Its rapid elongation rates, high leaf area indices, high photosynthetic rates, and frequent rooting at stem nodes make kudzu an aggressive competitor with native shrubs and trees. This aggressive species is known for forming large stands and suppressing the growth of native tree and understory species making them effective structural parasites in forest communities (Forseth, 2004).
The economic impact of kudzu in the United States is estimated at $100–500 million lost per year in forest productivity. In addition, it takes about $5,000 per hectare (2.5 acres) per year to control kudzu. For power companies, it costs about $1.5 million per year to repair damage to power lines. Kudzu management is also of great concern in the management of national …show more content…
The ability to overtop and shade forest trees, fix atmospheric nitrogen, and emit isoprene suggest that it may have substantial effects on native forest biodiversity, forest nitrogen cycles, watershed nitrogen saturation, freshwater eutrophication, and regional air quality (Forseth, 2004). The Kudzu overwhelm communities of plants and can stop the succession process by install dense stands of Kudzu which do not allow colonization by new plants …show more content…
The kudzu plant was introduced to the United States in 1876 at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia and to the Southeast in 1883 at the New Orleans Exposition. The vine was widely marketed in the Southeast as an ornamental plant to be used to shade porches, and in the first half of the 20th century, kudzu was distributed as a high-protein content cattle fodder and as a cover plant to prevent soil erosion (Pieters, A.J., 1932). The Soil Erosion Service recommended the use of Kudzu to help control erosion of slopes which led to the government-aided distribution of 85 million seedlings and government-funded plantings of kudzu which paid $19.75 per hectare ! By 1946, it was estimated that 1,200,000 hectares (3,000,000 acres) of kudzu had been planted. The climate and environment of the Southeastern United States allowed the kudzu to grow virtually unchecked (Everest, 1999). In 1953, the United States Department of Agriculture removed kudzu from a list of suggested cover plants and listed it as a weed in 1970. By 1997, the vine was placed on the “Federal Noxious Weed List”. Today, kudzu is estimated to cover 3,000,000 hectares (7,400,000 acres) of land in the southeastern United States, mostly in Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Florida, and Mississippi. (Finch, B.,
The economic impact of kudzu in the United States is estimated at $100–500 million lost per year in forest productivity. In addition, it takes about $5,000 per hectare (2.5 acres) per year to control kudzu. For power companies, it costs about $1.5 million per year to repair damage to power lines. Kudzu management is also of great concern in the management of national …show more content…
The ability to overtop and shade forest trees, fix atmospheric nitrogen, and emit isoprene suggest that it may have substantial effects on native forest biodiversity, forest nitrogen cycles, watershed nitrogen saturation, freshwater eutrophication, and regional air quality (Forseth, 2004). The Kudzu overwhelm communities of plants and can stop the succession process by install dense stands of Kudzu which do not allow colonization by new plants …show more content…
The kudzu plant was introduced to the United States in 1876 at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia and to the Southeast in 1883 at the New Orleans Exposition. The vine was widely marketed in the Southeast as an ornamental plant to be used to shade porches, and in the first half of the 20th century, kudzu was distributed as a high-protein content cattle fodder and as a cover plant to prevent soil erosion (Pieters, A.J., 1932). The Soil Erosion Service recommended the use of Kudzu to help control erosion of slopes which led to the government-aided distribution of 85 million seedlings and government-funded plantings of kudzu which paid $19.75 per hectare ! By 1946, it was estimated that 1,200,000 hectares (3,000,000 acres) of kudzu had been planted. The climate and environment of the Southeastern United States allowed the kudzu to grow virtually unchecked (Everest, 1999). In 1953, the United States Department of Agriculture removed kudzu from a list of suggested cover plants and listed it as a weed in 1970. By 1997, the vine was placed on the “Federal Noxious Weed List”. Today, kudzu is estimated to cover 3,000,000 hectares (7,400,000 acres) of land in the southeastern United States, mostly in Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Florida, and Mississippi. (Finch, B.,