, and one of the highest ranked invasive
- Grows rapidly and smothers everything else
Great resources at Virginia Native Plant Society Website.
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