Ecology Aggressive and troublesome invasives, often forming dense thickets, particularly in bottom-land forests and along fencerows, thus gaining access to forests, fields, and right-of-ways. Shade tolerant. Colonize by root sprouts and spread widely by abundant bird- and other animal-dispersed seeds.

History and use. Introduced from China and Europe in the early to mid-1800s. Traditional southern ornamentals. Deer browse Chinese privet sprouts.

Stem. Opposite or whorled, long slender branching that increases upward with twigs projecting outward at near right angles. Brownish gray turning gray green and short hairy (rusty or grayish) with light dots (lenticels). Leaf scars semicircular with one bundle scar. Bark brownish gray to gray and slightly rough (not fissured).

Leaves. Opposite in two rows at near right angle to stem, ovate to elliptic with rounded tip (often minutely indented), 0.8 to 1.6 inches long and 0.4 to 1.2 inches wide. Margins entire. Lustrous green above and pale green with hairy midvein beneath (European privet not hairy beneath). Petioles 0.04 to 0.2 inch long, rusty hairy. Leaves usually persistent during winter.

Flowers. April to June. Abundant, terminal and upper axillary clusters on short branches forming panicles of white flowers. Corolla four-lobed, tube 0.06 to 0.1 inch long and equal or shorter than the lobes, with stamens extending from the corolla on Chinese privet and within the corolla on European privet. Fragrant.

Fruit and seeds. July to March. Dense ovoid drupes hanging or projecting outward, 0.2 to 0.3 inch long and 0.16 inch wide, containing one to four seeds. Pale green in summer ripening to dark purple and appearing almost black in late fall to winter.

Resemble Japanese privet, L. japonicum Thunb., which has larger leaves and is further described in this book. Also resemble upland swampprivet, Forestiera ligustrina (Michx.) Poir., which occurs mainly on rocky sites and has short twigs and sparse flowers and fruit.

Recommended control procedures:

• Thoroughly wet all leaves with one of the following herbicides in water with a surfactant (August to December): a glyphosate herbicide as a 3-percent solution (12 ounces per 3-gallon mix) or Arsenal AC* as a 1-percent solution (4 ounces per 3-gallon mix).
• For stems too tall for foliar sprays, apply Garlon 4 as a 20-percent solution in commercially available basal oil, diesel fuel, or kerosene (2.5 quarts per 3-gallon mix) with a penetrant (check with herbicide distributor) to young bark as a basal spray. Or, cut large stems and immediately treat the stumps with Arsenal AC* or Velpar L* as a 10-percent solution in water (1 quart per 3-gallon mix) with a surfactant. When safety to surrounding vegetation is desired, immediately treat stumps and cut stems with Garlon 3A or a glyphosate herbicide as a 20-percent solution in water (2.5 quarts per 3-gallon mix) with a surfactant.

*Nontarget plants may be killed or injured by root uptake

From: Miller, James H. 2003. Nonnative invasive plants of southern forests: a field guide for identification and control. Gen. Tech. Rep. SRS–62. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station. 93 p.

Ecology. Occurs under forest canopies and near forest edges. Shade tolerant. Seedlings frequent in vicinity of old plantings. Varying leaf colors in the various cultivars, some of which do not produce viable seeds. Colonizes by root sprouts and spreads by animal-dispersed seeds.

History and use. Introduced from eastern Asia and India in the early 1800s. Widely planted as an ornamental, now escaped and spreading from around old homes.

Stem. Large compound leaves resembling leafy branches, woody leafstalk bases persisting as stubby branches, and overlapping sheaths encasing the main stem. The overlapping sheaths on the main stem give the appearance of bamboo, thus, the common name. Stem fleshy and greenish gray near terminal, becoming woody barked and tan to brown with fissures towards the base. Wood bright yellow.

