"I have to break some bad news," expert landscaper Jennie Ostertag (@texasgardening) warned in a TikTok video.
Zooming in close on some lovely purple blossoms as they nodded on a tree branch, she explained: "One of the most beautiful trees blooming around Texas right now is super invasive."
@texasgardening Sadly for spring flower lovers, Chinaberry Tree is a terrible invasive species in Texas and much of the southern US. "Chinaberry trees can create monocultures and lower biodiversity amongst native ecosystems. Also, this tree has allelopathic effects and is resistant to native insects and pathogens, making it a fierce competitor against native trees and almost impossible to eradicate with biological controls." Chinaberry "is able to reproduce and spread both by seeds and vegetative pathways. The seeds can be carried long distances by birds or downstream in riparian zones. Seeds can germinate as soon as they mature and can survive severe desiccation and are viable for up to two years." More at Texas Invasive Species Institute. #TexasGardening #centraltexasgardener #landscape #landscapedesign #texas #gardening101 #spring #invasivespecies #nativeplants #austin #trees #flowers ♬ original sound - JennieGardens
The tree is a chinaberry, which has become widespread throughout much of the U.S., particularly in the South. Unfortunately, as Jennie puts it, "it is so, so damaging to our ecology."
"It can change the soil and crowd out natives," she says, and "it is impossible to control without really terrible herbicidal methods."
The durability of the invasive tree is because it's resistant to both native insects and pathogens. This means it's both "a fierce competitor" against native trees and "almost impossible to eradicate with biological controls," according to the Texas Invasive Species Institute. And that in turn means that the chinaberry can easily create monocultures, threatening the survival ability of crucial pollinators and animals, all of whom contribute to the biodiversity of the region.
And because the chinaberry spreads so easily, with seeds that are virtually indestructible for years, Jennie advises cutting down any chinaberry trees on your property — even if doing so would require effort and expense. After all, "one tree will make many more elsewhere," she explains, and then the effort and expense needed would only increase.
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"The former owners of my house planted them on purpose," one commenter vented. "I'm trying to get them gone."
Another shared: "We cut ours down, especially since the berries are toxic to dogs and we have a pup."
And once the invasive trees are gone, Jennie suggests that installing native trees and plants is generally the best natural defense against future invasions.
Rewilding a yard is an excellent way to build up natural barriers against invasive species by creating a healthy and robust local ecosystem. And not only that, but rewilded, natural, or xeriscaped lawns are all cheaper and easier to maintain than old-school grass lawns.
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