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The Global Invasive Species Team | |
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Global Invasive Species Team listserve digest #118 Fri Jun 06 2003 - 17:03:28 PDT --CONTENTS-- 1. New chapter on adjuvants in WIST handbook!! (Global, Planet Earth) 2. Seeds on old knotweed canes (Washington, USA) 3. Anchusa officinalis (Nationwide, USA) 4. New treatment for Polygonum cuspidatum/sachalinense (Oregon, USA) 5. USDA's request for applications for research (Nationwide, USA) 6. Request for advice/assistance on Emerald Ash Borer (North America) --------------------------------------- 1. New chapter on adjuvants in WIST handbook!! (Global, Planet Earth) From: Mandy Tu (imtu(at)tnc.org) Have you ever wondered about the mysterious "adjuvant?" What are adjuvants? What do they do? Have you ever pondered the difference between nonionic surfactants and spreader-stickers, or thought about why crop oil concentrates might not be actually made from crop products? We have just added a new chapter dedicated to adjuvants to our popular "Weed Control Methods Handbook." Although this new chapter won't tell you what brand of adjuvant to use in each situation where you may be applying herbicide, this newest addition to our Handbook will answer many-a-question that you may have about what adjuvants are, how are they different from one another, if you can use food coloring, if you can use sea water, what some other folks have used, and why they may (or may not) be important in your valiant weed efforts! Additionally, several of the chapters of our handbook have also been updated! There is also a nifty new cover page for this handbook! Do you want to see it? Point your browser to: http://tncinvasives.ucdavis.edu/handbook.html --------------------------------------- 2. Seeds on old knotweed canes (Washington, USA) From: Peter Dunwiddie (pdunwiddie(at)tnc.org) Regarding the viability of seeds in old Japanese knotweed (Polygonum cuspidatum) canes, we now have successfully germinated seed collected from canes that sat out over the winter. Germination rates were in excess of 80%. We have not, however, observed seedlings in the field. Has anyone else observed reproduction by seed of this species in the wild? --------------------------------------- 3. Anchusa officinalis (Nationwide, USA) From: Mandy Tu (imtu(at)tnc.org) Does anyone have any experience or knowledge on the biology, ecology and management of Anchusa officinalis (bugloss) - Boraginaceae? It is present here in eastern Oregon and Washington, but very little information exists on it. Any info on its rate of spread, impacts, and/or management would be greatly appreciated!! --------------------------------------- 4. New treatment for Polygonum cuspidatum/sachalinense (Oregon, USA) From: Jonathan Soll (jsoll(at)tnc.org) There is a new method for treating Polygonum cuspidatum and P. sachalinense. It is a stem injection treatment where 5 ml of undiluted Aquamaster or Round-up pro is injected into one of the lower nodes of each stem of a given patch using a large bore needle. Results of trials have been extremely promising. See this website for more information www.co.clark.wa.us/environ/knotweed.pdf --------------------------------------- 5. USDA's request for applications for research (Nationwide, USA) From: Ann Bartuska (abartuska(at)tnc.org) (Ann forwarded this announcement to the listserve for those who might be interested---Barry) Washington, May 19, 2003-Joseph J. Jen, the Agriculture Department's Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics, announced today a request for applications (RFA) for $30 million in supplemental funding under the National Research Initiative (NRI) competitive grants program. Applications must be received by 5:00 p.m. ET on July 30, 2003. This RFA supplements the existing NRI program, which is administered by USDA's Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service (CSREES). Priority will be given to projects that are multistate, multi-institutional or multidisciplinary or to projects that integrate research, extension and education. Such integrated projects hold the greatest potential to produce and transfer knowledge directly to end users. The supplemental RFA targets five new programs: functional genomics, human nutrition and obesity, air quality, animal and plant biosecurity and training for agricultural homeland security. The new programs result from a $46 million increase in funding for the NRI in FY 2003. A portion of these funds was also used to enhance existing NRI programs in value-added food research and microbial genome sequencing. The complete RFA, including instructions on how to submit an application, is available at www.reeusda.gov/nri. --------------------------------------- 6. Request for advice/assistance on Emerald Ash Borer (North America) From: Douglas Pearsall (dpearsall(at)tnc.org) The emerald ash borer (EAB, Agrilus planipennis) is a beetle that is killing ash trees in SE Michigan and adjacent Ohio and Ontario. It has infested an estimated 6,000,000 trees already, and within the 6-county area it now infests, will probably kill 12,000,000. So far, it has infested all species of ash that it has encountered. The threat from this species is analogous to the threat from Dutch Elm Disease or Chestnut Blight; it could spread throughout North America if not contained and eradicated soon. Congress recently appropriated $14.6 million to help fund a rapid response. Primary members of the response team are Michigan Department of Agriculture, USDA APHIS, MSU, and USDA Forest Service; Michigan Department of Natural Resources is also involved. Heightened efforts to raise awareness and contain the species started about 10 or 11 months ago, and this new funding should boost those efforts considerably. Current efforts are focusing on raising awareness, destroying infected trees, and containing outbreaks outside the quarantine area (six counties). We are exploring whether to get more involved in the task force. We will help in outreach efforts, and we may be able to enhance survey and monitoring--not sure that we have the right expertise to advise on research and modelling efforts. There are a couple of issues we could use help on: --Assessing the threat to our conservation portfolios, or forest systems in general, across the continent. In Michigan, there are three widely distributed species of ash and two species at the northern limit of their ranges. Ash species occur in most forest systems (except the driest) but are rarely dominant, an exception being in some northern swamps where black ash can be dominant or co-dominant with northern white-cedar and other species. White and red ash occur in upland and wetland forests throughout the state, red ash being concentrated in the south in floodplains and other swamps, and white ash being throughout in wet-mesic to dry-mesic forests with northern hardwoods and oaks. Left unchecked, the EAB will presumably wipe out most, if not all, of these trees, changing the composition and causing ripple effects through these diverse ecosystems. I don't see the EAB as a "killer threat" but it certainly is a moderate to severe threat throughout Michigan and the Great Lakes region. I suspect the situation is similar across a much wider area, but that is where I need help. As we develop outreach and marketing strategies, we want to be able to talk about a much broader perspective than Michigan. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency considers EAB "...a serious pest that may have a potential negative impact on the Canadian economy and environment." --Coming up with outreach, control, and prevention strategies. If there are similar examples of pest species and control or eradication programs from which we could learn, please let us know. I think the agencies, appropriately, have the lead on life history research and modelling efforts and that should guide control strategies. Any advice or lessons learned would be most welcome. Also, if you want more information about the EAB, here are a couple of very good websites: www.michigan.gov/mda (key word "ash borer"); http://www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/eab/index.html |
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