Leaves. Alternately whorled, bipinnately compound on 1.5 to 3 feet slender leafstalks, often reddish tinged with joints distinctly segmented. Leafstalk bases clasping stems with a V-notch on the opposite side of attachment. Nine to eighty-one nearly sessile leaflets, lanceolate to diamond-shaped, 0.5 to 4 inches long and 0.4 to 1.2 inches wide. Glossy light green to dark green sometimes red tinged or burgundy

Flowers. May to July. Terminal (or axillary) panicles of several hundred flowers, 4 to 10 inches long. Pink in bud, opening to three (two to four) lanceolate deciduous petals, white to cream, with yellow anthers 0.2 to 0.3 inch long. Fragrant.

Fruit and seeds. September to April. Dense terminal and axillary clusters of fleshy, spherical berries 0.2 to 0.3 inch. Light green ripening to bright red. Two hemispherical seeds.

Recommended control procedures:

• Thoroughly wet all leaves with glyphosate herbicide as a 1-percent solution in water (4 ounces per 3-gallon mix) with a surfactant (August to October). Or, apply Garlon 4 as a 20-percent solution in commercially available basal oil, diesel fuel, or kerosene (2.5 quarts per 3-gallon mix) with a penetrant (check with herbicide distributor) to young bark as a basal spray.
• For stems too tall for foliar sprays, cut large stems and immediately treat the stumps with one of the following herbicides in water with a surfactant: Arsenal AC* as a 10-percent solution (1 quart per 3-gallon mix) or a glyphosate herbicide as a 20-percent solution (2.5 quarts per 3-gallon mix).
• Collect and destroy fruit

* Nontarget plants may be killed or injured by root uptake.

From: Miller, James H. 2003. Nonnative invasive plants of southern forests: a field guide for identification and control. Gen. Tech. Rep. SRS–62. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station. 93 p.

Ecology. Form dense infestations where previously planted. Occur on wet to dry sites. Colonize by vines twining and covering shrubs and trees and by runners rooting at nodes when vines covered by leaf litter. Seeds water-dispersed along riparian areas. Large seed size a deterrent to animal dispersal.

History and use. Introduced from Asia in the early 1800s. Traditional southern porch vines.

Stem. Woody vines to 10 inches in diameter with infrequent alternate branching.Twigs densely short hairy. Older bark of Chinese wisteria tight and dark gray with light dots (lenticels) compared to white bark of Japanese wisteria.

Leaves. Alternate, odd pinnately compound 4 to 16 inches long, with 7 to 13 leaflets (Chinese) or 13 to 19 leaflets (Japanese), and stalks with swollen bases. Leaflets oval to elliptic with tapering pointed tips 1.6 to 3 inches long and 1 to 1.4 inches wide. Hairless to short hairy at maturity but densely silky hairy when young. Margins entire and wavy. Sessile or short petioled.

Flowers. March to May. Dangling and showy, stalked clusters (racemes) appearing when leaves emerge, 4 to 20 inches long and 3 to 3.5 inches wide. All blooming at about the same time (Chinese) or gradually from base (Japanese). Pealike flowers, corolla lavender to violet (to pink to white). Fragrant.

Fruit and seeds. July to November. Flattened legume pod, irregularly oblong to oblanceolate, 2.5 to 6 inches long and 0.8 to 1.2 inches wide. Velvety hairy, greenish brown to golden, splitting on two sides to release one to eight flat round brown seeds, each 0.5 to 1 inch in diameter.

Resemble native or naturalized American wisteria, W. frutescens (L.) Poir., which does not form extensive infestations, occurs in wet forests, flowers in June to August after leaves developed, and has 6-inch flower clusters, 9 to 15 leaflets, hairless pods, and slender old vines. Also may resemble trumpet creeper, Campsis radicans (L.) Seem. ex Bureau, which has leaflets with coarsely toothed margins.

