Maintenance Spreads Invasives?

A study in the upcoming issue of Invasive Plant Science and Management finds a greater distribution of invasive plants in proximity to forest roads, which provide corridors that facilitate the dispersal of plant material.

 

Roadsides often have an accumulation of unsightly trash, but a less noticeable, organic litter also pollutes land adjacent to forest roads. Roadsides are prime locations for the growth and distribution of invasive plant species. Road maintenance, such as grading and mowing, disturbs the seedbank on a roadside. The seeds are then easily transported by water or other means.