12/11/2023
The Year of the Privet is a yearlong attack on the dreaded privet! Bringing together all the knowledge, skills, talent, equipment and manpower from the big nature preserves down to the little parks at the end of the street. A coordinated attack across the metroplex with multiple work locations each weekend. Anyone who wants to join the fight will have a place close to them. Some of the smaller parks might have their privet populations decimated in a weekend whereas some of the larger locations, with repeated events, could make progress only dreamt of!
Why? It’s a matter of regaining the functional integrity of our open natural spaces. Privet infestations usually create a monoculture, outcompeting the native species of our region, reducing the biodiversity and altering habitats. The herbaceous and shrub layer like coral berry, beauty berry, and pigeon berry are all but lost. Understory trees like mulberry, redbud, and Mexican plum have a hard time surviving as well as species of trees that will eventually grow tall enough to reach the canopy.
The Vision
The vision is to make an all-out assault on Chinese privet during 2024. A schedule of events will be made that will include all organizations that are wanting to be a part of this regional effort. Managers and/or caretakers of these areas will contribute their knowledge of their privet control needs. Locations will be categorized by a variety of factors, particularly by methods allowed or restrictions in place. The categories will evolve as we learn what works and what doesn’t. Sub-regions will be determined and an inventory of available tools that can move around from site to site will be created.
The How
Anyone who is involved with this work knows that it happens on the backs of volunteers. There are so many natural areas in DFW and most of them have their own dedicated group of caretakers. This is an army just waiting to be called to action. Each location has at least one strong individual who pushes their project along. From these strong individuals, leaders for the various sub-regions will rise to the challenge. Beyond the leaders are all the other volunteers. Many are dedicated to their small piece of nature but more have a much broader vision and enjoy the occasional change of scenery.
These volunteers, the ones already engaged will be easy to recruit to the cause. We will, however, need more. This is where the magic of a “regional effort” comes into play. The Year of the Privet will spread across the social media feeds of naturalists like wildfire. This will spread, just like a fire, into the feeds of others, eventually it will be picked up by the local news media and then, all the groups will descend to help: scouting groups, church groups, high school clubs, college volunteer organizations, hiking and other outdoor activity groups, etc. We will show them how to take back their local parks and natural areas. People will be introduced to their local gems of nature that they never knew they had. They will see what happens when no one pays attention and then shown what to do to fix it.
And Then What?
Like most restoration efforts, this is not a “one and done” kind of activity. Severe infestations will take many many years to achieve a state of control and total eradication is unlikely except in smaller areas. Continued monitoring of areas is key to preventing secondary infestations. Seed banks in the soils are massive. Removal of newly germinated plants is the key to control. Timing is somewhat loose, essentially sometime prior to the plant maturing enough to bloom (approx. 5 years). In areas where extreme loss of the vegetative understory has occurred, ideally native plants will be installed.
What is Needed?
This won’t happen without the above mentioned volunteers. But that isn’t all we need.
1) Staff from some of the participating locations will hopefully be allowed to spend some of their time and skills to help organize all of this with volunteers filling in the gaps.
2) While some orgs can financially provide anything they need for their locations, the increased volume of privet being controlled may push their budgetary limits and may be beyond the scope of some of the smaller locations. Financial sponsors will help make this effort a reality. Cash is king but donations of supplies are just as good.
3) Methods of disposal will need to be determined based on site specifications. Burning, chipping with either reuse of chips or trips to a landfill (another possible partner, i.e. in-kind donation of free dumping?) This also includes the need for chippers and chipper operators or some other method of removal like dump trucks. Hopefully local municipalities can schedule some of their staff and equipment for these purposes. Additional contributors could include ROW operations or tree removal companies.
4) Megaphones. Not an actual ones but people to shout to the mountains!
5) Live plants or seeds to fill the voids created. This is where financial sponsors will really help. Conversations with local nurseries could prepare them to gear up with native understory plants. Perhaps this could increase their ability to provide the general public and contractors with quality native understory plants in a retail setting, normalizing the use of plants that should already be in use.
There are a lot of details not included at this point. As we gather partners together and discuss just how this can work, the details will arise. I may be good but I’m not going to think of everything.
Now what?
We need to make a list of as many groups that are actively working to control privet. A couple meetings need to take place in December or January for the leaders of these groups. A Saturday morning and a weekday evening. Maybe even more than two since DFW is rather large and we want as many leaders as possible. Initial schedules need to be made since 2024 is just around the corner. LLELA already has a 1st Saturday Exotic species removal day so Jan 6th. The Ned and Genie Fritz Buck Eye Trail in South Dallas is usually the second Saturdays, but in Jan is on the 20th . That’s just two events in January but I’m sure there is more. If not, I’m sure we can change that. I’m willing to put myself out there and I come with not a small number of tools and perhaps I’ll have a small caravan of volunteers behind me. Lets do this!
