ARE ALL EXOTIC PLANT SPECIES INVASIVE?
There are at least 4,500 species of exotic plants and animals that have established free-living populations in the United States since the beginning of European colonization. Most of these plants and animals are things we see and eat everyday. However, about 15% of those exotic species are considered harmful or invasive. Invasive plants, for example, tend to have characteristics that permit them to rapidly invade new areas and out compete native plants for light, water, and nutrients. Some of these characteristics include profuse reproduction by seed and/or vegetative structures; adaptations for the spread of crop seeds; production of toxins that suppress the growth of other plants; roots or rhizomes with large food reserves; and a high photosynthetic rates. All of these characteristics enable the invasive plants to dominate a site and eventually eliminate most, if not all, of the resident native species. All efforts should be made to assist the perpetuation of native species over the
