JACKSON, Mich — Gardening can be therapeutic — but it can also come with some unwanted guests.
- Invasive species are everywhere and can negatively affect the natural environment.
- Though nearly impossible to completely eliminate, it is important to manage invasive species.
- Experts say to become familiar with invasive species in your own backyard.
Hope Weishaupt owns J. Alexander's Florist in Jackson and is an avid gardener herself. She said the time of year brings plants and flowers, along with species that were never intentionally planted.
"You'll be looking in your garden for something else and all the sudden, you will find a species... and you didn't plant it," Weishaupt said.
Those uninvited visitors are invasive species — and Hannah Schauer of the Dahlem Conservancy said they often arrive with a little help.
"A lot of them have had human help moving around, and some of them have tasty fruits and berries. So once they start to get established here, then the animals inadvertently help spread the seeds around as well," Schauer said.
Schauer said it is almost impossible to completely eliminate invasive species, but that managing them is extremely necessary. She said there are steps gardeners can take in their own backyards.
"Familiarize yourself with what those look like and then, as you're gardening, avoid planting those non-native species," Schauer said.
It is a practice Weishaupt said she has kept up with as the seasons change.
"I don't go looking for them, they usually find you," Weishaupt said.
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