Frightening Fountain Grass

Local high school students say farewell to fountain grass at Halloween volunteer event. By Darrell King, BTN Communications Intern On Halloween volunteers from Santiago High School National Honor Society in Garden Grove, CA assisted Back to Natives by digging up tons of fountain grass, an invasive species that harms the environment in Santiago Park. Originally native to Africa and the Middle East, fountain grass was introduced because of its popularity as an ornamental plant. In California it is spreading (by vehicles, humans, wind, and water) along the coast…

Biological Pollution: non-native Plants

Invasive non-native organisms are one of the greatest threats to the natural ecosystems of the U.S. and are destroying America’s natural history and identity. These unwelcome plants, insects and other organisms are disrupting the ecology of natural ecosystems, displacing native plant and animal species, and degrading our nation’s unique and diverse biological resources. Aggressive invaders reduce the amount of light, water, nutrients and space available to native species, alter hydrological patterns, soil chemistry, moisture-holding capacity, and erodibility, and change fire regimes. Some exotics are capable of hybridizing with native…