Author: Admin

The global trade in ornamental nursery stock is the primary pathway for the introduction of nonindigenous invasive plants in Canada. Those invasive plants can threaten biodiversity and diminish its associated ecological, economic, social, cultural, and intrinsic values. To protect our economy, environment and public health from invasive plant species, Canada needs to:

• Improve policies and legislation.  
• Establish a permanent national body with responsibility for nonindigenous invasive species.  
• Create a science-based national plant risk assessment database. This database would provide the name(s) and description of each nonindigenous plant sold in Canada along with its regional ranking as a high, medium, low, or an insignificant invasion risk.   
• Require that all imports of plants new to Canada undergo risk assessments. 
• Ban the sale and movement of high-risk invasive plant species, where regionally appropriate.  
• Require labelling to identify and educate the public about lower-risk invasive plants.  
• Provide continued and stable funding for public education.   
• Incentivize the adoption of the National Voluntary Code of Conduct for the Ornamental Horticultural Industry.    

The number of invasive plant species in Canada is steadily growing. With that growth, the management costs and  environmental damage rise. Canada needs to act now to reduce the potential damages and the price tag for management and mitigation.  

At the federal level, invasive plant prevention focuses on safeguarding Canada’s food supply–the plants and animals in the agricultural sector. While laudable and necessary, current regulations fail to safeguard our natural flora and fauna. Canada needs to develop new federal regulatory tools. Canada needs legislation similar to the European Union (EU) act for the prevention and management of the introduction and spread of invasive alien species (1143/2014). This act aims to minimize the adverse effects of invasive species on biodiversity and related ecosystem services, as well as human health and safety. In addition, Canada could pass legislation requiring a risk assessment paid for by importers, before any plants not yet present are introduced, as is required by Australia’s Quarantine Proclamation (1998). Only with the proper legal underpinnings can Canada restrict the trade of highly invasive ornamental plants.  

To comply with international conventions and agreements, any trade restrictions must be based on sound scientific risk assessments. Therefore, in addition to enhancing its regulatory framework, Canada needs to improve its scientific capacity and develop a robust national database.  An impact ranking system like I- Rank should be used to categorize invasive plants as High, Medium, Low, or Insignificant risks to biodiversity.

A national database would ensure that reliable information is available to support the activities of federal and regional governments, Indigenous communities, and non-governmental organizations. A permanent federal body dedicated to nonindigenous invasive species is needed to clarify ‘who-does-what’ and coordinate interdepartmental and inter-agency cooperation at both the federal and provincial/territorial levels. 

Education and public awareness are necessary for the successful prevention and management of invasive plants. This means all levels of government should provide ongoing and stable funding for programs that raise awareness, build knowledge and skills, and change attitudes and behaviours. An informed public is more likely to support and promote the control of invasive plants.   

To this end, consumers deserve clear, consistent labelling that tells them what they need to know when shopping for plants. For those lower-risk invasive plants, sellers should be required to:    

• Inform consumers the plant poses potential risks to the environment,
• Provide recommendations for alternative noninvasive plant choices, and     
• Describe measures necessary to reduce the risk of spread.   

Informed consumers are more likely to understand the risks posed by invasive plants and reduce their spread.

An effective strategy for the prevention and management of invasive plants will require a combination of legally binding and voluntary approaches. Sustainable forest management standards have been successful in promoting comprehensive environmental and social standards in the forestry sector. Similarly, the ornamental horticultural sector should be encouraged to comply with legislation and reduce the numbers of invasive plants sold in Canada. While there may be short term losses in a small segment of the sector, there will also be opportunities to strengthen the sector and develop a “greener” industry that capitalizes on regional botanical uniqueness. 

Reducing the sale of invasive plant species in Canada and protecting Canada’s biodiversity will require a multi-faceted approach. Improving legislation and oversight, building a knowledge base, providing education and consumer awareness programs together can form the basis of a successful strategy. By following this strategy, Canada can help to safeguard nature, which is essential for human health and well-being, economic prosperity, food safety and security. 

Dealing with Invasive Plants – My Backyard Story

By Farnaz Bassiri

My backyard story starts when my neighbour came over to ask for permission to remove a tree that was at the fence line. The Town of Oakville staff came to look at my backyard and that’s when I first learned that it was full of invasive plants. As an immigrant I had no idea. I thought if a plant was “wild”, it was native. There were over 50 invasive common buckthorn trees, as well as 7 Siberian elms and 2 Norway maples. What I thought were wildflowers turned out to be highly invasive non-native garlic mustard and ditch lily.

This journey of removing invasive plants was very expensive and time consuming. After the removal, it has been an arduous process of exhausting their seed bank. A single garlic mustard produces up to 50,000 seeds. Buckthorn has such a strong regrowing root that I now know to pull it out as soon as the seedling is recognizable, with only a couple true leaves. The town staff told me this process will take 5 years, as seeds continue to germinate overtime.

It gave me a blank canvas but now I had to find plants which were not invasive and were affordable. When I first went to stores, I couldn’t distinguish what they were selling. Were the plants native? Were they invasive? Would I have to pay to pull them out later? That made no sense.

I visited nurseries only to find them selling plants that I had just removed from my backyard. Nursery staff didn’t know which of the plants were invasive and there were no warnings on the labels to help. I searched the internet to find answers but found a lot of confusing information. For example, Euonymus atropurpureus is native to Canada, whereas Eunonymus alatus is invasive, but both have the same common name: burning bush, so at first, I thought the burning bush I bought was native, it turned out it was not! It was a dwarf version of the invasive one. The staff told me it was the native burning bush, so it is not only consumers who are misinformed. Luckily, so far it seems to be sterile, though the label did not provide enough information to know if it is still invasive if the root system is small. Also, barberry, which is listed as invasive on many lists, has varieties that are sterile. Was that a good choice for my yard?

I found a “Grow Me Instead” guide that offered alternatives to invasive plants, but I could not find many of those plants at my local nurseries. I found it so frustrating.

While visiting nurseries, I started telling people that plants in their cart were invasive – they had no idea. They assumed that the stores would not be allowed to sell invasive plants, which is not the case because there is no regulation in place. There were a lot of misconceptions, such as thinking that plants that are annual or biennial can’t be invasive because they die over the winter. You can’t expect the public to be able to tell the difference. I couldn’t ignore the problem because I had to figure out what to plant in my backyard. It was difficult, so I started to advocate more for non-invasive plants.

I realized that even the Town of Oakville has to deal with invasive plants which outcompeted native plants in its forests and trails. They work to remove buckthorn at great cost, and hope the seed bank will be depleted over time. However, if retail outlets continue to sell invasive plants, their seeds may be carried by the wind, insects, birds and other animals, to the newly disturbed areas where buckthorn plants once grew, and once again invasive plants will fill the space. 

Regulation of invasive plants will help avoid this situation from happening again. It will stop high-risk invasive plants from being produced and sold to the public. It will also warn the public of low-risk invasive plants through label requirements, and it will increase the availability of alternatives to invasive species for sale. And my backyard story will have a happy end.