Recommended control procedures:
Thoroughly wet all leaves (until runoff) with one of the following herbicides in water with a surfactant:

• July to October for successive years when regrowth appears—Tordon 101* ‡ as a 3-percent solution (12 ounces per 3-gallon mix), Tordon K* ‡ as a 2-percent solution (8 ounces per 3-gallon mix), or Garlon 4 as a 4-percent solution (15 ounces per 3-gallon mix)
• July to September for successive years when regrowth appears—Transline* † as a 0.5-percent solution in water (2 ounces per 3-gallon mix) when safety to surrounding vegetation is desired
• September to October with repeated applications—a glyphosate herbicide as a 2-percent solution (8 ounces per 3-gallon mix)

From: Miller, James H. 2003. Nonnative invasive plants of southern forests: a field guide for identification and control. Gen. Tech. Rep. SRS–62. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station. 93 p.

* Nontarget plants may be killed or injured by root uptake.
† Transline controls a narrow spectrum of plant species.
‡ When using Tordon herbicides, rainfall must occur within 6 days after application for needed soil activation. Tordon herbicides are Restricted Use Pesticides.

Stem. Woody slender vines when a ground cover and growing to 10 inches (25 cm) in diameter when climbing infested trees and rocks by many fine to stout aerial rootlets. Vines pale green (sometimes reddish tinged), rooting at nodes, becoming covered with gray-brown shiny bark, segmented by encircling and raised leaf scars, and roughened by tiny ridges. Bark light gray to brown, bumpy and gnarly, with aerial rootlets developing along the side where clinging to vertical structures. Aerial rootlets exuding a gluelike substance. Older vines sometimes grown together where crossed.

Leaves. Alternate, with shapes varying according to age—typical juvenile plants having three to five pointed lobes and mature plants broadly lanceolate and unlobed, 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 cm) long and 2.5 to 5 inches (6 to 12 cm) wide. Thick and waxy, smooth and hairless, dark green with whitish veins radiating from the petiole and pale green beneath. Petioles to 6 inches (15 cm) long, pale green and often reddish tinged.

Flowers. June to October. Terminal hairy-stemmed umbel clusters of small greenish-yellow flowers on mature plants. Five thick and pointed petals, 0.1 inch (3 mm) long. Each petal radiating from a five-sided domed green floral disk, 0.1 inch (3 mm) wide, tipped by a short pistil.

Fruit and seeds. October to May. Clusters of spherical drupes, 0.2 to 0.3 inch (7 to 8 mm). Pale green in late summer ripening to dark blue to purplish in late winter to spring.

Ecology. Thrives in moist open forests, but adaptable to a range of moisture and soil conditions, including rocky cliffs. Shade tolerance allowing early growth under dense stands, but becoming adapted to higher light levels with maturity. Avoids wet areas. Amasses on infested trees, decreasing vigor, and increasing chance of windthrow. Serves as a reservoir for bacterialleaf scorch that infects oaks (Quercus spp.), elms (Ulmus spp.), and maples (Acer spp.). Spreads by bird-dispersed seeds and colonizes by trailing and climbing vines that root at nodes. Drupes mildly toxic, discouraging over consumption by birds.

Resembles grape, Vitis spp., which has a leaf that is similarly shaped but not thick and often hairy.

History and use. Introduced from Europe in colonial times. Traditional ornamental and still widely planted as an ornamental. Source of varnish resin, dye, and tanning substances.

Recommended control procedures:

• Thoroughly wet all leaves (until runoff) with one of the following herbicides in water with a surfactant (July to October for successive years): Garlon 3A or Garlon 4 as a 3- to 5-percent solution (12 to 20 ounces per 3-gallon mix) or a glyphosate herbicide as a 2-percent solution (8 ounces per 3-gallon mix). Use a string trimmer to reduce growth layers and injure leaves for improved herbicide uptake. Cut large vines and apply these herbicides to cut surfaces.
• Or, apply Garlon 4 as a 20-percent solution in commercially available basal oil, diesel fuel, or kerosene (2.5 quarts per 3-gallon mix) with a penetrant (check with herbicide distributor) to large vines being careful to avoid the bark of the host tree.

Stem. Twigs stout, glossy greenish-brown with light dots (lenticels). No terminal bud. Numerous broad, V-shaped, raised leaf scars with three bundle scars below a domed fuzzy bud. Bark dark chocolate brown and becoming increasingly fissured with age. Wood soft and white.

