Numerous plants have been introduced to West Virginia in the United States, and many of them have become invasive species.
The following are some of invasive plant species established in West Virginia:
Picture | Scientific Name | Common Name |
---|---|---|
Ajuga reptans | bugle | |
Akebia quinata | chocolate vine | |
Alliaria petiolata | garlic mustard | |
Arctium minus | lesser burdock | |
Bidens aristosa | bearded beggarticks | |
Bromus tectorum | drooping brome | |
Buddleja davidii | summer lilac | |
Carduus acanthoides | spiny plumeless thistle | |
Carduus crispus | curly plumeless thistle | |
Carduus nutans | musk thistle | |
Centaurea jacea | brown knapweed | |
Cirsium arvense | Canada thistle | |
Cirsium vulgare | spear thistle | |
Convolvulus arvensis | field bindweed | |
Dioscorea polystachya | Chinese yam | |
Dipsacus fullonum | wild teasel | |
Elaeagnus umbellata | Japanese silverberry | |
Euphorbia cyparissias | cypress spurge | |
Hedera helix | common ivy | |
Hesperis matronalis | dame's rocket | |
Inula helenium | horse-heal | |
Isatis tinctoria | woad | |
Lespedeza cuneata | Chinese bushclover | |
Ligustrum vulgare | common privet | |
Lonicera japonica | Japanese honeysuckle | |
Lonicera maackii | Amur honeysuckle | |
Lotus corniculatus | common bird's-foot trefoil | |
Miscanthus sinensis | maiden silvergrass | |
Myriophyllum spicatum | Eurasian watermilfoil | |
Phragmites | ||
Pyrus calleryana | callery pear | |
Rhamnus cathartica | buckthorn | |
Rhodotypos scandens | jetbead | |
Rubus laciniatus | cutleaf evergreen blackberry | |
Salix × fragilis | crack willow | |
Securigera varia | crownvetch | |
Solanum dulcamara | bittersweet | |
Sorbus aucuparia | rowan | |
Stellaria media | chickweed | |
Tanacetum vulgare | common tansy | |
Tussilago | coltsfoot | |
Verbascum thapsus | great mullein | |
Vinca minor | lesser periwinkle | |
Wisteria sinensis | Chinese wisteria |
Cornus florida, the flowering dogwood, is a species of flowering tree in the family Cornaceae native to eastern North America and northern Mexico. An endemic population once spanned from southernmost coastal Maine south to northern Florida and west to the Mississippi River. The tree is commonly planted as an ornamental in residential and public areas because of its showy bracts and interesting bark structure.
Betula nigra, the black birch, river birch or water birch, is a species of birch native to the Eastern United States from New Hampshire west to southern Minnesota, and south to northern Florida and west to Texas. It is one of the few heat-tolerant birches in a family of mostly cold-weather trees which do not thrive in USDA Zone 6 and up. B. nigra commonly occurs in floodplains and swamps.
Triadica sebifera is a tree native to eastern China. It is commonly called Chinese tallow, Chinese tallowtree, Florida aspen, chicken tree, gray popcorn tree, or candleberry tree.
Pinus contorta, with the common names lodgepole pine and shore pine, and also known as twisted pine, and contorta pine, is a common tree in western North America. It is common near the ocean shore and in dry montane forests to the subalpine, but is rare in lowland rain forests. Like all pines, it is an evergreen conifer.
Pinus serotina, the pond pine, black bark pine, bay pine,marsh pine, or pocosin pine, is a pine tree found along the Southeastern portion of the Atlantic coastal plain of the United States, from southern New Jersey south to Florida and west to southern Alabama. Pond pine distribution may be starting to spread west towards Mississippi and Tennessee.
Pinus ponderosa, commonly known as the ponderosa pine, bull pine, blackjack pine, western yellow-pine, or filipinus pine is a very large pine tree species of variable habitat native to mountainous regions of western North America. It is the most widely distributed pine species in North America.
Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), formerly known as the Soil Conservation Service (SCS), is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) that provides technical assistance to farmers and other private landowners and managers.
