BEACH VITEX SYMPOSIUM March 10, :00 3:00 Kimbel Lodge Minutes

Transcription

1 BEACH VITEX SYMPOSIUM March 10, :00 3:00 Kimbel Lodge Minutes Welcome: Betsy Brabson, SC Beach Vitex Task Force Beach Vitex History on SC Coast: Tommy Socha, US Army Corps of Engineers Tommy Socha, the first to raise a concern about beach vitex (BV), gave a presentation on a $50 million Corps project from N. Myrtle Beach to Garden City Beach. He demonstrated how this successful mile project involved beach renourishment, sand fencing, careful planting, fertilization and watering of native dune plants. The photos showed substantial sand accumulation in less than a year. Plants left over from the project were planted in front of a house at Pawleys Island in May 95. At this time, Socha noticed a vine with a purple flower growing below the high tide line and among the sea oats and bitter panicum. Socha invited several plant specialists to look at BV in the winter of 96 to see if it might be a good dune stabilization plant. After careful observation, it was agreed that this was an invasive plant, it had choked out the natives, and it was forming a monoculture. There was no federal program at that time to deal with invasives such as beach vitex. By 2003, it became apparent that BV was a possible threat to sea turtle nesting. Because the plant now impacted a federally threatened species, it gave more of a need for action and by this time there was a federal program to deal with invasive species. Socha suggested the planting of sweetgrass on the back side of the secondary dunes. This would be an attractive, native plant as well as provide the basket -weaving community with a new source for their craft. John Brubaker, SCNPS, agreed this was a good idea and cited Muhlenbergia filipes as the correct species. Task Force Update: Betsy Brabson, coordinator Brabson gave a presentation on SC Beach Vitex Task Force accomplishments over the past 16 months including: volunteer participation in documenting plantings and seedling removal, mapping of locations, research and control demonstrations, plant ID workshops, outreach and media coverage. She said the goals for the upcoming season were continued documentation of BV locations, seedling removal and education; more control test sites; ecological and regulatory assessments and exploring funding opportunities for cost share with property owners in restoration of the dunes. Outreach: Jennifer Koches, US Fish and Wildlife Service Jennifer Koches was unable to attend but Betsy Brabson thanked her for development of a display for the Southeastern Wildlife Expo and printing of a comprehensive brochure. Koches has also helped remove seedlings on Hobcaw Beach, participated in plant ID workshops, attended the NC BV Symposium and contacted the Post and Courier (Charleston) about BV which resulted in a feature article in that newspaper July 9, 2004.

2 Detection and Reporting: Sally Murphy, SC DNR Murphy spoke of the importance of sea turtle volunteers in documenting locations of BV. She wants volunteers to be able to accurately identify the plant. The Sea Turtle Spring Training Workshop will be on April 15 at Ft. Johnson in Charleston. John Brubaker, SC Native Plant Society, and Betsy Brabson will instruct project leaders in how to distinguish BV from other native dune plants. Murphy said for the beaches not covered by sea turtle volunteers, that there are DNR personnel surveying for other purposes such as shore birds. She will instruct them to be also looking for BV. She stressed that it is crucial for the plant to be stopped primarily because of its threat to sea turtle nesting habitat. Training/Plant ID Workshops: John Brubaker, SC Native Plant Society The first Plant ID Workshop, held in May 03, was initiated by Steve Roff and Mike Walker from Huntington Beach State Park. Brubaker conducted workshops at Seabrook Island and Hilton Head Island. He wants people to be confident in identifying BV which is often confused with 6 other native dune plants. He encourages people to report the plant rather than digging it up. Brubaker had cuttings of BV laminated at Staples and feels these are good field guides and easy for turtle volunteers to carry on their walks. He will laminate 25 more for the project leaders at the Sea Turtle Workshop in April. He remarked that he was available for more workshops. Mapping/Webpage: Laura Schmidt, NI-WB NERR Schmidt sees the need for a uniform mapping system using GPS coordinates rather than street addresses which are not always accurate. She needs GPS coordinates on the Garden City and North Island locations of BV. Schmidt felt it would be helpful to develop a standardized reporting form for BV locations that could be downloaded from the webpage. She suggested listing the extent of the BV (seedling, mature plant, large colony, etc.), location (beachfront vs. street), contact (homeowner, volunteer, task force member) and action taken. Brabson and Schmidt will work up such a form for the webpage. It was suggested that NC also be added to the mapping of BV locations to which Laura agreed. The webpage, hosted by NI-WB NERR s website, will be reformatted making links to updates, research papers, photos, etc. rather than viewed by scrolling. Research: Chuck Gresham, Clemson University Gresham gave details on his research last summer 04 with SC Governor s School student Amber Neal. They used 9 test sites (Litchfield, Pawleys Is. and DeBordieu), counted plant stems by species, measured stem growth and fruit density, took soil samples and gathered litter layer, took PAR measurements at 3 sites and sunk plexiglass plates to measure sand trapping ability. Gresham and Neal found there were few other plants where BV was growing. BV produces 10,000-22,000 seeds per sq. meter. It deprives other plants of sunlight and water (which beaded up-produces hydrophobic soil). Allelopathic relation was not strong but Gresham plans to refine that test. Plates sunk on the dunes will be inspected in the near future for sand trapping ability. Some plates have been lost due to storms eroding the dunes. Greenhouse experiments yielded poor germination of seedlings. Efforts to find out if birds eat BV seeds using a motion-