Leaves. Alternately whorled, bipinnately compound, 1 to 2 feet (30 to 60 cm) long and 9 to 16 inches (23 to 40 cm) wide. Leafstalk lime green with base slightly clasping stem. Each leaflet lanceolate with tapering tips, 1 to 3 inches (2.5 to 8 cm) long and 0.5 to 1.2 inches (1 to 3 cm) wide. Margins varying from entire to coarsely crenate to serrate and wavy. Glossy dark green with light-green midvein above and pale green with lighter-green midvein beneath, becoming golden yellow in fall.

Flowers. March to May. Showy panicles from lower axils of new stems. Five pinkish-lavender to whitish petals, stamens united in dark-purple tube. Five green sepals. Fragrant.

Fruit and seeds. July to January. Berrylike spherical drupe 0.5 to 0.7 inch (1.2 to 1.8 cm) wide persisting through winter and containing a stone with one to six seeds. Light green turning yellowish green then yellowish tan. Poisonous to humans and livestock.

Ecology. Common on roadsides, at forest margins, and around old homesites but rare at high elevations. Semishade tolerant. Forms colonies from root sprouts or sprouts from root collars, and spreads by bird-dispersed abundant seeds.

Resembles common elderberry, Sambucus canadensis L., a spreading crowned shrub with once pinnately compound leaves, margins finely serrate, and green to dark-purple berries in flat-topped clusters.

History and use. Introduced in the mid-1800s from Asia. Widely planted as a traditional ornamental around homesites. Extracts potentially useful for natural pesticides.

Recommended control procedures:

Trees. Make stem injections using Arsenal AC* , Pathway*, Pathfinder II, or Garlon 3A in dilutions and cut spacings specified on the herbicide label (anytime except March and April). For felled trees, apply these herbicides to stem and stump tops immediately after cutting.

Saplings. Apply Garlon 4 as a 20-percent solution in commercially available basal oil, diesel fuel, or kerosene (2.5 quarts per 3-gallon mix) with a penetrant (check with herbicide distributor) to young bark as a basal spray.

Sprouts and seedlings. Thoroughly wet all leaves with one of the following herbicides in water with a surfactant (July to October): Garlon 3A or Garlon 4 as a 2-percent solution (8 ounces per 3-gallon mix); Arsenal AC* as a 1-percent solution (4 ounces per 3-gallon mix).

* Nontarget plants may be killed or injured by root uptake.

From: Miller, James H. 2003. Nonnative invasive plants of southern forests: a field guide for identification and control. Gen. Tech. Rep. SRS-62. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station. 93 p.

Ecology. Common around old homes, on roadsides, riparian areas, and forest margins in infested areas. Infrequently planted in plantations. Spreads by wind- and water- dispersed seeds. Invades after fire, harvesting, and other disturbances. Forms colonies from root sprouts.

History and use. Introduced in the early 1800s from East Asia . Has been widely planted as an ornamental and grown in scattered plantations for speculative high-value wood exports to Japan .

****

From: Miller, James H. 2003. Nonnative invasive plants of southern forests: a field guide for identification and control. Gen. Tech. Rep. SRS–62. Asheville , NC : U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station. 93 p.

Stem. Twigs and branches stout, glossy gray brown and speckled with numerous white dots (lenticels). No terminal bud. Lateral leaf scars raised, circular, and becoming larger, dark, and sunken. Bark light-to-dark gray, roughened, and becoming slightly fissured. Stem pith chambered or hollow and wood white.

Leaves. Opposite, heart-shaped and fuzzy hairy on both surfaces, 6 to 12 inches long and 5 to 9 inches wide. Leaves larger on resprouts, 16 to 20 inches across, with extra tips often extending at vein tips. Petioles rough hairy, 2 to 8 inches long.

Flowers. April to May. Covered with showy erect panicles of pale-violet flowers before leaves in early spring, tubular with five unequal lobes. Fragrant. Flower buds fuzzy, linear, and becoming ovoid in summer and persistent on erect stalks over winter.

