We've all seen it on the side of the road at one time or another: entire tree lines, fields, bridges, and even some homes covered in endless layers of morning glory, a vine with heart-shaped leaves.
A Reddit user posted this familiar image in the r/invasivespecies subreddit, seeking advice on this plant's invasive status. "This is cause for concern," the top response post explained, pointing to the plant's monoculture nature as it smothers everything in sight.
Morning glory carries an "off-and-on" invasive label: on in some states or regions and off in others. It's mostly based on temperature. Cold winters kill the plant, while it thrives in the milder temperatures of the south.
When necessary, states take measures to control morning glory, particularly to protect agriculture throughout the state. They do this through measures known as "seed purity laws," based on the region, method efficiency, and the crops impacted.
For individuals, one of the most effective ways to control morning glory and its invasive variants (over 600 species worldwide) is to grow native plants by establishing a natural lawn or rewilding. The monocultural, invasive nature of morning glory is bolstered when it encounters a basic monoculture lawn. However, natural lawns create a dense, hyper-competitive environment that traditional, single-grass-type lawns can't match.
A native lawn can't eliminate morning glory on its own, but it can withstand the vine's constant bombardment of over 500 seeds per plant, long enough to allow for outside solutions.
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Native plant lawns alone are robust, low-maintenance, and require little water. Their native status was established long ago — the apex predators of their local environment.
Homeowners with monoculture lawns have little defense against morning glory, which can quickly take over and devastate local ecosystems, especially if anyone is growing food in the vicinity.
Fortunately, native plants and lawns are growing in popularity, with 1 in 3 people purchasing native plants, as opposed to traditional or purely decorative plants, according to the National Wildlife Federation.
"It can spread super fast, like what's seen in your photos," the initial response post continued, confirming morning glory's rapid growth capability.
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