Linking Ecology and Horticulture To Prevent Plant Invasions: A Workshop, St. Louis, MO, Dec 1-4, 2001

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0133065Raven Invasive plants are a major economic problem and are a serious threat to the protection of biodiversity in natural areas. Efforts to reduce the number of invaders must focus not only on controlling existing species but also on identifying pathways of introduction to reduce establishment. Many of these non-native species were introduced accidentally, but the majority were introduced for horticultural use. Introductions for horticulture use continue at a high rate, and species already here that demonstrate invasive ability are rarely removed from use. The workshop will bring together government, private, and academic interests in ecology and horticulture to address several relevant issues. The invited participants will: 1) develop specific codes of conduct for interest areas within horticulture, including nurseries, botanical gardens, landscape architects, and the gardening public; 2) assess and refine explicit easy-to-use methods and guidelines for evaluating plant species for potential to become invasive pests; and 3) develop and assess methods to determine acceptable alternatives to many invasive species currently used in the United States for horticulture. It is intended that the discussions will search for concrete solutions acceptable to all parties and that, from the discussions, research and action agendas will be identified. The results of the workshop will be presented to the commercial horticulture and botanical garden communities, as well as to the Weed Science Society of America, for discussion, refinement and adoption.