Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Swallow-wort Biocontrols Pass Test

"Entomologists Richard Casagrande and Heather Faubert helped rid a Rhode Island farm of cypress spurge, an invasive weed, in the late 1990s. The spurge is a pretty thing but a thug nonetheless, and poisonous to cattle. Their weapon: a cadre of hungry beetles, biocontrol agents so keyed into spurge they won’t eat anything else." excerpt from the article, Swallow-wort Biocontrols Pass Test, by Mary Woodson, Northeastern IPM Center. Read more about biocontrol for swallow-wort and the stringent tests any biocontrol agent must pass before it can be released to tackle harmful invasive plants.