In the hot, humid, "dog days" of summer, my morning routine has changed. I've been going out for a short, but relatively fast run, and stopping at the parking area by the creek for some yoga to stretch out before coming back up the hill out of the park. Sweating while practicing yoga in a studio doesn't appeal to me, but it's different outside under the morning sky, with a little bit of breeze. There, it feels very natural - just how the human body works on a hot day.
Porcelainberry is rampant in the park, a non-native, invasive species. The National Park Service describes it thusly:
"Porcelainberry is a vigorous invader of open and wooded habitats where it shades out native shrubs and young trees. As it spreads, it climbs over and blankets existing plants and weakens and kills them by blocking sunlight."
Whatever diseases or predators keep it in check in it's native habitat do not exist here. This time of year it grows rapidly, often overgrowing small shrubs and trees, turning them into mounds of porcelainberry leaves until the underlying plant dies.
My morning runs are also scouting expeditions for porcelainberry problems, and several mornings I've headed back out, after eating and getting dressed in my woods clothes, to liberate some plants from their smothering green blanket. I enjoy being out with the curious catbirds, the cardinals, robins, crows, moths and butterflies, and the singing cicadas out of sight high in the trees.
This morning I went to tackle a particularly bad area about a half mile upstream, and near the path. The vines covered the ground in a broad area, all the smaller shrubs, and one larger tree. I set to work pulling down the vines. Little by little, the underlying plants emerged. Most still had leaves, and I think they'll be fine, so long as the vines are kept off them. Several people called out as they walked by, most saying "thank you." It's very satisfying - wading into the mess and making it better.
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