Coalition to Control Kudzu Infestations without Chemicals while Having Fun

June Newsletter

1. Weapons of mass destruction: This is new terminology for us. We like these WMD words to describe the three treatments in our arsenal for removing kudzu mass. These are: skid loader (which also removes more than half of the crowns), sheeting (heat treatment which kills foliage and some crowns), and our new brush cutter (reciprocating blades which are useful in clearing all kinds of bio-mass). All three are giant aides in the control of kudzu. During the past month Lou Adams has added a new “bottom line” summary to the web site covering the skid loader. Click on http://www.kokudzu.com/SkidSteerLoader.html and scroll to the bottom for this recap.

2. Sheeting as a second treatment: Sheeting is being used more and more as an integral part of our kudzu management activities. There are now a total of eleven applications at six kudzu control sites (Chapman High, Day School at Skylyn, top of hill behind the Beacon, Broome High, Humane society, and Peter’s Creek Preserve). Seven of these are follow-ups to Paul David Blakeley’s skid loader treatments Steve Patton proved the effectiveness of this two treatment approach during his tests last year at the SPACE property at the Emma Cudd site. See http://kokudzu.com/Space_GlendaleShoals.html

3. Eradication status: When we began the Coalition in late 2004, we did not expect to achieve the complete elimination of kudzu at any site. To our pleasant surprise, eradication is happening occasionally. Out of our 49 kudzu control sites in Spartanburg city and county,

            Five have had zero kudzu sprouts thus far this year,

            Six sites have had 2 to 5 sprouting crowns year-to-date and are now totally free of kudzu

            Three are on track for eradication this year.

These 14 sites represent about 28% of the total. More will be completely cleared in 2008.

4. Forest Service YCC team: We worked with a team of Youth Conservation Corps from Union last week. Mary Morrison, Forest Service Ranger from Union, SC, set this up and plans for our Spartanburg traveling kudzu SWAT team to work at Rose Hill and Musgrove Mill State Historic Parks in July.

5. Spartanburg Youth Corps: We are pleased that Lisa Gosnell scheduled the Spartanburg Youth Corps Team to work with us three days this week and again in late July. The 18 high school students have made a noticeable dent in the kudzu at each of the three sites they have worked. On June 27, these teams broke the previous record for kudzu plants killed. Antonio Perkins shattered the previous “world record” for single handed kudzu removal. He killed 320 plants and proved that a new treatment works well. This is another big step forward.

6. Teacher recap of student work on kudzu: Tina Gragg, Environmental Science teacher at Chapman High School, took the time to write up her view of the kudzu work that her class did this year. Tina coined the word “wrangling” to describe these activities. Her insights were most thoughtful. If you have any interest in how the “Students Knocking out Kudzu” initiative is working, take a look at http://kokudzu.com/Shared/PDF/WranglingAtChapman07-05-22.pdf. We are enclosing a written copy of Tina’s recap for those who receive this through regular mail.

7. New study on prevention of soil erosion: A recent press release covering tests at Oak Ridge, Tennessee, reports that, the plants which come back naturally when kudzu is removed are just as effective as the kudzu in preventing erosion. http://kokudzu.com/Succession.html.  Interesting.

8. Kudzu Kollege: This course continues to be a fun way to learn all about kudzu stuff. It is taught from 9 until noon on the last Saturday of each month. We invite each of you to sign up for the July 28 course in Spartanburg by calling (864) 582-0990.

9. Party schedule: With many field trips on the horizon and at least one kudzu “party” each week, we invite you to check out the constantly updated events schedule at http://kokudzu.com/EventsCalendar.html. We guarantee that you will have fun and not have to work too hard if you participate.