Paulownia tomentosa, common names princess tree, empress tree, or foxglove-tree, is a deciduous hardwood tree in the family Paulowniaceae, native to central and western China. It is an extremely fast-growing tree with seeds that disperse readily, and is a persistent exotic invasive species in North America, where it has undergone naturalisation in large areas of the Eastern US. P. tomentosa has also been introduced to Western and Central Europe, and is establishing itself as a naturalised species there as well.
Parthenocissus quinquefolia, known as Virginia creeper, Victoria creeper, five-leaved ivy, or five-finger, is a species of flowering vine in the grape family, Vitaceae. It is native to eastern and central North America, from southeastern Canada and the eastern United States west to Manitoba and Utah, and south to eastern Mexico and Guatemala.
The blue spruce, also commonly known as green spruce, Colorado spruce, or Colorado blue spruce, is a species of spruce tree. It is native to North America, and is found in USDA growing zones 1 through 7. It is found naturally in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming. It has been widely introduced elsewhere and is used as an ornamental tree in many places far beyond its native range. The blue spruce has blue-green colored needles and is a coniferous tree.
Imperata cylindrica is a species of perennial rhizomatous grass native to tropical and subtropical Asia, Micronesia, Melanesia, Australia, Africa, and Southern Europe. It has also been introduced to Latin America, the Caribbean, and the Southeastern United States. It is a highly flammable pyrophyte, and can spread rapidly by colonizing disturbed areas and encouraging more frequent wildfires.
Prosopis glandulosa, commonly known as honey mesquite, is a species of small to medium-sized, thorny shrub or tree in the legume family (Fabaceae).
Halesia tetraptera, commonly known as the common silverbell or mountain silverbell, is a species in the family Styracaceae, native to the southeastern United States. It is cultivated as an ornamental tree.
The brown marmorated stink bug is an insect in the family Pentatomidae, native to China, Japan, Korea, and other Asian regions. In September 1998, it was collected in Allentown, Pennsylvania, where it is believed to have been accidentally introduced. The nymphs and adults of the brown marmorated stink bug feed on over 100 species of plants, including many agricultural crops, and by 2010–11 had become a season-long pest in orchards in the Eastern United States. In 2010, in the Mid-Atlantic United States, $37 million in apple crops were lost, and some stone fruit growers lost more than 90% of their crops. Since the 2010s, the bug has spread to the nation of Georgia and Turkey and caused extensive damage to hazelnut production. It is now established in many parts of North America, and has recently become established in Europe and South America.
Amelanchier canadensis is a species of Amelanchier native to eastern North America in Canada from Newfoundland west to southern Ontario, and in the United States from Maine south to Alabama. It is largely restricted to wet sites, particularly on the Atlantic coastal plain, growing at altitudes from sea level up to 200 m.
Lonicera maackii, the Amur honeysuckle, is a species of honeysuckle in the family Caprifoliaceae that is native to temperate eastern Asia; specifically in northern and western China south to Yunnan, Mongolia, Primorsky Krai in southeastern Siberia, Korea, and, albeit rare there, central and northern Honshū, Japan.
Christmas tree cultivation is an agricultural, forestry, and horticultural occupation which involves growing pine, spruce, and fir trees specifically for use as Christmas trees.
Sabal palmetto, also known as cabbage palm, cabbage palmetto, sabal palm, blue palmetto, Carolina palmetto, common palmetto, Garfield's tree, and swamp cabbage, is one of 15 species of palmetto palm. It is native to the Southern United States, the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico, and the West Indies.
Rhus copallinum, the winged sumac, shining sumac, dwarf sumac or flameleaf sumac, is a species of flowering plant in the cashew family (Anacardiaceae) that is native to eastern North America. It is a deciduous tree growing to 3.5–5.5 metres (11–18 ft) tall and an equal spread with a rounded crown. A 5-year-old sapling will stand about 2.5 metres (8.2 ft).
Invasive species are a significant threat to many native habitats and species of the United States and a significant cost to agriculture, forestry, and recreation. The term "invasive species" can refer to introduced/naturalized species, feral species, or introduced diseases. Some introduced species, such as the dandelion, do not cause significant economic or ecologic damage and are not widely considered as invasive. Economic damages associated with invasive species' effects and control costs are estimated at $120 billion per year.