Missourians Making a Difference: Interview with Valarie Kurre Photo of Valarie Kurre taken by Chancellor Kurre. What is your job title? How long have you been with SRISP, and what are your primary responsibilities? I am the Coordinator for the Scenic Rivers Invasive...
Invasive Plant Success Story: Kansas City WildLands Sites
With the ongoing challenge of controlling invasive plants in native habitats, along roadsides, on working lands, yards, around businesses, schools, and in parks, we can all use some good news! We hope that in reading these stories, you will have an added spring in...
Status of 2024 Missouri House and Senate Bills to Halt the Sale of Five Invasive Plants
The 2024 Missouri legislative session ended on May 17. Unfortunately, Missouri House Bill 2412 and Missouri Senate Bill 1281, to prohibit the sale of select invasive plants*, are now dead because they were not scheduled for votes on the House or the Senate floors....
Success Story: MoIP’s 2024 Callery Pear Buyback Program
MoIP Calley Pear "BuyBack" Program Expanded to 15 Cities in 2024 Looking for a creative way to call attention to the threat that non-native, invasive Callery pear trees pose to Missouri, in 2019 the Missouri Invasive Plant Council (MoIP) launched the...
April 24: Grow Native! Master Class: Restoring Remnant Woodlands in a Sea of Bush Honeysuckle
Many natural woodlands and shady landscapes are infested with invasive bush honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii), one of the biggest current threats to native woodland ecosystems. When mature, these highly aggressive invasive shrubs compete with native plants for sunlight,...
Missourians Making a Difference: Interview with Jerod Huebner
Missourians Making a Difference: Jerod Huebner, Director of Prairie Management, Missouri Prairie Foundation How long have you been with the Missouri Prairie Foundation (MPF) and what are your primary responsibilities? I have been with MPF for 8.5 years. I am in charge...
HB 2412 & SB 1281: Missouri Bills to Halt the Sale of Five Invasive Plants
Update as of March 7, 2024: Committee Hearing on SB 1281 Scheduled for March 12 In February 2024, the Missouri House Conservation & Natural Resources Committee unanimously passed HB 2412, the Invasive Plant Bill, out of committee, and it was subsequently...
Cancelled – Hearing for SB 1281 to prohibit sale of invasive plants
2/20/24 Update: This hearing is cancelled. A hearing has been set for Senate Bill (SB) 1281, creating provisions to prohibit the sale of select invasive plants, on Tuesday, February 20 at 9:15 a.m. by the Missouri Senate Agriculture, Food Production and Outdoor...
HB 2412 Invasive Plant Hearing – January 23, 2024
The Missouri House Conservation and Natural Resources Committee will hold a public hearing on Tuesday, January 23, 2024 at 2:00 p.m. or upon adjournment, whichever is later, in House Hearing Room 3 in the basement of the Missouri Capitol. (There will be three other...
Missourians Making a Difference: Interview with Kara Tvedt
Missourians Making a Difference: Kara Tvedt, Fisheries Biologist, Missouri Department of Conservation Throughout Missouri, there are many individuals making significant progress in the early detection and control of invasive plants. MoIP is pleased to highlight their...
Callery Pear Buyback 2024
Thanks to all who made our 2024 Buyback possible! Read a summary about this past event here. Registration and Sign-Up The Missouri Invasive Plant Council (MoIP), in partnership with Forest ReLeaf of Missouri, Forrest Keeling Nursery, and the Missouri Department of...
New MoIP Video – A Landowner Tour: Controlling Invasives
Identifying and controlling invasive plants on acreages large and small can be daunting. That is why the Missouri Invasive Plant Council (MoIP), administered by the Missouri Prairie Foundation, created a new landowner tour video to help landowners control invasive...
Missouri Legislation Filed to Halt the Sale of Five Invasive Plants
Sericea lespedeza, a highly invasive plant that can infest grasslands, pastures, rights-of-way, and other areas, is one of five species whose sale would be halted with the passage of Representative Sassmann's legislation filed on December 1, 2023. Locally and...
Fox 2 News Invasive Plant Action Awards Presentation
The Missouri Invasive Plant Council recognizes outstanding efforts to control invasive plants through its Invasive Plant Action Awards. This year's winners were featured on St. Louis Fox News on November 28. MoIP is incredibly grateful to Fox 2 News, Mr. John...
Missourians Making A Difference: Interview with Linda Lehrbaum
Missourians Making a Difference: Linda Lehrbaum, Program Manager of Kansas City Wildlands Photo Credit: Matt Garrett Throughout Missouri, there are many individuals making significant progress in the early detection and control of invasive plants. MoIP is pleased to...
Pear Buyback 2023
We wanted to take a moment and thank everyone who made the 2023 Pear Buyback possible. Because of you, we were able to remove hundreds of invasive Callery (Bradford) Pear trees all over Missouri! This is no small feat. This year, we had a total of nine sites around...
Presenting the 2023 Invasive Plant Action Awards Winners
Principia School of St. Louis is the winner in the Individual Organization category, awarded to an organization with outstanding contributions to the long-term management of invasive plant species and working to control the spread of invasive plants. Principia School...
Missourians Making a Difference: Interview with Angela Sokolowski
Missourians Making a Difference: Angela Sokolowski, Invasive Species Coordinator, Missouri Department of Conservation Throughout Missouri are many individuals making significant progress in the early detection and control of invasive plants. The Missouri Invasive...
Invasive to Watch This Month
Kudzu (Pueraria montana) is a climbing, semi-woody, perennial vine in the legume family. In Missouri, kudzu was planted along highways to control erosion mostly in select southern counties, mostly along highways and often draping over trees and other vegetation. It may be confused with other vines like native grape vines. Kudzu grows well under a wide range of conditions and in most soil types, except for saturated soils. Preferred habitats are forest edges, abandoned fields, roadsides, and disturbed areas, where sunlight is abundant.