Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Battling buckthorn
It’s that time of year… although the cold and snow are early, the Buckthorn shrub/small tree still holds it’s leaves. Which makes it a great target! This terribly invasive shrub is easily visible this time of year as it holds it’s leaves and berries longer than most.
Buckthorn takes over our native plants and shrubs and is NOT good for birds. It’s not poisonous, it just doesn’t give them any nutrition as they don’t absorb it. They poop it out almost as fast as they eat it. That means they carry the seeds off somewhere and let nature do it’s thing by reseeding it elsewhere. Buckthorn in Wisconsin. WisDNR – click on the website for more pictures and information.
The Minnesota DNR has some great information about Buckthorn from identifying the beast in your backyard to how to control it. Here’s another article from the University of Minnesota Extension on Buckthorn Control.
The most environmentally friendly ways to deal with this invasive is with goats! The City of Northfield did a pilot program. The goats don’t get it all but the humans follow up with tools!
