Just remember, everyone--vinegar isn't selective for garlic mustard; make
sure you don't get it on the plants we want to save---and if you have any
left over, maybe you could put some of the lesser celandine, which is really
matting over a lot of land around the Cleveland area.

Good work, everyone...

Steve


On 6/1/12 9:04 PM, "Henry Burton" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> Hello fellow birders,
>             With all the talk of invasive worms and invasive plants as of late
> I would like to talk about garlic mustard ( the plant I would like to see
> eliminated in this part of the country after phragmites ). Garlic mustard is a
> biennial plant.  Biennial plants live for two years. The first year they grow
> then die back in the winter. The next year the plant grows, flowers then S E E
> D S, at that point a single garlic mustard plant can produce several hundred
> seeds ( potentially hundred of new plants ) up to a distance of several yards.
> So in my opinion if there is a way to stop the plant from seeding that would
> be the most efficient way to apply resources to stop this plant.
>             I was told about an old time method to kill plants this year. The
> ingredient is inexpensive, easy to apply, natural and is not harmful to the
> applicator. The magic word is : vinegar. The killing ingredient in vinegar is
> acetic acid. This acid works by drawing the moisture out of the leaf of the
> plant. No leaves, no plant. A simple plastic spray bottle ( at home
> improvement / hardware stores ) and a gallon of vinegar and garlic mustard
> does not stand a chance.
>             We are all familiar with Magee Marsh. If it was not for the
> volunteer garlic mustard pickers ( I THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU HAVE DONE AT MAGEE
> ) seeing a skulker at Magee would probably be next to impossible. This
> infestation of the garlic mustard plant at Magee took about 7 years +/- ( my
> estimate ) and it is happening at many other places as well ( Metzger Marsh
> and Wendy Park are two examples ). If just half of the active birders did a
> little "spraying" at there favorite birding/nature location the enjoyment of
> that location can be what it was before garlic mustard arrived. Any comments
> feel free to contact me. May the birds be with you, Henry.
> 
> 
> 
> Adult and first year garlic mustard plant pictures can be seen at
> http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/forestry/invasivetutorial/garlic_mustard.htm.  The
> first year plant is what needs to be killed. Apply vinegar carefully as it
> will kill any plant it comes in contact with.  Garlic mustard seeds remain
> viable for up to seven years. Get the plant before it seeds !
> 
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--------------------------------------------

Steve Cagan, photographer
[log in to unmask] € www.stevecagan.com
www.pbase.com/stevecagan € www.stevecagan.blogspot.com
216-932-2753 (USA)

______________________________________________________________________

Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society.
Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list.
Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/.

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