Plant invaders

A Kodiak legislator wants to make it illegal to traffic in two of Alaska's most noxious weeds.

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The orange hawkweed, and purple loosestrife might be pretty, but they are suffocating Alaska plants, said Rep. Gabrielle LeDoux, R-Kodiak.

LeDoux is sponsoring House Bill 324, which would make it illegal for anyone to plant, cultivate, sell, give away or import the two invasive plants.

The orange hawkweed - a small but vivid orange flower originally imported from Europe - has been sighted in Juneau yards for the last 50 years.

The tough little flower is now creating a perfect storm of flaming orange blossoms on treeless Kodiak Island, and it has attacked the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge.

It has also been found in Wrangell, Petersburg, Ketchikan, Homer, Girdwood and the Anchorage Basin, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

LeDoux found an orange hawkweed plant in her yard this summer. That was before she knew it was an invasive species.

"I thought it was kind of pretty," LeDoux said. She ended up pulling it out of the ground.

The purple loosestrife is more of a problem in the Anchorage area, LeDoux said. The showy plant doesn't appear to be common in Juneau, though it was discovered recently under cultivation in one local yard.

LeDoux's bill hasn't been discussed yet in the Alaska Legislature this year. It was one of the first bills introduced in the 2006 session and has been referred to the Resources and Finance committees.

Plant specialists say it's difficult if not impossible to regulate weeds - once they have erupted in an area - with a commercial ban.

"It's kind of making a law against dandelions and crabgrass," said David Lendrum, the manager of Landscape Alaska, a Juneau plant nursery.

"You can't just shake your fist at it and pray for bad mojo," Lendrum said.

Funding for eradication programs is also required to fight the weeds, he said.

Take Japanese knotweed and reed canary grass, for example: These are two of Juneau's most dangerous and destructive weeds.

Many people just don't realize how environmentally damaging they really are, Lendrum said.

Reed canary grass chokes the mouths of Duck and Jordan creeks. "No wildlife eats it and it displaces the feed stocks. ... Its worst damage is that it blocks the water courses," Lendrum said.

Japanese knotweed fills the hills around Juneau. It also has taken over salmonberry habitat and ripped up local sidewalks, according to Lendrum.

"There are areas out the road where it has displaced everything," he added.

It is very difficult to get rid of it, of course.

"You have to cut it down three times within a year to exhaust the starch content in the roots. It makes a big potato underground that has enough starch in it to live off for years," Lendrum explained.

"You have to let it grow, cut it down, let it grow, cut it down, let it grow, cut it down," he said.

LeDoux said last Wednesday said that she has been approached by state officials with the idea of expanding a noxious weed list for Alaska.

Alaska law already prohibits roughly 20 noxious plants that interfere with agriculture. (The list doesn't include the four plants mentioned above.)

Any prohibited weed seeds imported must be returned to their point of shipment within 48 hours, and they can be destroyed, under state law.

The state defines noxious weeds as any species of plant that "when established is or may become destructive and difficult to control by ordinary means of cultivation and other farm practices."

Melanie Lesh, a legislative liaison for the Alaska Department of Natural Resources, said last Thursday that the department will be working with LeDoux to create a more inclusive weed list for Alaska.

• Elizabeth Bluemink can be reached at elizabeth.bluemink@juneauempire.com.