Fruit and seeds. June to April. Terminal clusters of pecan-shaped capsules 1 to 2 inches long and 0.6 to 1 inch wide. Pale green in summer turning to tan in winter and eventually black and persistent into spring. Capsules splitting in half during late winter to release tiny winged seeds.

Resembles southern catalpa, Catalpa bignonioides Walt., and northern catalpa, C. speciosa (Warder) Warder ex Engelm., which have leaves with sparsely hairy upper surfaces and rough hairy lower surfaces and long slender, persistent beans.

Recommended control procedures:

Large trees. Make stem injections using Arsenal AC* or a glyphosate herbicide in dilutions and cut spacings specified on the herbicide label (anytime except March and April). For felled trees, apply these herbicides to stem and stump tops immediately after cutting.

Saplings. Apply Garlon 4 as a 20-percent solution in commercially available basal oil, diesel fuel, or kerosene (2.5 quarts per 3-gallon mix) with a penetrant (check with herbicide distributor) to young bark as a basal spray.

Resprouts and seedlings. Thoroughly wet all leaves with one of the following herbicides in water with a surfactant (July to October): Arsenal AC* as a 1-percent solution (4 ounces per 3-galllon mix); a glyphosate herbicide, Garlon 3A, or Garlon 4 as a 2-percent solution (8 ounces per 3-gallon mix).

* Nontarget plants may be killed or injured by root uptake.

Golden bamboo and other nonnative bamboos are perennial infestation-forming grasslike plants that grow 16 to 40 feet tall. They have joined cane stems and bushy tops of lanceolate leaves in fan clusters on grasslike stems, often golden green. Plants arise from branched rhizomes.

Stem. Solid jointed canes 1 to 6 inches in diameter. Hollow between joints. Golden to green to black. Branches wiry and grasslike from joints. Lower shoots and branches with loose papery sheaths that cover the ground when shed.

Leaves. Alternate, grasslike, often in fan clusters. Blades long and lanceolate, 3 to 10 inches long and 0.5 to 1.5 inches wide. Veins parallel. Often golden, sometimes green or variegated. Hairless except for large hairs at base of petiole, which shed with age. Sheaths encasing stem.

Flowers. Flowers very rarely.

Seeds. Seeds very rarely.

Ecology. Common around old homesites and now escaped. Colonize by rhizomes with infestations rapidly expanding after disturbance. General dieback periodically after flowering and seeding (about every 7 to 12 years) resulting in standing dead canes and new shoots.

Resemble switchcane, Arundinaria gigantea (Walt). Muhl., the only native bamboo-like cane in the South, distinguished by its lower height—usually only 6 to 8 feet—and its persistent sheaths. Also resemble giant reed, Arundo donax L.

History and use. All native to Asia. Widely planted as ornamentals and for fishing poles.

Recommended control procedures:

• Thoroughly wet all leaves with one of the following herbicides in water with a surfactant (September or October with multiple applications to regrowth): Arsenal AC* as a 1-percent solution (4 ounces per 3-gallon mix), a glyphosate herbicide as a 2-percent solution (8 ounces per 3-gallon mix), or combination of the two herbicides.

• Cut just above ground level and treat stems immediately with a double-strength batch of the same herbicides or herbicide mixture.

* Nontarget plants may be killed or injured by root uptake.

From: Miller, James H. 2003. Nonnative invasive plants of southern forests: a field guide for identification and control. Gen. Tech. Rep. SRS-62. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station. 93 p.

History and use. Introduced from northeast Asia in the 1860s. Widely planted as an ornamental and for highway beautification.

Ecology. Shade tolerant. Colonizes by root suckers and spreads by animal-dispersed seeds.

Plant. Deciduous, wing-stemmed, bushy shrub to 12 feet in height, multiple stemmed and much branched. Canopy broad and leafy. Small and obovate leaves green and turning bright scarlet to purplish red in fall. Paired purple fruit in fall.

Stem. Four corky wings or ridges appearing along young lime-green squarish twigs and becoming wider with age. Numerous opposite branches, with bases encircled by corky rings. Larger branches and bark becoming light gray.

