Tree of Heaven anything but heavenly, nature enthusiasts warn
Nature enthusiasts worry plant spreading through Kalamoir Regional Park will choke out native species
An invasive plant called the Tree of Heaven could present a heck of a problem if it isn’t swiftly removed from a Westside park, nature enthusiasts say.
The plant, which is spreading through Kalamoir Regional Park, grows quickly and produces a chemical that kills native vegetation.
“It’s getting rampant in the park, and we’re worried it’s going to choke out a lot of other plants and trees,” Clive Gilbert of Friends of Kalamoir Park said last week.
“The best time to remove it is in the fall, but with the seasons changing that window is rapidly closing for another year,” Gilbert said. “If nothing’s done soon, we’re worried it’s going to get too well established for any control efforts to work.”
The Tree of Heaven looks like a sumac plant but is native to China. It was brought to North America in the 1800s for gardening purposes, and has spread through most states and provinces.
“This tree grows quickly (capable of reaching heights of 15 metres in 25 years), develops many suckers and emits a foul-smelling odour,” says the Invasive Species Council of B.C.
“It can rapidly colonize disturbed areas and suppress plant competition with allelopathic chemicals. When cut, the tree resprouts vigorously, thus making eradication very difficult, costly and time-consuming,” the council says on its website.
The most effective control method is to cut the tree down in the fall and poison the root system.
Staff from the regional district parks system told Friends of Kalamoir Park members in October they hoped to remove the Tree of Heaven plants within a few weeks.
However, the work was cancelled because staff has been busy cleaning up debris from windstorms.
“In light of the recent windstorms, our parks staff were diverted to deal with hazard tree removal, assessments and fallen trees in order to ensure safety,” regional district spokesman Bruce Smith said.
A request for funding for a new program to control invasive species in parks will go before the regional board next year, for implementation between 2018 and 2022 if approved, Smith said.