Today's houseplant could be tomorrow's invasive nightmare

A gust of wind knocks over a porch-situated English ivy. Soon the plant is climbing up trees in its yard and beyond.

A potted Tradescantia fluminensis isn’t thriving. The houseplant enthusiast tosses it onto the ground, giving up on the plant. It creeps over to the park and smothers the entire forest floor.

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On a backyard deck, the bright red berries of an asparagus fern attract birds; they have a snack and fly off, dispersing seed. These scenarios, and more, are common occurrences.

For conservationists, today’s houseplant could be tomorrow’s nightmare. Many of today’s invasive plants were introduced to the U.S. intentionally via the horticulture trade. Over time, they escaped cultivation via birds, animals, wind, and water.

Invasive Species Awareness Week

National Invasive Species Awareness Week is Feb. 28 to March 4. This international event raises awareness about invasive plants and animals, the threats they pose, and what can be done to prevent their spread.

When there is an awareness week of any kind, I often think, yes, I’m aware, but what can I do? How might one person contribute to the massive, expensive effort to manage invasive plants in Florida?

Here are three steps you can take.

• Resolve to keep a firm hold on any invasive houseplant you can’t bear to relinquish.

• Identify, destroy, and properly dispose of invasives in your yard.

• Volunteer for an upcoming local invasive plant removal session.

An invasive species (of plant or animal) is defined by Executive Order 13112 (1999) as an alien species (not from Florida or the U.S.) whose introduction does, or is likely to, cause economic or environmental harm or harm to human health.

Invasive plants reduce biodiversity by taking over native plants which would provide food for wildlife. They also cause agricultural loss, damage to waterways and recreation sites, and economic drain due to resources needed to control them.

Not every exotic houseplant is a problem plant. Many will provide your home with beauty indoors or on a porch or patio. But lurking in your houseplant collection, are there any invasives poised innocently in their pots, itching to escape?

Identify problem houseplants

Researchers from the University of Florida’s Institute for Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) monitor non-native plants in natural areas throughout the state. They periodically assess non-native plants’ risk to the health of unique and vulnerable ecosystems.

A quick internet search of your plant’s botanical name (or even its common name) at assessment.ifas.ufl.edu will tell you whether, according to current data, that species is known to be at risk of becoming invasive in Florida.

Some houseplants that are at risk of becoming, or already have become invasive in Florida, according to the UF/IFAS “Assessment of Non-native Plants in Florida’s Natural Areas” are listed below:

• Arrowhead vine (Syngonium podophyllum)

• Asparagus fern (Asparagus aethiopicus)

• Cut-leaf philodendron or Swiss cheese plant (Monstera deliciosa)

• Elephant ear (Xanthosoma sagittifolium)

• English ivy (Hedera helix)

• Pothos (Epipremnum pinnatum cv Aureum)

• Small-leaf spiderwort (Tradescantia fluminensis)

• Snake plant (Sansevieria trifasciata or its new name Dracaena trifasciata)

• Sword fern (Nephrolepis cordifolia)

• Staghorn fern (Platycerium bifurcatum)

• Wild taro (Colocasia esculenta)
  

Inspect your yard

Once you’ve got a hold on your houseplants, take inventory of your yard and remove these commonly found invasive plants: coral ardisia, Brazilian pepper, Chinese tallow, Japanese climbing fern, camphor, Lantana camara, and heavenly bamboo (Nandina domestica).

To dispose of an invasive plant, make sure you get all roots out of the ground. Any piece at all, especially any root, node, berry, or seed, is likely to sprout and thrive. Put the entire plant in a doubled trash bag. Close the bag up well and send it to the landfill by placing it in your regular trash, not yard waste pickup.

In your yard, consider replacing pretty-but-problematic plants for those that will provide nectar and pollen for pollinators, or food for birds. For example, replace lantana (Lantana camara) with a native flowering shrub such as American beautyberry (Callicarpa americana) or native Firebush (Hamelia patens).

Bees and butterflies will utilize the flowers’ pollen and nectar, and birds will feed on the berries. If you have some time to volunteer, join an invasive plant removal team for a session in an area park. And remember, just as importantly, hold that houseplant.

Jen Gensits is a Master Gardener Volunteer with UF/IFAS Extension Leon County, an Equal Opportunity Institution. For gardening questions, email the extension office at AskAMasterGardener@ifas.ufl.edu.

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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Today's houseplant could be tomorrow's invasive nightmare