Leaves. Opposite, obovate, and thin, only 1 to 2 inches long and 0.4 to 0.8 inch wide. Tips tapering to an acute point. Margins finely crenate. Both surfaces smooth and hairless. Dark green with whitish midvein above and light green beneath turning bright crimson to purplish red in fall.

Flowers. April to May. Axillary pairs of small flowers at the ends of a Y-shaped 1-inch stem. Flowers inconspicuous, 0.2 to 0.3 inch across, greenish-yellow, five-lobed, pistil elongating as fruit forms.

Fruit and seeds. August to January. Dangling paired (or single) reddish capsules in leaf axils turning purple and splitting in fall to reveal an orange fleshy-covered seed.

Resembles the larger leaved species of blueberry, Vaccinium spp., but their leaves are alternate. Possibly resembles rusty blackhaw, Viburnum rufidulum Raf., which also has opposite leaves, but distinguished by their larger size and leathery texture. Dormant twigs may resemble winged elm, Ulmus alata Michx., and sweetgum, Liquidambar styraciflua L., which are usually two-winged instead of four-winged.

Recommended control procedures:

• Thoroughly wet all leaves with Arsenal AC* or Vanquish* as a 1-percent solution in water (4 ounces per 3-gallon mix) with a surfactant (April to October).
• For stems too tall for foliar sprays, apply Garlon 4 as a 20-percent solution in commercially available basal oil, diesel fuel, or kerosene (2.5 quarts per 3-gallon mix) with a penetrant (check with herbicide distributor) to young bark as a basal spray (January to February or May to October). Or, cut large stems and immediately treat the stumps with one of the following herbicides in water with a surfactant: Arsenal AC* as a 10-percent solution (1 quart per 3-gallon mix) or a glyphosate herbicide as a 20-percent solution (2.5 quarts per 3-gallon mix).

* Nontarget plants may be killed or injured by root uptake

****
From: Miller, James H. 2003. Nonnative invasive plants of southern forests: a field guide for identification and control. Gen. Tech. Rep. SRS-62. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station. 93 p.

Synonyms: ailanthus, Chinese sumac, stinking sumac, paradise-tree, copal-tree

Plant. Deciduous tree to 80 feet in height and 6 feet in diameter, with long pinnately compound leaves and circular glands under lobes on leaflet bases. Strong odor from flowers and other parts, sometimes likened to peanuts or cashews.

Stem. Twigs stout, chestnut brown to reddish tan, and smooth-to-velvety with light dots (lenticels) and heart-shaped leaf scars. Buds finely hairy, dome-shaped, and partially hidden by the leaf base. Branches light gray to dark gray, smooth and glossy, with raised dots becoming fissures with age. Bark light gray and rough with areas of light-tan fissures.

Leaves. Alternate, odd- or even-pinnately compound, 10 to 41 leaflets on 1- to 3-foot light-green to reddish-green stalks with swollen bases. Leaflets lanceolate and asymmetric and not always directly opposite, each 2 to 7 inches long and 1 to 2 inches wide. Long tapering tips and lobed bases with one or more glands beneath each lobe (round dots). Margins entire. Dark green with light-green veins above and whitish green beneath. Petioles 0.2 to 0.5 inch long.

Flowers. April to June. Large terminal clusters to 20 inches long of small, yellowish-green flowers, with five petals and five sepals. Male and female flower on separate trees. Fruit and seeds. July to February. Persistent clusters of wing-shaped fruit with twisted tips on female trees, 1 inch long. Single seed. Green turning to tan then brown.

Ecology. Rapid growing, forming thickets and dense stands. Both shade and flood intolerant and allelopathic. Colonizes by root sprouts and spreads by prolific wind- and water-dispersed seeds. Viable seed can be produced by 2- and 3-year-old plants.

Resembles hickories, Carya spp., and sumacs, Rhus spp., but neither has glands at leaflet bases. Hickories distinguished by a braided bark, sumacs by shrub shape.