3 activated scouting camera were non-conclusive. Someone at the NC BV meeting remarked they had noticed cardinals and squirrels eating BV seeds. He suggested either getting rid of BV or trying to contain it to property lines, keeping it off the front dune and away from sea turtle nesting habitat. He will test alternate plant species this summer as replacements for BV. A photo was shown where BV seemed to extend further seaward than the dunes covered with native species. Ecological Assessment: Randy Westbrooks, U.S. Geological Survey, Biological Resources Discipline, Whiteville, North Carolina. Westbrooks used beach vitex as a major example of why we need a national pre-screening system to keep invasive species from entering the United States. For introduced species like beach vitex that do become established, it is far less expensive to detect and eradicate them early. In order to fully succeed, it is important for the BV Task Force to establish a good relationship with the Carolina horticulture industry. They will need to stop selling beach vitex, but they can sell other native dune plants that are more beneficial in controlling erosion this is clearly a win-win outcome for industry and the task force. In conducting the assessment, Westbrooks learned that beach vitex, considered a sandbinder in Asia, occurs as a native plant on 48% of coastal dunes in Korea. The native range is Japan to Australia. Viable seeds and stem fragments are spread by ocean currents. It forms low thickets with a tight leaf canopy that causes sand to blow over the top of the plant instead of being trapped to build a dune. It is also used as a medicinal herb in Japan, China and Korea. Currently, beach vitex is found in South Carolina (70+ Sites), North Carolina, Alabama (at least one site on Dauphin Island), and possibly in Florida. Based on its native range from Japan to Australia, it could grow well in 1/3 2/3 of southern U.S. coastal zones. Beach vitex is invasive because it forms monocultures, crowds out natives; is a prolific seed producer; is fast growing; produces hydrophobic soil which discourages seed germination and growth of other species; shades out native plants; releases toxic compounds from its roots, and is wind and salt spray tolerant. Beach vitex has the ability to establish free-living colonies with seeds and root fragments being spread by waves and currents. It degrades sea turtle nesting habitat and hatchling emergence. Westbrooks feels that real estate values will ultimately be decreased by the presence of BV on dunes. He said removal of seedlings by volunteers should continue. Using the APHIS Weed Risk Assessment System, Westbrooks came up with a mediumhigh rating for BV, which is normally sufficient for listing a new species as a Federal Noxious Weed. However, in order to determine if BV can be listed as a State and Federal Noxious Weed by Clemson, NCDA, and APHIS, we will need to determine the total extent of the infestation in the Carolinas and elsewhere. Regardless of whether beach vitex is listed as a regulated Noxious Weed, he does think it is important for OCRM to put it on a DO NOT PLANT list for the dunes, or at a minimum, to strongly discourage its use as a landscape plant on primary and secondary dunes. Beach vitex should also be banned from coastal dunes in North Carolina as well. He is in the process of completing the APHIS Weed Risk Assessment for beach vitex, and will continue to

