Autumn Olive
Place of Origin: Eastern China, Japan, Korea
Place of Harm: States in the east and east-midwest, Ontario, and the northwest coast.
First Introduced: 1830, started rapidly spreading in 1950’s
Harms: Other trees and shrubs
Other Names: Oleaster, Japanese Silverberry
Taxonomy: Rosales, Elaeagnaceae
Autumn olive is a perennial eudicot deciduous shrub that was first introduced for erosion control and rehabilitation of abandoned sites. It grows up to 20 ft tall and 30 ft wide. In the 1950’s it was widely promoted as a great way to create wildlife habitats, fix nitrogen, and stop erosion in environmentally weak areas. Although it did, it soon began rapidly spreading throughout the states.It spreads by seeds which are spread by birds. Autumn olive invades roadsides, forest understories, and fields. It tolerates shade but prefers dry sites. Cutting and burning creates even more, due to quick germination. The autumn olive out-competes other species by creating a dense shade that blocks out the sun, and kills them by raising nitrogen levels in the soil with actinomycetes of genus Frankia in their roots. It is also able to live in a variety of soils thanks to its roots, occupying many niches at once. It can resprout from its roots. Research has found that pulling the seedlings out by hand will stop them from germinating. A combination of chemicals and mechanical control is the most effective. Herbicides (glyphosate, triclopyr, picloram) must be used for larger ones with cut-stump. Dicamba and 2, 4-D applied foliarly in mid-summer have a near 100% kill rate with little or no resprout the following year. Repeated cutting and burning do not work on autumn olives. Cut and bag all fruits. Also, goats eat autumn olives. Autumn olive seedlings start from the seeds inside the berries. Each individual plant grows very fast and can seed within 3-5 years. In early spring, leaves grow, earlier than native plants. From April to May, flowers will bloom, and the fruits ripen by August/November. A plant can produce 20,000-54,000 seeds a year, which have 70-90% germination and remain viable for up to 3 years. They are then distributed all over the area again by birds and human activity. Similar native species include silver buffaloberry (Shepherdia argentea), wolf-willow (Elaeagnus commutata), and winterberry (Ilex verticillata). The autumn olive may create wildlife habitats for birds, and help to stop erosion. The fruit is tart and edible and contains 18 times more lycopene than tomatoes. The genus name was named by Linnaeus.
Place of Origin: Eastern China, Japan, Korea
Place of Harm: States in the east and east-midwest, Ontario, and the northwest coast.
First Introduced: 1830, started rapidly spreading in 1950’s
Harms: Other trees and shrubs
Other Names: Oleaster, Japanese Silverberry
Taxonomy: Rosales, Elaeagnaceae
Autumn olive is a perennial eudicot deciduous shrub that was first introduced for erosion control and rehabilitation of abandoned sites. It grows up to 20 ft tall and 30 ft wide. In the 1950’s it was widely promoted as a great way to create wildlife habitats, fix nitrogen, and stop erosion in environmentally weak areas. Although it did, it soon began rapidly spreading throughout the states.It spreads by seeds which are spread by birds. Autumn olive invades roadsides, forest understories, and fields. It tolerates shade but prefers dry sites. Cutting and burning creates even more, due to quick germination. The autumn olive out-competes other species by creating a dense shade that blocks out the sun, and kills them by raising nitrogen levels in the soil with actinomycetes of genus Frankia in their roots. It is also able to live in a variety of soils thanks to its roots, occupying many niches at once. It can resprout from its roots. Research has found that pulling the seedlings out by hand will stop them from germinating. A combination of chemicals and mechanical control is the most effective. Herbicides (glyphosate, triclopyr, picloram) must be used for larger ones with cut-stump. Dicamba and 2, 4-D applied foliarly in mid-summer have a near 100% kill rate with little or no resprout the following year. Repeated cutting and burning do not work on autumn olives. Cut and bag all fruits. Also, goats eat autumn olives. Autumn olive seedlings start from the seeds inside the berries. Each individual plant grows very fast and can seed within 3-5 years. In early spring, leaves grow, earlier than native plants. From April to May, flowers will bloom, and the fruits ripen by August/November. A plant can produce 20,000-54,000 seeds a year, which have 70-90% germination and remain viable for up to 3 years. They are then distributed all over the area again by birds and human activity. Similar native species include silver buffaloberry (Shepherdia argentea), wolf-willow (Elaeagnus commutata), and winterberry (Ilex verticillata). The autumn olive may create wildlife habitats for birds, and help to stop erosion. The fruit is tart and edible and contains 18 times more lycopene than tomatoes. The genus name was named by Linnaeus.
Essential Question
"Could a genetically engineered invasive species potentially be used in warfare?"