Traken Autumn Olive

[AJL]

Thanks for putting me right! You can certain have fun abusing them!!

 

[HorseloverFat]

Thanks for putting me right! You can certain have fun abusing them!!

Every Elaeagnus I’ve dug... I ended up leaving some of myself behind.. I almost always cut myself when “spading” through overgrowth... and in the areas where they’ve taken over (yes, indeed, fairly invasive) there’s thorns all over the place... blood, sweat, and tears.

 

[Traken]

Every Elaeagnus I’ve dug... I ended up leaving some of myself behind.. I almost always cut myself when “spading” through overgrowth... and in the areas where they’ve taken over (yes, indeed, fairly invasive) there’s thorns all over the place... blood, sweat, and tears.

No doubt there. This one took quite a long time to get out, even in that super easy to work with sandy Michigan soil. It had some major tap root mess going on underneath. I was able to dig and get through the roots all around it with the root slayer no problem, but getting underneath it took... I don't even know how long. 30-40 minutes, maybe, just for the underside. worth it though, now that it's budding.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

No doubt there. This one took quite a long time to get out, even in that super easy to work with sandy Michigan soil. It had some major tap root mess going on underneath. I was able to dig and get through the roots all around it with the root slayer no problem, but getting underneath it took... I don't even know how long. 30-40 minutes, maybe, just for the underside. worth it though, now that it's budding.

It took @Traken long enough to dig I had time to drive the ATV back to my camper, make a sandwich, handle a phone call, and then come back out and he was just making the last cuts underneath the root ball. I'm too old to enjoy the work of the digging. I enjoy watching those younger than myself doing the work.

By the way, @HorseloverFat there are no "native" Elaeagnus east of the Mississippi. There is Elaeagnus commutata that is native to western high deserts, called wolfberry or silverberry. But none native to WI, the ones we see are all invasive species. E. angustifolia and E. umbellata were promoted by Army Corps of Engineers and Bureau of Land Management for stabilizing soils during the 1930's dust bowl. They were promoted for soil stabilization through the 1950's. Then people began to realize they were not just hardy enough to stabilize eroding ground, they were actually invasive. They are both still on the go to list for plantings over mine tailings along with Robinia, the black locust. Often planted after mountaintop removal or strip mine operations. So US Guvm'nt promoted the use of Elaeagnus up until relatively recently.

est use for invasive is as bonsai, because there is a high probability of eventual death for them. (of course we intend they live, but accidents happen, often). Putting an invasive tree species in a bonsai pot means it is unlikely to be very successful making seed and spreading. We can control the spread by preventing the seed from being dispersed.

 

[HorseloverFat]

It took @Traken long enough to dig I had time to drive the ATV back to my camper, make a sandwich, handle a phone call, and then come back out and he was just making the last cuts underneath the root ball. I'm too old to enjoy the work of the digging. I enjoy watching those younger than myself doing the work.

By the way, @HorseloverFat there are no "native" Elaeagnus east of the Mississippi. There is Elaeagnus commutata that is native to western high deserts, called wolfberry or silverberry. But none native to WI, the ones we see are all invasive species. E. angustifolia and E. umbellata were promoted by Army Corps of Engineers and Bureau of Land Management for stabilizing soils during the 1930's dust bowl. They were promoted for soil stabilization through the 1950's. Then people began to realize they were not just hardy enough to stabilize eroding ground, they were actually invasive. They are both still on the go to list for plantings over mine tailings along with Robinia, the black locust. Often planted after mountaintop removal or strip mine operations. So US Guvm'nt promoted the use of Elaeagnus up until relatively recently.

est use for invasive is as bonsai, because there is a high probability of eventual death for them. (of course we intend they live, but accidents happen, often). Putting an invasive tree species in a bonsai pot means it is unlikely to be very successful making seed and spreading. We can control the spread by preventing the seed from being dispersed.

Interesting!... it seems these kind of “detrimental introductions” are fairly common.. even though the “heart” of said idea is in the right place...

I know we’ve discussed “Rhus” at length before.. but NOW.. having attempted to domesticate them.. i just gotta say..

They behave strangely in pots!

 

[Traken]

Just a tiny update. Everything is pushing out now. This is now the second out of season collection I've done on Leo's farm of invasive species. The other is a small Siberian Elm that I don't have a thread for at this time. I really love how robust they all are. Heh.



Just for the sake of comparison, I also pulled a sassafras and an unknown item that we thought might have been a gooseberry (I think). They are very likely 100% dead now. lol. They were in the way in the fields so needed to go anyway, but it just goes to show how robust some species are versus others.

 

[leatherback]

Nice work!