What is the difference between invasive plants and noxious weeds?
Decades ago control programs targeted plants with adverse effects on human health, agriculture, and livestock. Those plants were called noxious weeds. In recent years, control programs have included plants with adverse ecological effects, particularly invasive habits. Today, noxious weeds and invasive weeds are both generally regarded as plants with adverse social, economic, or ecological effects. Q: Are invasive species the same thing as invasive weeds? A: Not all invasives are plants. There are invasive species of insects, fish, etc. For example, rainbow trout, native to the West Coast, have been introduced in the East for sport. Rainbows out-compete native brook trout, contributing to its decline in the Appalachians. Q: Why should we worry about invasive species? A: Invasives cost American taxpayers about $137 billion per year in total economic damages and associated costs. In ecological terms, invasive species tend to crowd out the natives. The American elm and American chestnut ha
