Burning Bush Leaves a Scar

Script by Francie Von Mertens

New Hampshire's reputation for its glorious fall foliage is well deserved. But there's a growing number of us who are working hard to make it a little less glorious. And we have the blisters and scratches to prove it.

It turns out that burning bush euonymus, one of the most popular landscaping shrubs, is spreading aggressively to natural areas. So much so that it's one of 35 non-native plants whose sale and transport is now illegal in New Hampshire. We earn our blisters and scratches as we tug and lop and saw to remove this flame red shrub when it sprouts where not invited.

Most non-native, introduced plants aren't pushy; they fit in well with their neighbors. But a few take over the neighborhood. They bear a lot of seeds that birds distribute, create a dense, spreading root mass, and grow in shade or sun. A few even secrete a toxic substance that makes it hard for other plants to grow. It seems that no disease or insect or browsing animal keeps them in check.

On their home ground, invasive plants respect a balance that takes thousands of years to establish. But when introduced to a new ecosystem with a different balance, they outcompete the locals. Nationwide, billions of dollars are spent annually to combat invasive species that are taking over waterways, farmland and forests, and destroying wildlife habitat.

New Hampshire is among the first states to address this serious threat to the natural order by restricting the sale and transport of the most invasive plants. That's something to celebrate, along with the glorious fall foliage of our native trees.