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<div dir="ltr"><font color="#000000" size="2" face="Tahoma">Hi Russ</font></div>
<div dir="ltr"><font face="Tahoma">I must admit that I agree with much of what you have replied to me. I also would like to preserve the relatively untouched ecosystems such as the rare ecological niche that parts of Appalachia still enjoy and I think we should
make serious efforts to do so by preventing introductions whenever possible. Unfortunately I see invasion biology today as being more focused on battling invasive plant species using chemicals then examining the function of non native plants within ecosystems
or attempting to understand not "how" but "why" they have occurred. The "how" is easy. Humans. The "why" is a lot more difficult. Most of the forest land in the Northeast is 2nd or third growth and far different than its pre human ancestors and that includes
native Americans who also manipulated the environment significantly. It has "evolved" primarily though and by human activities and it will never be as it was. It pains me to see agencies creating black and white lists of plants deemed acceptable, not by nature,
but by bureaucrats </font>who seem to think they know what "ought" to be allowed and are deluded into thinking that they can control evolution by regulations. I have no issue with weed science but I cringe at the thought that "weeds" are defined by their national
origin and not their biological characteristics. Exotic species behave a lot like natives and in most cases one cannot tell them apart without being told their origin beforehand. The concept that ecosystems containing exotic plants have less diversity is incorrect.
They have MORE species than ecosystems without exotic plants</div>
<div dir="ltr">I also see much hype about "degraded" or "unhealthy" ecosystems. When people talk about "healthy" ecosystems they are talking about ecosystems that look like the way they want them to. These are value judgments designed to trigger emotional
responses, not scientific appraisals. The movement of plant species around the world is part of an evolutionary process and not necessarily destructive. </div>
<div dir="ltr">The disease killing stiltgrass may also kill native species but so does widespread herbicide applications, such as I have seen conducted by the Nature Conservancy and other groups of "environmental" agencies. We can't always get what we want.</div>
<div dir="ltr">Bob</div>
<div dir="ltr"> </div>
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<div dir="ltr"><font size="2" face="Tahoma"><b>From:</b> ForestRuss@aol.com [ForestRuss@aol.com]<br>
<b>Sent:</b> Sunday, June 06, 2010 1:05 PM<br>
<b>To:</b> Robert Layton Beyfuss; MPWG@lists.plantconservation.org<br>
<b>Subject:</b> Re: [MPWG] Japanese stiltgrass disease update June 2 2010<br>
</font><br>
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<div><font id="role_document" color="#000000" size="2" face="Arial"><font id="role_document" color="#000000" size="2" face="Arial">
<div>Bob:</div>
<div> </div>
<div>Probably the most important thing to acknowledge is that where I live and work, the middle of the Appalachian Mesophytic forest, is a place of exceptionally diverse and vibrant vegetation. Unlike New England where I grew up and spent the early part of
my forestry career, this area has never experienced glaciation. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>In my work around West Virginia I have ample opportunity to encounter vast areas with limited vegetative diversity on nearly all levels. This limited diversity can be the result of multiple causes, including past land abuses such as: overgrazing, rapacious
timber harvesting, extraction of minerals and fragmentation of the forest through coal, oil and natural gas recovery activities (which could equate to parcelization and subdivision in more urban states) </div>
<div> </div>
<div>I agree that in many locations being concerned with invasive species is a lost cause with little hope for success. Currently, hundreds of thousands of acres of West Virginia fall into this category.
</div>
<div> </div>
<div>However, in my own experience as a private forester, I have also had the opportunity to encounter exceptionally diverse and productive areas of woodland absent of all damaging invasive species.
</div>
<div> </div>
<div>Being able to experience both conditions on a regular basis has convinced me of the benefit and value of containing or controlling the spread of invasive plant species into healthy woodland.</div>
<div> </div>
<div>I am glad to see that Japanese stiltgrass has a disease killing it locally but there could also be additional problems to contend with as several species of native plants appear to show disease symptoms similar to those found on dying stiltgrass. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>I think that it is a comforting idea to imagine that we have large areas of Federal land like National Forests and National Parks where invasive species may never be a problem and that examples of intact forest ecosystems of all types will always be healthy
and readily accessible. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>However, 100% of my work is on private property in an area with one of the smallest proportions of publicly owned land in the nation and very little modern information is known about this land or the unique diversity it contains. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>Many private woodland owners that I work with, upon learning about the unique ecological diversity of their property, choose to undertake management practices and activities that will protect the diversity of what can rapidly evolve into an important part
of their legacy. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>Such a response has only served to strengthen my resolve at the justification of the expenses incurred along the way. The beauty of invasive species management is in the beauty created by the absence of invasive species in an infected site. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>As a point of reference. Here at Crummies Creek nearly all invasive plant control measures are physical or mechanical. Growing medicinal plants like Goldenseal, ginseng and black Cohosh generally makes the chemical alternative unattractive. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>Russ Richardson</div>
<div> </div>
<div>
<div>In a message dated 6/6/2010 8:57:52 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time, rlb14@cornell.edu writes:</div>
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<div dir="ltr"><font color="#000000" size="2" face="Tahoma">Hi Russ</font></div>
<div dir="ltr"><font face="tahoma">Nature has a way of restoring dynamic equilibrium to many ecosystems. How much money did you waste trying to eradicate this weed? How much money have others spent trying to do the same with other so called invasive plants
that will eventually find thier niche too, How much environmental damage has been done by spraying herbicides needlessly?
