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    Black swallow-wort is a perennial vine native to Europe that has invaded parts of North America. It grows 3 to 6 feet tall with opposite leaves and purple-black flowers. It spreads through seeds and rhizomes, allowing it to invade a variety of habitats. Black swallow-wort competes aggressively with native plants and suppresses other species. It threatens populations of rare plants like Jesup's milkvetch. Control methods include manual removal, mowing, and herbicide application.

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    Black swallow-wort is a perennial vine native to Europe that has invaded parts of North America. It grows 3 to 6 feet tall with opposite leaves and purple-black flowers. It spreads through seeds and rhizomes, allowing it to invade a variety of habitats. Black swallow-wort competes aggressively with native plants and suppresses other species. It threatens populations of rare plants like Jesup's milkvetch. Control methods include manual removal, mowing, and herbicide application.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
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    70 views1 page

    Black Swallow Wort

    Uploaded by

    api-506709715
    Black swallow-wort is a perennial vine native to Europe that has invaded parts of North America. It grows 3 to 6 feet tall with opposite leaves and purple-black flowers. It spreads through seeds and rhizomes, allowing it to invade a variety of habitats. Black swallow-wort competes aggressively with native plants and suppresses other species. It threatens populations of rare plants like Jesup's milkvetch. Control methods include manual removal, mowing, and herbicide application.

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    of 1

    Weed of the Week

    Black Swallow-wort Vincetoxicum nigrum *


    * May be classified as Cynanchum louiseae

    Native Origin: France, Italy, Portugal, and Spain; it is believed to have arrived to North America as a
    horticultural plant.

    Description: Black swallow-wort is an herbaceous perennial twining


    vine in the milkweed family (Asclepiadaceae) that grows 3 to 6 feet
    in height depending on habitat and available support. Opposite
    leaves grow 2-4 inches long and are hairless and smooth, oblong to
    ovate in shape, and narrow to a point at the tip. Purple-black
    flowers are borne in small clusters in the leaf axils. In the
    Northeastern United States, flowering begins in late May, peaks in
    mid-June and ends in mid-July. Flowers remain open for six to eight
    days and have the scent of rotting fruit. The fruit pods are 1 ½ -3
    inches long and split open lengthwise along one side to release
    tufted, windborne seeds from mid-August to early October. It can
    spread clonally from deep rhizomes.

    Habitat: It is found in a wide range of habitats from dry and sunny to shaded and moist,
    from shallow soils on limestone bedrock to deep well-drained silt-loam soils, from wooded ravines and talus
    (sloping mass of rock fragments) to alluvial woods, pastures and grasslands. Coastal and roadside infestations
    are common, indicating a probable tolerance of alkaline soils and a possible preference for calcareous soils. It
    is found in disturbed areas such as highway, rail, utility and other transportation corridors, limestone quarries,
    abandoned pastures and old fields.

    Distribution: This species is reported from states shaded on Plants


    Database map. It is reported invasive in CT, NH, NY, and WI.

    Ecological Impacts: Vincetoxicum nigrum can invade natural areas and


    suppress other plant species by competing for soil moisture and nutrients,
    light, other environmental factors. In Vermont, it is out competing a
    population of a federally endangered endemic species, Jesup‘s milkvetch,
    Astragalus robbinsii var. jesupi. T. Rawinski, USDA FS relayed that, “There
    is also concern that monarch butterflies will oviposit on swallow-wort
    instead of milkweed; the hatching caterpillars cannot develop on swallow-wort.” Loss of native plant species
    may reduce biodiversity and delay or redirect succession as well as reduce the value of habitat to wildlife.

    Control and Management:

    • Manual- mowing or hand pulling pods as they are forming minimizes seed production; dig out isolated
    plants and dispose properly

    • Chemical- It can be effectively controlled using any of several readily available general use herbicides such
    as glyphosate in late summer to early fall. Repeat applications if necessary. Follow label and state
    requirements.

    References: USDA Plant Database- http://plants.usda.gov.www.invasive.org/eastern, www.invasives.org,


    ELEMENT STEWARDSHIP ABSTRACT-http://tncweeds.ucdavis.edu/esadocs/documnts/vinc_sp.pdf

    Produced by the USDA Forest Service, Forest Health Staff, Newtown Square, PA. WOW 06-06-05
    Invasive Plants website: http://www.na.fs.fed.us/fhp/invasive_plants

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