by Connie Oswald invStofko
People are calling mile-a-minute vine “the kudzu of the north.” That’s scary because kudzu is known as “the vine that ate the south.”
Mile-a-minute vine (Persicaria perfoliata) can grow as much as six inches per day and more than 20 feet per year. It has small, recurved barbs along its stem that allow it to grow over vegetation such as tree seedlings and smother them. It can have a negative effect on tree farms, forestry operations and the reforestation of natural areas.
Mile-a-minute vine has been found in Cattaraugus County, and most recently near the border of Orleans and Genesee counties near Oakfield.
While these are the only infestations currently known in Western New York, there are likely other infestations in nearby areas, according to WNY PRISM (Western New York Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management).
That’s where you come in.
WNY PRISM needs your help in spotting mile-a-minute vine, which is on the list of priority species— invasive species that pose the most threat to our region. It’s also on the list of early detection species— species that have been found in three or fewer locations in our region.
Finding early detection priority species before they become established gives managers the greatest chance of success in eradicating the infestation, but it’s impossible for the WNY PRISM staff to monitor the entire region. You can help.
If you spot these plants, let WNY PRISM know. See instructions for reporting on these early detection species here.
See details on how to recognize mile-a-minute vine here.
Another plant that is both a priority species (because it poses a threat to our region) and an early detection species (because it has been found in just a few places) is Japanese stiltgrass. It has been found in Erie and Cattaraugus counties. More infestations have been found by WNY PRISM’s invasive species management crew this summer.
Japanese stiltgrass (Microstegium vimineum) quickly spreads to form extensive mats that displace native plants and plant communities. It can also change soil nutrient cycling processes, inhibit tree survival and growth, and reduce light availability. After it dies back in late fall, it forms a thick layer of smothering thatch that is slow to decompose and may create a fire hazard. Japanese stiltgrass produces a lot of seed, which is easily spread by mowers, deer, people and flood waters.
See details on recognizing Japanese stiltgrass here.
Here is the entire list of WNY early detection priority species:
- Anoplophora glabripennis —— Asian longhorned beetle
- Brachypodium sylvaticum —— Slender false brome
- Channa argus —— Northern snakehead
- Eichhornia crassipes —— Water hyacinth
- Hypophthalmichthys molitrix —— Silver carp
- Hypophthalmichthys nobilis —— Bighead carp
- Pistia stratiotes —— Water lettuce
- Microstegium vimineum —— Japanese stiltgrass
- Persicaria perfoliata —— Mile-a-minute vine
Hi Sharon. Yes, mile-a-minute is widespread in Pennsylvania. You can see how to deal with it on this page from Penn State Extension.
MY=WOODED FARM LAND IS COVERED WITH IT SECOND YEAR LOCATED IN UPPER BLACK EDDY, PENNSYLVANIA ALONG THE DELAWARE RIVER.
I have found that mile-a-minute pulls up very easily (but must wear gloves). It may come back a bit in the next season, but if you pull it all up again when you see it, it will be gone in about 3 years time.
David, it’s good to know that there are many tools in the toolkit for keeping mile-a-minute vine under control! WNY PRISM is doing great work.
Hello Connie-
I just had a friend message me several pictures from Marshall, Virginia – that shows this vine (and wondering what is was) smothering fence posts and local vegetation areas. The friend was asking if her farm goats could use it as a food source. I did research a paper from http://www.hudsonriver.org that in the Winchester Suffolk, Orange and surrounding counties goats and sheep are being used to gain “some control” over this invasive species.
Thank you for your wonderful coverage of Western New York Gardening topics, including invasives.
wnyprism.org is a site all of us WNY gardeners should take a look at.
Thank you!
David Clark, CNLP
Bruce, I don’t have any special tips for you. Contact the Master Gardeners at the Cornell Cooperative Extension in your county and see if they can help.
How do you get rid of Morning glory… I have it growing all over my yard and have never planted it. I keel cutting it pulling it our but it keeps coming back.
Yes, that would be Japanese Knotweed. I’ve also seen knotweed in the Alabama Swamps/Tonawanda Wildlife area.
That sounds like Knotweed to me! It is one of the VERY few things I would ever use roundup on. (and well worth it!)
My neighbor likes a “little” of it in her yard, and it has spread all over a couple folks’s yard!
Doesn’t matter that she can contain it where she is; she is sharing it with the neighborhood.
Kathy, just to be clear, you are talking about Japanese knotweed, right?
According to the experts I talked to last year the best way to remove it is to cut down the stalks, bag them in heavy duty trash bags and put in your REGULAR trash – not yard waste. In the spring spray the new shoots with Round-Up or something similar. And repeat. Never dig it up, any little piece left behind will re-root. It grows by rhizomes. I’m still battling it in my elderly neighbor’s yard.
A word of warning, be careful of any bulk soil you buy. I bought six yards of organic soil and compost from CJ Krantz and found a 6″ piece of root with several living nodes – no telling what I missed, am keeping a close eye on my garden.
One gardener I interviewed actually keeps some Japanese knotweed in his garden. He keeps it in check by hacking at it constantly. It was already there when they moved in. He had to use a backhoe to get the rest of it out. His advice is to enjoy it in his garden, but never plant in yours. Here’s more information on Japanese knotweed. If you need more help, contact the Cornell Cooperative Extension in your county. Good luck!
Japanese knotweed…my nemesis! I have a lot of it in my backyard and welcome any & all guidance on eradication readers care to offer.
Thank you, fellow gardeners.
Japanese knotweed is a scourge! It is taken over many areas, including outside of the Buffalo Museum of science, and Reinstein woods. This invasive plant will cut right through people’s foundations of their homes. I hate this one more than the ghetto palms.
Judy this one seems to look different with thorns on stems, not like the choker your talking about. I know that one all to well. I guess you have to use weed killer on it. I brought some home from my mom’s house and boy has it taken over.
Does this vine flower like morning glory? If so i have been fighting it for years. I paid a garden center to redo my gardens and remove it and unfortunately they turned over the soil rather than removing it and here we are 5 years later and it’s back.