</font></div>
<div dir="ltr"><font face="tahoma">Bob</font></div>
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<font size="2" face="Tahoma"><b>From:</b> mpwg-bounces@lists.plantconservation.org [mpwg-bounces@lists.plantconservation.org] On Behalf Of ForestRuss@aol.com [ForestRuss@aol.com]<br>
<b>Sent:</b> Wednesday, June 02, 2010 11:39 PM<br>
<b>To:</b> MPWG@lists.plantconservation.org<br>
<b>Subject:</b> [MPWG] Japanese stiltgrass disease update June 2 2010<br>
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MPWG<font color="#000000" size="2" face="Arial">:
<div>
<div> </div>
<div>The disease that was discovered to be killing Japanese stiltgrass, Microstegium vimineum, in Calhoun County, West Virginia during 2008 and 2009 has spread to new sites. The first signs of disease this year was in scattered locations starting about May
7. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>In areas where the disease was active last fall there was limited germination of stiltgrass this spring and many plants that have developed in those areas now show disease signs.
</div>
<div> </div>
<div><img style="WIDTH: 480px; HEIGHT: 320px" id="MA1.1275843580" vspace="5" src="cid:X.MA1.1275843580@aol.com" width="480" height="320"></div>
<div>Two years ago this road was completely dominated by stiltgrass that grew so tall and thick that all the water bars on the road were obscured. This area was hit by the disease last fall as the seed was starting to set. The dominant greenery in this photo
is black Cohosh and white aster. Nearly all stiltgrass present at the site is diseased. Within 100 feet of this photo there is healthy stiltgrass that is almost 18" tall. </div>
<div> </div>
<div> </div>
<div>The following three photos were taken in an abandoned field area that had become a stiltgrass savannah. The site has scattered apple trees and deer had helped to spread the stiltgrass across the hillside. This savannah covers more than fifteen acres
and showed no signs of disease in 2009.</div>
<div> </div>
<div><img style="WIDTH: 480px; HEIGHT: 320px" id="MA2.1275843580" vspace="5" src="cid:X.MA2.1275843580@aol.com" width="480" height="320"></div>
<div>The trail in the foreground has a heavy cover of sickly stiltgrass. For several hundred feet of this trail nearly 100% of the stiltgrass plants are covered with lesions.<br>
</div>
<div><img style="WIDTH: 480px; HEIGHT: 320px" id="MA3.1275843580" vspace="5" src="cid:X.MA3.1275843580@aol.com" width="480" height="320"></div>
<div> </div>
<div>In some areas the thatch from last year is still easy to find because there is very little new growth for 2010.</div>
<div><img style="WIDTH: 480px; HEIGHT: 320px" id="MA4.1275843580" vspace="5" src="cid:X.MA4.1275843580@aol.com" width="480" height="320"></div>
<div>There are areas with no living stiltgrass plants and the natives are taking off.</div>
<div> </div>
<div><img style="WIDTH: 480px; HEIGHT: 320px" id="MA5.1275843580" vspace="5" src="cid:X.MA5.1275843580@aol.com" width="480" height="320"></div>
<div>It appears that the fungus killing stiltgrass can survive a forest fire. In early April a forest fire
</div>
<div>burned over 20 acres of Crummies Creek including areas where I had photographed the disease last year. Some Japanese stiltgrass seed survived the fire and germinated in early May but now nearly all plants are showing disease signs.</div>
<div> </div>
<div>At this time no one has determined the vectors for spread of the disease but a paper on some of the specifics of the "Bipolaris" disease has recently been published by Luke Flory of Indiana University.</div>
<div> </div>
<div>Sincerely,</div>
<div> </div>
<div>Russ Richardson, Certified Forester</div>
<div>Crummies Creek Tree Farm</div>
<div>PO Box 207</div>
<div>Arnoldsburg, WV 25234</div>
<div> </div>
<div> </div>
<div> </div>
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