Invasive species pose one of the most immediate threats to woodlot and forest health and long-term productivity. They often go unnoticed until they are well established and causing a problem. At this point they are both difficult and expensive to control. Without a clear plan to manage them, invasive plants and pathogens can spread quickly and render planned tending and management activities inadvisable.

Invasive plant species include dog-strangling vine, garlic mustard, Phragmites, and giant hogweed. In addition, plant management can also extend to problematic native species like poison ivy.

FSmith Consulting Inc. provides the expertise, experience, and equipment to efficiently and effectively develop and implement control measures to keep your woodlot healthy and thriving. Developing an invasive species management strategy is an important tool. Many aspects of the strategy can be easily incorporated into existing forest management practices, such as monitoring, tending, and thinning operations.

We employ a number of control methods, including mechanical, physical, and herbicide. Herbicides are a valuable tool that can be very effective when correctly used. They are only suitable in specific situations and under the right conditions. FSmith Consulting Inc. can provide advice and recommendations if herbicide control is a option for your property.

For the management of terrestrial invasive plants, we avoid the use of glyphosate, which is broadly toxic to all manner of plants. Simply put, glyphosate works too well; it kills everything green, from grasses to trees. Our approach is different - we use the least toxic, most effective, and most affordable means to manage invasives for the long term. We generally use selective, systemic options which inhibit photosynthesis in the target plant and leave other desirable plants unharmed. This allows adjacent native grasses, sedges, and dormant spring ephemeral flowers to remain and flourish. This is the most recognized, least harmful, and most effective treatment option.