Recommended control procedures:

Large trees. Make stem injections and then apply Garlon 3A, Pathway*, Pathfinder II, or Arsenal AC* in dilutions and cut spacings specified on the herbicide label (midsummer best, late winter somewhat less effective). For felled trees, apply these herbicides to stem and stump tops immediately after cutting.

Saplings. Apply Garlon 4 as a 20-percent solution in commercially available basal oil, diesel fuel, or kerosene (2.5 quarts per 3-gallon mix) with a penetrant (check with herbicide distributor) to young bark as a basal spray.

Seedlings and saplings. Thoroughly wet all leaves with one of the following herbicides in water with a surfactant (July to October): Arsenal AC* as a 1-percent solution (4 ounces per 3-gallon mix), Krenite S as a 30-percent solution (3 quarts per 3-gallon mix), or Garlon 4 as a 2-percent solution (8 ounces per 3-gallon mix).

* Nontarget plants may be killed or injured by root uptake.

From: Miller, James H. 2003. Nonnative invasive plants of southern forests: a field guide for identification and control. Gen. Tech. Rep. SRS-62. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station. 93 p.

Read more about kudzu and other invasive plants in the Spring 2005 issue of Compass magazine at http://www.srs.fs.usda.gov/compass/spring2005/

Synonym: silky acacia

Ecology. Occurs on dry-to-wet sites and spreads along stream banks, preferring open conditions but also persisting in shade. Seldom found above 3,000 feet. Forms colonies from root sprouts and spreads by abundant animal- and water-dispersed seeds. Seeds remain viable for many years. Nitrogen fixer.

Resembles honeylocust, Gleditsia triacanthos L., which has longer leaflets— 1 inch long. Seedlings resemble partridge pea, Chamaecrista fasciculata (Michx.) Greene, an annual plant with once pinnately compound leaves.

Plant. Deciduous leguminous tree 10 to 50 feet in height with single or multiple boles, smooth light-brown bark, feathery leaves, and showy pink blossoms that continually yield dangling flat pods during summer. Pods persistent during winter.

Stem. Twigs slender to stout, lime green turning shiny grayish brown with light dots (lenticels). No terminal bud. Bark glossy, thin, light brown turning gray with raised corky dots and dashes.

Leaves. Alternate, bipinnately compound 6 to 20 inches long with 8 to 24 pairs of branches and 20 to 60 leaflets per branch, feathery and fernlike. Leaflets asymmetric, 0.4 to 0.6 inch long, dark green, with midvein nearer and running parallel to one margin. Margins entire.

Flowers. May to July (and sporadically to November). Terminal clusters at the base of the current year’s twigs, each with 15 to 25 sessile flowers 1.4 to 2 inches long. Pom-pom like with numerous filaments, bright-pink feathery tufts with white bases. Fragrant.

Fruits and seeds. June to February. Legume pods in clusters, flat with bulging seeds, each pod 3 to 7 inches long, splitting in winter along the edges to release 5 to 10 oval seeds. Initially light green turning dark brown in fall and whitish tan in winter.

Recommended control procedures:

Large trees. Make stem injections using Arsenal AC* or Garlon 3A in dilutions as specified on the herbicide label (anytime except March and April). For felled trees, apply these herbicides to stem and stump tops immediately after cutting.

Saplings. Apply Garlon 4 as a 20-percent solution in commercially available basal oil, diesel fuel, or kerosene (2.5 quarts per 3-gallon mix) with a penetrant (check with herbicide distributor) to young bark as a basal spray.

Resprouts and seedlings. Thoroughly wet all leaves with one of the following herbicides in water with a surfactant: July to October—Garlon 3A, Garlon 4, or glyphosate herbicide as a 2-percent solution (8 ounces per 3-gallon mix) July to September—Transline† as a 0.2- to 0.4-percent solution (1 to 2 ounces per 3-gallon mix).

* Nontarget plants may be killed or injured by root uptake.
† Transline controls a narrow spectrum of plant species.

From: Miller, James H. 2003. Nonnative invasive plants of southern forests: a field guide for identification and control. Gen. Tech. Rep. SRS-62. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station. 93 p.