I find it ironic here in Brazil that I have the same problem. I have a
small chunk of land in what should be Atlantic Forest. But, all the
nurseries sell exotics and they don't even know what is what. Many
people believe that many of the plants are native, from eucalyptus,
pines, persimmons, honeysuckle, mulberry and even to a thing known as
the Japanese Grape - yes, they think a tree called the Japanese grape is
native.... So, I go out to the woods and every time I can I find an
interesting native plant and bring it home. Also, I attract fruit
eating birds (to bananas) and hope that they are eating native plants
too and defecating nearby. Slowly it seems to be working. But, the
Japenese grape, mulberry and honeysuckle all spread like the plague, so
it takes active participation to yank them um to keep them from taking over.
Jim
On 16/Dec/07 16:26, Carrie DeJaco wrote:
> I am definitely taking advantage of the natives that do pop up in the
> yard, giving them every advantage and letting them slug it out with
> the aliens. But I do think that visiting the nurseries and making my
> preferences known has got to be a small step. Of all the homeowners,
> gardeners, and landscapers, many don't know the consequences of
> spreading alien species, or even know which ones are alien. So many
> non-natives have become naturalized that even many of the
> "knowledgeable" believe some are native simply because they're seen
> growing "in the wild". If the only plants available at Home Depot are
> non-natives, and no one knows the difference anyway, that's what
> they'll buy. We need the landscapers' help here, and we need to get
> the money-makers to start selling the natives so that they will be
> more available and obvious to everyone.
>
> CD
>
>
> Wayne Tyson wrote:
>> Dear Carrie and Forum:
>>
>> I love to eat all sorts of weeds, but I'm personally a little chary
>> about eating them from my yard (which dates back to the 1920's) as it
>> might qualify as a "brownfield" site from all the arsenic and other
>> (intentionally manufactured and incidentally) systemic poisons that
>> decades of gardeners and landscapers have foisted upon the land
>> (which once supported a highly diverse ecosystem, including now rare
>> and endangered species). Site chemical analysis, including soils,
>> leachate and tissue, from known accumulators and "not-known" possible
>> accumulators and their effects on human health, not to mention the
>> fingers of nearby ecosystem remnants which try to creep, fly, blow,
>> and brazenly walk into the territory which we call our "home grounds"
>> might well be number six on my partial list to the group(s) making
>> the inquiry.
> I do wonder, how much of what we purchase includes those same things?
> I have read studies that make me leery of the items in the grocery
> store, as well!
>>
>> [[Not to mention NOx, VOCs, and other noxious stuff, the infernal
>> noise, and the footprint that goes with their manufacture, transport,
>> and disposal, and nauseam, ad infinitum. And don't get me started on
>> "leaf-" (should be known as dust-blowers) and other gardening
>> equipment, materials (nets, pots . . . ), and poisons. WT]]
>>
> Oh, geez, I could rant all day on those blowers!
--
James J. Roper, Ph.D.
James J. Roper
Ecologia e Dinâmicas Populacionais
de Vertebrados Terrestres
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Caixa Postal 19034
81531-990 Curitiba, Paraná, Brasil
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E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Telefone: 55 41 33857249
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