4 evaluate the plant using the NatureServe Invasive Plant Ranking System, the New Zealand Weed Risk Assessment System, and the Australia Weed Risk Assessment System. Dr. Bran Cromer and a graduate student assisted the assessment effort through literature reviews and translation of Korean journal articles on beach vitex. Dr. Westbrooks recommendations for the Task Force are to: - Seek additional funding for task force activities. - Submit the BV Risk Assessment to USDA APHIS and Clemson University for listing on State/Federal Noxious Weed List. - Document the extent of infestations in N.C; once that is completed, submit the assessment to the North Carolina Department of Agriculture for consideration in listing as a State Noxious Weed. - Seek federal funding for a BV Eradication and Dune Restoration program through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - Seek funding for BV Eradication through APHIS, Clemson, and NCDA, if the plant is listed as a State and Federal Noxious Weed. Control: Jack Whetstone, Clemson University Whetstone introduced Payton Parsons, Parsons Nursery, as a representative of the nursery industry and past president of the SC Nursery and Landscaping Assoc. Parsons said he realized how aggressive BV was and stopped using it. He has not noticed the plant on any lists lately. Whetstone explained that using herbicides to eradicate BV has advantages over digging it out. He said it is less intrusive and accepted for invasives. Herbicide types can be either broad spectrum (kills everything) or broadleaf herbicide (allows grasses to come back); and also either contact or systemic. It can be applied by injection, foliar spray, basal application and soil application. Whetstone and Larry Nelson, Clemson University, sprayed a test site using 4 different herbicides: Glysophate, Imazapyr, Triclopyr and 2,4- D. They were chosen because they have an aquatic label, are broad spectrum (Glyphosate and Imazapyr), or broad leaf only (Triclopyr and 2,4-D), have unrestricted use and a short half-life. Dr. Whitwell discussed his laboratory/growth chamber experiments and his attempt at BV control at Litchfield. Dr. Whitwell found that the seeds of BV, while numerous, do not readily germinate. There appears to be a relationship with a need for cold hardening. Temperatures under 40 degrees F. appear to be needed over a period of time for germination. Dr. Whitwell removed BV from an area at North Litchfield in December and painted the cut stumps with glyphosate to treat the root systems. A problem with the removal was where to remove the debris to and how the debris was processed. There is a concern that as yard debris the BV would reroot. The compost method must exceed the 140-degree minimum temperature process to stop rerooting. The other alternative is to treat BV as Construction/Demolition Waste and bury it or incinerate it. Jack said the BV Symposium was held a month too early to determine which herbicide was most effective because BV greens up in early April.

