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Managing Remnant and Reemerging Common Reed (Phragmites australis) Infestations to Improve Treatment Efficacy and Mitigate Damage to Native Plants

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Daniel B. Breen ,
Stephen D. Bailey  and
Helen A. Violi
Daniel B. Breen*
Affiliation:
Assateague Island National Seashore, National Park Service, Berlin, MD 21811
Stephen D. Bailey
Affiliation:
Assateague Island National Seashore, National Park Service, Berlin, MD 21811
Helen A. Violi
Affiliation:
Assateague Island National Seashore, National Park Service, Berlin, MD 21811
*
Corresponding author's E-mail: dbreen2@students.towson.edu
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Abstract

Following large-scale herbicide spraying and burning on Assateague Island, a barrier bar island located in Maryland and Virginia, the invasive common reed (Phragmites australis) was largely reduced from vast monocultures to less dense patches interspersed within maritime shrublands. To improve the control of these remnant/reemerging infestations and limit further nontarget damage, we tested three new treatments: mechanical cutting followed by dripping imazapyr onto stems, cutting followed 2 wk later by the foliar spraying of regrowth, and simple cutting with and without the removal of Phragmites litter. All herbicide treatments and cutting paired with litter removal significantly reduced Phragmites coverage (P ≤ 0.01) when compared with untreated controls. Native plant coverage was significantly greater after the cut-stem treatment than after traditional foliar spraying (P ≤ 0.01) because of the former's reduced herbicide use and more direct contact limited to Phragmites stems; native coverage was also greater after litter removal than when litter remained (P ≤ 0.001). Cutting followed by stem applications of herbicide is an effective means of treating scattered common reed stands in sensitive habitats, and litter removal after cutting can provide native vegetation with an advantage at recolonization.

Keywords

Imazapyrcommon reed, Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. ex Steud.Barrier bar islandintegrated weed managementinvasive species ecologymechanical treatment
Type
Research Article
Information
Invasive Plant Science and Management , Volume 7 , Issue 3 , September 2014 , pp. 445 - 453
Copyright
Copyright © Weed Science Society of America 

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Footnotes

Current address of first author: Department of Biological Sciences, Towson University, 8000 York Road, Towson, MD 21252

∗

Third author died on September 7, 2013, while this manuscript was being compiled for submission

References

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