Invasive wild cucumber could be issue
Invasive wild cucumber believed to be getting more prevalent on P.E.I.
Take a drive down pretty much any Island road these days and one plant in particular might start jump out of the scenery at you. It’s a light green vine with big five-pointed leaves and small masses of white flowers, which are currently in bloom. It also tends to grow in tight masses over the top of other plants. It’s commonly called wild cucumber (echinocystis lobata), but don’t let the name fool you, there’s nothing on this plant you’d want to put in a salad.
Take a drive down pretty much any Island road these days and one plant in particular might start jump out of the scenery at you.
It’s a light green vine with big five-pointed leaves and small masses of white flowers, which are currently in bloom. It also tends to grow in tight masses over the top of other plants.
It’s commonly called wild cucumber (echinocystis lobata), but don’t let the name fool you, there’s nothing on this plant you’d want to put in a salad. It’s an invasive species on P.E.I. that, left unchecked, can cause problems for the native species it covers. Anecdotally, Beth Hoar, chairwoman of the P.E.I. Invasive Species Council, has heard reports of there being more wild cucumber starting to appear on the Island.
“I started to see a lot more of it last year and we are noticing bigger patches.” However, it’s hard for her group to say definitively that there is indeed more of the plant in recent years because they are a volunteer group with little capacity to do field research.
However, they are trying to develop a database of areas where invasive species are especially prevalent. Tracey Brown, executive director of the Bedeque Bay Environmental Management Association, said her organization has definitely noticed more wild cucumber during their field work and remove it whenever they encounter it. “It seems to be expanding. I’m not sure if it’s because we’re having warmer seasons and it’s getting a bigger head start in the spring or what’s going on. But it does seem to be increasing for sure,” said Brown.
“We’ve been yanking it out in sections. The one good thing about it is that it’s not like Kudzu, it’s not a strangling vine, it covers stuff but it’s not a parasitic. It doesn’t kill the plants underneath; it’s just a nuisance.”
Hoar recommends anyone who finds wild cumber on their property remove it prior to its seeds developing; this will help reduce the chances of it spreading.
Small amounts of the plant can be put in a clear plastic bag and placed directly in the waste bin. Larger amounts should be put in clear bags and labeled as invasive species and can be put out for pickup with the waste bin. Removal of a half ton of an invasive species or more requires a permit from the provincial government.
More information about invasive species on P.E.I. can be found on the Invasive Species Council website at www.peiinvasives.ca.