stop the spread of Invasive Species

An invasive species is a non-native organism that can harm the environment, economy, or human health. Invasive species can be plants, animals, diseases, or parasites.  

 Managing invasive species is crucial because they can significantly disrupt ecosystems, causing harm to native plants and animals, impacting biodiversity, and leading to economic losses in sectors like agriculture, forestry, and tourism; essentially, they can degrade the health of natural environments and threaten the balance of life within them, impacting both the environment and human activities that rely on healthy ecosystems.  

Verify that the plants you are buying for your yard or garden are not invasive. Replace invasive plants in your garden with non-invasive alternatives. Ask your local nursery staff for help in identifying invasive plants!

When boating, clean your boat thoroughly before transporting it to a different body of water.

Clean your boots before you hike in a new area to get rid of hitchhiking weed seeds and pathogens.

Don’t “pack a pest” when traveling. Fruits and vegetables, plants, insects and animals can carry pests or become invasive themselves. Don't move firewood (it can harbor forest pests), clean your bags and boots after each hike, and throw out food before you travel from place to place.

Don’t release aquarium fish and plants, live bait or other exotic animals into the wild. If you plan to own an exotic pet, do your research and plan ahead to make sure you can commit to looking after it.

Volunteer with your local CISMA (Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area), refuge, parks department, or other wildlife area to help remove invasive species. Attend Weed Wrangles. Volunteer with your local SWCD. Help educate others about the threat.

This booklet is intended to assist with the identification of regulated terrestrial invasive plant species of Indiana. Always confirm your identification before eradicating a suspected invasive plant. If you are not certain about its identity, please consult a professional botanist or invasive species biologist.

Often, your Purdue Extension office or your local National Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) office can assist you with identification of possible invasive species. See page 88 for online resources to assist in identification.

Report Violations

If you see these invasive plants for sale or being exchanged or transported, please contact your IDNR local nursery inspector. Find yours at:

https://www.in.gov/dnr/entomolo/7416.htm

You can also call 1-866-NO-EXOTIC or email DEPP@dnr.IN.gov.

Gather Data

You can help us gather data to assess invasive species by reporting on EDDMaps.org or via the GLEDN app. Information about both applications is found here: https://www.eddmaps.org/indiana/

Remove Invasive Species from Your Property

You can remove invasive species from your landscape and plant native species. Additionally, you can avoid using Callery pear, Norway maple, Burning bush, and other invasive plants on the official list that are not currently regulated (see page 87 for more information).