planted

Washington planted 507 Norway maples in 1920 to honor WWI soldiers; the trees later spread into nearby Rock Creek Park as an invasive species

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A Norway maple, the species Washington used to line 16th Street as a World War I memorial. (Wikimedia Commons)

You have probably walked down a leafy street without giving a second thought to who planted the trees. On 16th Street in Washington, D.C., the answer is a city remembering the people it lost in World War I. The Association of the Oldest Inhabitants of the District of Columbia notes the city planted the first … Read more

In 1917, Hawaii planted albizia to restore slopes; after 2014's Hurricane Iselle, the brittle invader helped drive $13 million in utility repairs

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Albizia was planted in Hawaiʻi to help eroding hillsides. More than a century later, it is a costly invader. (Unsplash)

Hawaii once planted a tree to protect its hillsides. Today, that same tree is associated with damaged homes and costly power repairs. The Big Island Invasive Species Committee, a group based on Hawaii Island, says foresters brought albizia to Hawaii because they wanted trees that grew quickly on eroding slopes. But the plan backfired over … Read more

In the 1930s, US agencies planted bicolor lespedeza for erosion control and wildlife habitat; it later reached an estimated 115,550 forest acres

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A fix that grew bigger than planned: Bicolor lespedeza, once planted to hold soil in place, now grows across an estimated 115,550 forest acres. (AI-generated/ChatGPT)

Most generations have a magic fix they believe in. For us today, it might be planting millions of trees. For the agencies in the U.S. back in the 1930s, it was a tough little shrub called bicolor lespedeza. According to the USDA Forest Service’s Fire Effects Information System, it was promoted and widely planted for … Read more

Saltcedar was planted across the West for shade and windbreaks; from 10,000 acres in 1920, the plant spread to over 1.2 million acres by the mid-1960s

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Once planted to meet practical needs, saltcedar spread widely across Western floodplains. (Wikimedia Commons)

A shrub planted to shade poultry and block the wind has spread across floodplains in the American West. According to the U.S. Forest Service’s Fire Effects Information System review of Tamarix, saltcedar was recommended in the early 1900s. Suggested for ornamental use, windbreaks, fuel, and shade for poultry and small stock, it ended up expanding … Read more

After Lehmann lovegrass was introduced to Arizona in 1932, it was planted in more than 172,000 acres; by 1988, it dominated about 347,000 acres

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A grass from South Africa, now a major plant across parts of Arizona. (Wikimedia Commons)

Imagine grass being taken across the ocean to help damaged land, then imagine that same grass showing up on hundreds of thousands of acres. That’s the story of Lehmann lovegrass in Arizona. The USDA Forest Service’s Fire Effects Information System reports that between 1940 and 1980, ranchers and other land managers established it on over … Read more

In 1935, weeping lovegrass was planted in Oklahoma to stop erosion; one strain later covered 2 million acres, and studies found lower plant diversity

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HT US Desk

The Hindustan Times US Desk brings you the latest news and developments from across the United States. The team covers everything from breaking news and politics to sports, business, entertainment and stories that are trending across the country. Our coverage includes the White House, Congress, US elections, immigration and visa updates, H-1B, green cards, Social … Read more

Scientists planted 40,000 native seedlings in Yosemite’s damaged Tuolumne Meadows; three years later, soil organic matter was improving, but the meadow was still losing more carbon than it gained

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Scientists planted 40,000 native seedlings in Yosemite's damaged Tuolumne Meadows; three years later, soil organic matter was improving, but the meadow was still losing more carbon than it gained

Native sedges growing in a wet meadow (Representational photo) Scientists who planted 40,000 native sedge seedling to restore the damaged Tuolumne Meadows in California’s Yosemite National Park, have found early signs of improvement after. The results, however, also show that restoring the meadow’s soil and its ability to store carbon could take several decades. Three … Read more

American chestnut returns to Bronx Zoo more than 120 years after blight was first documented; 25 hybrid saplings planted on 265-acre grounds; NYC expands 1,000-tree restoration drive after disease killed nearly 4 billion trees

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American chestnut returns to Bronx Zoo more than 120 years after blight was first documented; 25 hybrid saplings planted on 265-acre grounds; NYC expands 1,000-tree restoration drive after disease killed nearly 4 billion trees

American chestnut trees are returning to the Bronx Zoo more than 120 years after the blight was first documented. (Photo: TACF.org) More than 120 years after the American chestnut blight was first documented at the Bronx Zoo, the iconic tree is making a historic return to the same grounds where its devastating decline was first … Read more

From 1946, NSW planted South African bitou bush to stabilise coastal sand dunes; decades later it had spread along 46% of the state’s coastline and threatened native ecosystems

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From 1946, NSW planted South African bitou bush to stabilise coastal sand dunes; decades later it had spread along 46% of the state's coastline and threatened native ecosystems

Representative Image (AI-generated) A plant introduced with a practical purpose along the New South Wales (NSW) coast eventually became a major environmental weed. South African bitou bush was deliberately planted along the NSW coastline between 1946 and 1968 to help stabilise sand dunes, according to the NSW Environment and Heritage department. The fast-growing shrub later … Read more

Illinois volunteers removed invasive plants from 43 acres; they then planted nearly 9,000 native plugs and more than 1,100 pounds of seed

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Illinois volunteers removed invasive plants from 43 acres; they then planted nearly 9,000 native plugs and more than 1,100 pounds of seed

PC: US Fish and Wildlife Service In northeast Illinois, the Greenbelt Forest Preserve covers 607 acres between North Chicago and Waukegan. Invasive plants, including teasel, Canada thistle, canary grass, buckthorn and common reed, have displaced native vegetation there. According to the US Fish and Wildlife Service, working with the Lake County Forest Preserve District and … Read more