A newly purchased home can come with many surprises. One Redditor shared they recently discovered their new property unfortunately hosts some unwelcome inhabitants: invasive plants.
The original poster shared a few photos of their backyard in the r/NativePlantGardening subreddit and wrote, "I recently bought a 1.7 acre property backing onto a maple forest (Ontario zone 5b). The previous owners planted periwinkle, lily of the valley, ditch lilies and other invasives on the edge of the forest."
Each photo shows a different part of the wooded area, some overgrown with these invasives. They don't appear menacing at first, but they're a danger to the entire ecosystem.
"Before, I thought they were pretty, but now realize they are smothering native plants," wrote the OP. Invasive plants spread rapidly and take up critical resources — like sunlight and water — needed by native growth. When the native organisms die off, entire food webs can be damaged.
Invasives are also a huge headache for homeowners trying to remove them. They can be stubborn and persistent, often requiring many attempts and sometimes years to eliminate.
Native plants are worth fighting for. They require less water and maintenance, saving homeowners both time and money. Pollinators love them because they create a healthy habitat, allowing pollinators to do their important work of protecting our food supply.
If your property is home to invasives, it's important to do the work of eliminating them first, before installing native plants or a natural lawn. Once the invasives are gone, native plants can flourish easily.
Natural lawn substitutions like clover and buffalo grass are great options to cut down on water consumption and maintenance. Xeriscaping offers a unique appearance while also utilizing native plants that need low to no irrigation.
Other Redditors offered plenty of advice to the OP on how to deal with the invasives. One user said, "I would be out there with glyphosate. Necessary evil. This will recover rapidly."
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Making it look better 🌱 Another Redditor wrote, "These three invasive of these will take repeat applications and multiple years to eradicate. Mechanical removal isn't very effective for these species. Also, do not try to plant natives to 'outcompete' these plants, it's a waste of time and you'll end up wishing you eradicated everything before planting."
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One user suggested, "Herbicide and relentless manual removal."
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