Top 5 Garden Invaders

They might look great, smell great, even taste great - but they’re far from great for your garden.

Mint, Bamboo, English Ivy, Japanese Honeysuckle and Kudzu are among the top five invaders. The very term “invasive” means it’s a non-native species. Uncontrolled, it can and will grow wild. You don’t want this to happen in your garden.

Let’s break it down.

Mint

It’s lovely in tea, Mojitas, pesto, salads, smoothies, toothpaste and so much more. That being said, mint ranks as a top invasive species, according to Invasive.org. If you want to grow it, keep an eye on it. It easily roots and grows, so it tries to escape its boundaries. But you can control it in separate pots or contained garden beds.

Bamboo

Did you know that bamboo is not a tree? It’s actually a fast-growing grass. According to EcoWatch, and several other websites, bamboo is a baddie. It’s not going to take over the world, but it might annoy your neighbors.

Bamboo originated in China some 7,000 years ago. It was introduced to Japan, and eventually made its way to North America. Perhaps you’ve seen bamboo in the form of Lucky Trees. That’s great, because you are experiencing bamboo in a controlled environment.

Left unattended in your yard or garden, it goes wild.

Kudzu

This is definitely a bad boy. Kudzu grows super fast and will try to overtake everything around it. In fact, the Nature Conservancy says it’s “The Invasive Vine that Ate the South.”

Not only will it take over your garden, it can do the same to trees, homes and even utility poles.

It’s also been called “mile-a-minute.” It grows fast, but it’s also eerily creepy and basically will terrorize your native plants. 

It’s also known as Japanese arrowroot or Chinese arrowroot. Regardless, it’s bad news for North America.

English Ivy

This is a woody, perennial climbing vine, often used as ground cover in yards or gardens. But the leaves don’t love us humans. Contact with the leaves may be toxic to us as well as livestock. The sap may make you itchy and irritated. Native to Europe, Western Asia and Northern Africa, it arrived in the United States in the 1700’s.

Japanese Honeysuckle

It smells good, but don’t let that fool you. As a woody perennial vine, it loves to twist, turn and ensnare your shrubs. Some folks like to grow it as an ornamental plant, but it can quickly become a nasty nuisance. It can also overtake forests, fields and prairies. In fact, it is prohibited in several states!

For more information on invasive plants specific to your region, visit Invasive.org.