Impact to Economy
On the left, this field has been completely taken over by garlic mustard. Removal of this much garlic mustard can be monetary and time consuming.
On the right, a field in which only trees and garlic mustard are left. Reviving undergrowth of areas like this is extremely difficult.
On the right, a field in which only trees and garlic mustard are left. Reviving undergrowth of areas like this is extremely difficult.
The cost of Garlic Mustard
The invasion of garlic mustard in North America has caused many problems. One of the most significant of those is garlic mustard's impact to our economy. The cost to remove garlic mustard is not a fixed number, as it has not been calculated yet, but the number is sure to be in the millions. All of that money goes into the prevention of garlic mustard invading habitats, the removal of garlic mustard from infested ecosystems, and the social awareness of garlic mustard.
Massive amounts of money must be put into the removal of garlic mustard because of its rapid spread throughout the United States. Many states have strict regulations and policies that prevent garlic mustard from invading their ecosystems. States are pouring massive amounts of money into those rules because of garlic mustard's extremely dangerous effects.
Each garlic mustard plant can produce hundreds of seeds, each of which can lay dormant for up to five years, so completely removing garlic mustard from a certain area can be extremely difficult. That is why so much money has been put into the removal of garlic mustard from invaded habitats.
A large portion of the money also goes to reconstructing and reviving ecosystems that have been affected. Sometimes it takes many years to repair the damage that garlic mustard does. Most of the plant life is gone from that area once the garlic mustard is removed, so native plants cannot repopulate the area quickly. Also, the effects of the chemicals that garlic mustard releases can stay with the ecosystem for a long time, which takes even more money to fix.
Massive amounts of money must be put into the removal of garlic mustard because of its rapid spread throughout the United States. Many states have strict regulations and policies that prevent garlic mustard from invading their ecosystems. States are pouring massive amounts of money into those rules because of garlic mustard's extremely dangerous effects.
Each garlic mustard plant can produce hundreds of seeds, each of which can lay dormant for up to five years, so completely removing garlic mustard from a certain area can be extremely difficult. That is why so much money has been put into the removal of garlic mustard from invaded habitats.
A large portion of the money also goes to reconstructing and reviving ecosystems that have been affected. Sometimes it takes many years to repair the damage that garlic mustard does. Most of the plant life is gone from that area once the garlic mustard is removed, so native plants cannot repopulate the area quickly. Also, the effects of the chemicals that garlic mustard releases can stay with the ecosystem for a long time, which takes even more money to fix.
Sources
Information: Invasives Brochure; http://www.mipn.org/InvasivesBrochure.pdf, My Web; http://myweb.loras.edu/as298365/InvasiveSpecies/garlicmustard/impacts.html
Pictures: My Web; http://myweb.loras.edu/as298365/InvasiveSpecies/garlicmustard/impacts.html, DNR State; http://dnr.state.il.us/stewardship/cd/biocontrol/29garlicmustard.html
Pictures: My Web; http://myweb.loras.edu/as298365/InvasiveSpecies/garlicmustard/impacts.html, DNR State; http://dnr.state.il.us/stewardship/cd/biocontrol/29garlicmustard.html