Honeysuckle As Sunblock Boost?

In urban parks like Sligo Creek and the Northwest Branch, the fight against invasive exotic plants often produces huge amounts of leafy garbage, prompting land managers and volunteers alike to wish for some creative use for all of the so-called “yard waste.”

In the past this has led to garlic mustard recipe books and kudzu cook-offs, and even artwork made of vines. Such efforts, however, seem to barely make a dent in the huge amount of green stuff pulled from our parks in order to save the trees and native plants.

So I was really excited to read last week about a paper recently published by the American Chemical Society on a potential new use for honeysuckle. Writing in the journal Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, two Chinese researchers say they’ve found a way to use honeysuckle to boost fabric’s ability to block UV rays. This new discovery could potentially improve the design of so-called “sunblock shirts” by making them more effective and more sustainably produced.

The researchers note that honeysuckle has long been used to treat colds and fevers in Asia, and that it is currently also used as a food preservative. Some cosmetic makers also use the plant in products which are touted to make customer’s skin look younger.

There’s a down side to all of this, however. The initial research was conducted on fabric made of wool, and most of us are searching for sunblocking clothes which are both lightweight and UV protective.

Still, it would be nice to find a good use for all that stuff strangling the trees out there in the park. And I wonder what it smells like, too… sweet, or wooly?

Save the Forest for the Trees: Join the Garlic Mustard Challenge

Save the forest for the trees, help pull the invasive exotic plant known as Garlic Mustard out of the parks April 18-25 during Montgomery County's Garlic Mustard Challenge.

Garlic mustard looks pretty, smells bad, and can inhibit the growth of many of the beneficial fungi that live in the root zones of healthy, mature trees. The plant can carpet the forest floor in early April, outcompeting other plants, including many native wildflowers. The native wildflowers are beautiful, but also provide many important food sources to native animals that co-evolved with the flowers for thousands of years.

Pulling is easy, and if done correctly can eradicate, at least temporarily, the plant from the forest.

For more info on how to participate in Montgomery County's event, go to:

http://www.montgomeryparks.org/PPSD/Natural_Resources_Stewardship/Veg_Management/weed_warriors/2010_garlic_mustard_contest.shtm

Photo courtesy of Lynette Scaffidi

Talk on Mapping Invasive Species this weekend

From the Sierra Club:

Since 1995, Jil Swearingen has worked as an Integrated Pest Management and Invasive Species Specialist for the National Park Service's National Capital Region, Center for Urban Ecology in Washington DC. Mapping is fundamental for planning control projects, tracking management efforts, and identifying new introductions. Nearly 300 invasive plant species occur in the mid-Atlantic region. Jil will talk about the new Early Detection Distribution Mapping System that helps invasive plant workers report and track invasive plant infestations.

The talk will be held on Sunday, Feb. 21 from 2pm-3:30pm at the Rockville Library, 21 Maryland Ave., Rockville.

Free and open to the public.

RSVP events@maryland.sierraclub.org or 301-351-6985.

Directions and parking at http://maryland.sierraclub.org/montgomery/

Why Are Invasive Plants a Problem?

Next month Lynette Scaffidi from the Parks Dept will give a presentation on the issue of invasive exotic plants. She will discuss many parts of the topic, including identification of several of the really problematic invasives and what people can do about them in their yards and in the parks.

Wednesday, October 21, 7 – 8 PM Brookside Nature Center (next to Brookside Gardens)1400 Glenallan Ave, Wheaton, Maryland 20902

More information at 301-949-0223 or ScaffidiNatural Resources SpecialistMontgomery County Parks301-949-0223
Lynette.Scaffidi@montgomeryparks.org