5 Lunch: 12:15 p.m. 1:00 p.m. Beach Vitex in NC: Dale Suiter, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Suiter gave some early history of beach vitex compiled by Richard Olsen, NCSU Horticulture Dept. It was first introduced in 1955 in the US. The NCSU Arboretum began promoting BV in the late 1980s. In 2004 the SC Beach Vitex Task Force raised awareness and the plant was discovered in NC. In 2005 the NC Beach Vitex Task Force was formed. Known locations of BV are: Nags Head/Dare County??, Atlantic Beach, Topsail Is., Figure Eight Island, Wrightsville Beach, Fort Fisher, Bald Head Is., Long Beach, Holden Beach and Ocean Isle. Dale showed a number of photographs of infestations along the NC coast at these locations citing one that had recently been planted. From some of the photos of roots, Suiter does not believe BV is a good sand binder. Other states that have BV are GA, FL and AL. Beach vitex poses a threat to native dune vegetation: sea oats, bitter panicum, sea beach amaranth and dune blue curls. Marine and coastal animals at risk are: sea turtles, colonial water birds and Radio Island skippers (butterflies). Suiter emphasized the importance of planting native species during restoration. He mentioned that he had had BV seeds floating in a jar on his desk for 3 mos. He felt this simulated a long float time in the ocean s currents. David Nash, NC Cooperative Extension Service Nash began discouraging use of beach vitex in He has done extensive dune restoration work using sea oats and other native dune plants. He developed a production system using indigenous sea oats (gathered from within 50 mi.) and growing them using a float method in his greenhouse on Oak Island. Nash is not in favor of herbicide use if it can be avoided and feels hand removal is a possible method for BV removal. He feels the nursery industry will support our efforts if asked to discontinue selling BV. When asked if $25,000 was a realistic price per acre to replant dunes, Nash said it was if the work was contracted out. He advocated using volunteer labor which would cut the cost in half or by 60%. He cited using volunteers, working from 8 a.m.-3 p.m. that 18,000 plants could planted. He said volunteers are easy to get to plant sea oats but that it is best to do in the cooler temperatures of the day. Service clubs, garden clubs and scout troops are good groups to use. The media is also helpful in getting the word out. Nash suggested growing our own plants to save money and that he could teach us his method. He harvests the seeds in September, puts them in cold stratification and then into float cultivation around Valentines. SC will need about 2 million plants for 100 acres. The best planting time is late spring/early summer. A variety of native plants should be used including: sea oats, bitter panicum, sea shore elder and spartina patens. It takes about 21, 800 plants per acre. Nash suggests digging an 8 deep hole and adding 1 level tsp. of Osmokote ( ) fertilizer. No irrigation is needed if the dunes are planted properly. When asked about survival rates on large plantings, Nash said he had better than 95% success and that it quickly builds dunes. A beach vitex workshop will be held at Fort Fisher Aquarium on June 23. David will take the lead in developing the NC Beach Vitex Task Force and asked that we share information and mapping of BV locations. Laura Schmidt, NI-WB NERR, agreed to take that responsibility.

6 Long Term Funding Strategy: Dave Gordon, US Fish and Wildlife Service Gordon explained the Coastal Ecosystems Program saying it was developed to help in balancing coastal conservation with economic development. The trend shows a substantial increase in the number of people living in coastal areas. If current trends continue, 75% of the population will live in these areas by The SC Coastal Ecosystems Program protects and restores nationally significant habitat in the 5 major coastal watersheds through voluntary partnerships with state agencies, other federal agencies, non-government organizations, business partners and landowners. Gordon feels the Coastal Program is a good match for the BV issue and that the current administration favors these types of partnerships. The invasive species issue is one of the USFWS priorities for the next 5 years. The national funding level is based on need and Congressional interest. Gordon is willing to be more involved in the BV issue than in the past. He usually has funding available in his existing budget and from the national office/invasive species. He mentioned grant opportunities other than the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. Gordon has experience in going to the Hill to request funding. When asked about producing a training video for BV, he said they have requested funding in this years budget. He said they have produced several videos during the past 10 years through the Winyah Bay Focus Area Task Force and this group is willing to help produce a beach vitex video. They have contracted the work out to a TN firm who produces broadcast quality productions. The Winyah Bay Focus Area Task Force has a lot of file footage archived with the TN firm that would help save time and money for a new production. The Winyah Bay Focus Area Task Force could help produce a stand alone beach vitex video as a spin-off of a larger video production they have planned on the overall invasive species issues in the Winyah Bay Ecosystem. Adjourn: Betsy Brabson Planning Session: 3:00 p.m. 4:00 p.m. Sally Murphy, Randy Westbrooks, Dave Gordon, Jack Whetstone, Chuck Gresham, John Brubaker, Dale Suiter, David Nash, Laura Schmidt, Ted Whitwell,, Anna Toline, Betsy Brabson Betsy Brabson said that a representative from Sen. Lindsey Graham s office, Susan Chapman, attended the morning session and was very interested in the BV issue. She owns a house at Bald Head Island and is familiar with BV. She wants us to keep her updated on our progress. Westbrooks and Betsy invited Sen. Graham to tour some BV locations the next time he is in the area. Sea Turtle Volunteers: Sally Murphy felt that locations of BV would be documented by mid-july. After some consideration, Murphy felt the best system was for volunteers to report a possible location, have a botanist positively ID it, take a GPS reading and send the coordinates to Betsy Brabson. She would forward them to Laura Schmidt to be added to the GIS database. Murphy would like to have brochures to hand out at her Spring Sea Turtle Workshop April 15. FWS will print more of the ones that Jennifer Koches designed for the Southeastern Wildlife Expo. BV partners could be listed on the mostly blank back page. The brochure could also be adapted for the NC BV Task Force. Murphy

