Pest of the Month -- October

Giant Salvinia

Giant salvinia is a fast-growing fern that can clog ponds and lakes. It represents a significant danger in any warm, slow-moving bodies of water. Forming mats up to 2 feet thick, the plant gobbles up oxygen and nutrients, and blocks sunlight needed by other water dwellers. When conditions are right, salvinia's small, oval leaves form dense mats——green, yellow-green, or brown——that can easily double in size in just a few days. A single plant has been described to cover forty square miles in three months! It ruins conditions for fishing, boating, and waterskiing. The weed also clogs irrigation and electrical generating systems. Giant Salvinia is federally prohibited in the US, and is therefore illegal to sell or possess!

Scott Robinson, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, www.invasive.org

–some material taken from information distributed by USDA-ARS