Weed Wrangle® Grows in Thirteen States

December 13, 2018

Invasive Species Removed Weed by Weed

As humans have migrated around the world so, too, have plants. The result—invasives that choke the planet, threaten plant diversity and present a seemingly insurmountable problem. In her bestselling book, Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life, Anne Lamott wrote about her brother, who learned a life lesson while doing a massive homework assignment. Seized by writer’s block, brought on by the sheer size of a writing assignment about birds, he listened to his father’s advice to approach the task bird by bird. Applying the lesson, that many small tasks compound to achieve a larger goal, The Garden Club of Nashville founded Weed Wrangle®. This volunteer movement helps rescue public parks and green spaces from invasive species through hands-on removal, weed by weed. It is part of The Garden Club of America’s Partners for Plants program.

Weed Wrangle®, started in 2015, is a one day, city-wide event bringing together individuals and organizations to form a community partnership. The day is spent liberating green spaces and public parks, through hands-on removal of harmful trees, vines and flowering plants. Overseen by experts in the field of invasive weed management, Weed Wrangle® volunteers learn, practice, and begin to maintain an area devoid of invasive plants, while encouraging planting with natives in their place. By drawing in neighbors and encouraging them to take action in their own spaces, Weed Wrangle® seeks to drive a movement that will have the greatest impact on the invasive plant population. The program operates in 13 states and last year clocked 10,000 volunteer hours, pulled 46,700 invasive plants and replaced them with 812 native species.

The Tennessean, part of the USA Today Network, interviewed the organizers in a 2018 article. Click here to read Weed Wrangle® Pulls in Volunteers for Plant Removal at Area Parks.

According to the National Parks website, an invasive species is a non-native organism whose introduction causes or is likely to cause economic or environmental harm, or harm to human, animal, or plant health. It is often thought that the terms “invasive” and “non-native” can be used interchangeably, but this is not always true. For a plant or animal to be invasive, it must do harm. Click here and learn how to identify invasives state by state.

The Garden Club of America’s Partners for Plants Program promotes the removal of invasive plants on public lands and management of native plants and their habitats. The GCA also maintains a position paper on Native Plants.

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