7 will find out which projects do not have GPS units so Brabson can purchase them as well as 50 ft. tapes. Disposable cameras could be purchased for the Pawleys, Litchfield and DeBordieu volunteers. If a sea turtle came in contact with BV, the volunteer could take photographs of the turtle s reaction to the plant. Because there is no actual data on sea turtles encountering beach vitex, Anna Toline thought it would be a good idea to obtain data on the effects of BV on turtle nesting behavior. Toline suggested that the volunteers could easily note where false crawls occurred and note whether or not it was in a BV location. This would initiate a data set that could quantify, to some extent, the effect of BV on turtle nesting behavior with limited effort by the volunteers. Murphy and Toline will discuss this at the meeting in April. Murphy suggested that some theoretical nests could be put near a stand of BV. They could be observed to determine if, over time, the plant grew over or into the chamber. Mapping: Brabson and Schmidt will work on developing a standard form for reporting locations of BV to be posted on the webpage so it can be downloaded. Funding: Dave Gordon said USFWS can help fund programs in both NC/SC but the amount of assistance is contingent on funds being available in any given year at the field level. Sea Grant can fund training materials, workshops and train sea turtle volunteers. He said a comprehensive budget is needed. The budget for a video would be about $15,000- $20,000. Randy Westbrooks suggested the BV/NFWF grant could help pay a part of the cost. Research: During the summer of 2005, researchers at the Belle W. Baruch Institute of Coastal Ecology and Forest Science will continue their projects seeking to understand the biology and control of beach vitex. Specifically, greenhouse and laboratory studies will attempt to better define any allelopathic relations between Beach Vitex and Sea Oats and between vitex and garden vegetables as a bioassay. These tests will examine the sources of allelochem and their effects on target species growth and the production of hydrophobic soils. On the beaches, sand accumulation measurements will continue, measurement of the ability of vitex to protect dunes from wave-caused erosion will be established, vitex root biomass will be described, the success of hand removal of vitex will be monitored and a replicated test of vitex replacement methods will be installed. We will examine three herbicide application methods that are all appropriate to the windy conditions of front beach dunes and hand removal followed by stump herbicide application. All of these treatments will be planted with one of two species combinations in the fall. Finally we will test methods of eliminating vitex seedlings colonizing new front beach areas. Dr. Courtney Murren of the College of Charleston will begin her work on the genotypic dynamics of the species to determine if the genetic composition of beach vitex has been altered since its introduction to the United States. She will also examine methods of natural regeneration via seed.

8 Anna Toline suggested that ongoing research projects be posted on the webpage. Sally Murphy suggested that an abstract written by the researcher could accompany the research list. Control: Jack Whetstone expressed the need for additional funding for control. He, Larry Nelson and Ted Whitwell would like to replicate some of their work. They would also like to find some alternatives to chemical use. Additional funding will be needed if we are going to grow our own dune plants. Whitwell needs $8000-$10,000 to get started and rent a greenhouse. Dave Gordon said he may be able to help. Anna Toline feels we can pull together volunteers for eradication/restoration. Plant ID Workshops: Help is needed in documenting BV locations where there are no sea turtle volunteers, particularly the north part of the coast. Gary Forrester, Clemson, can contact Master Gardeners to document. The North Strand Master Gardener Assoc. was also suggested. A member, Nancy Edelman, contacted Betsy Brabson on March 7 to say the group was interested in BV and a focus this year was to learn more about invasive plants. She invited Brabson to come speak at one of the Association s meetings. Brabson wrote her and suggested a Plant ID workshop for the group. Sally Murphy suggested contacting trash collectors and beach services that drive on the beach to help document BV locations. Bob Schuhmacher, who attended the symposium, is a retired botanist and interested in helping the Task Force. He told John Brubaker he would do some drawings of BV and was available to help at Plant ID Workshops. Etc.: Lin Roth mentioned during the discussions earlier in the day that she thought it would be good to have a comprehensive natural history review of BV. She would like to do some experiments with BV roots. Anna Toline offered to help Roth coordinate with students if she was interested.