Invasive plants in the Queets Valley, Olympic National Park: Former homesteads and surrounding watershed
Acker SA, Tetreau MD, Allen DW. 2014. Invasive plants in the Queets Valley, Olympic National Park: Former homesteads and surrounding watershed. Natural Resource Technical Report. NPS/OLYM/NRTR—2014/898. National Park Service. Fort Collins, Colorado
Study of invasive plants around former homesteads and surrounding watershed in the Queets Valley, Olympic National Park. The Queets Valley contains a wealth and variety of natural and cultural resources for which Olympic National Park is responsible. Starting in 1890, long before establishment of the Park, settlers established scores of homesteads in the valley. The homesteads had all been incorporated into the Park by 1953. Invasive, exotic plants have become established in the clearings associated with the former homesteads, especially since they were vacated. New species have arrived since the end of the homestead era; several species have the potential to continue to spread within the park. The most widespread and abundant of the invasive, exotic plant species are Rubus laciniatus (evergreen blackberry), Cirsium arvense (Canada thistle), and Senecio jacobaea (tansy ragwort). The clearings are continuing to decrease in size, due to both growth of forest and movement of the channel of the Queets River. However, several of the clearings are still large (two larger than 10 acres) and are likely to persist, and serve as sources of invasive, exotic plants, for many decades. Several native plant species are colonizing the clearings and may show promise for future restoration efforts (especially Carex obnupta (slough sedge), Alnus rubra (red alder), and Picea sitchensis (Sitka spruce)). The invasive, exotic plant species are found in the watershed upstream of the homesteads. A more thorough search for these species in areas other than the homestead clearings is a necessary precursor to effective control.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Acker, Steven; Tetreau, Michael; Allen, David
- Date of Issue
- 2014-08
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- Units
- NRSS , OLYM
- Keywords
- blackberry, Canada Thistle, clearings, Cultural, Exotic, Fields, Forest, homestead, Invasive, Native, Olympic National Park, Plant, Queets Valley, Red Alder, Resource, Restoration, Sitka Spruce, slough sedge, tansy ragwort, Watershed
- Subjects
- Ecological Framework: Biological Integrity | Invasive Species | Invasive/Exotic plants , Ecological Framework: Biological Integrity | Focal Species or Communities | Vegetation Complex , Ecological Framework: Human Use | Cultural Landscapes | Cultural Landscapes