Spring Renews Barberry Blitz Campaign

By Kendra Bobowick

As warm weather prompts early spring blooms, Conservation Commission member Marjorie Cramer’s “great fear” this year is that the invasive barberry shrub will be out early.

At 4 pm on the first day of spring, town officials gathered to kick off a barberry blitz campaign to remove as much of the shrub as possible this season from Newtown’s backyard landscapes. Information about this blitz, how neighborhoods can help, and how residents can both learn more and participate, will be available Saturday, March 24, following a seminar on meadows from 10 am to noon at the Newtown Municipal Center.

Stepping outside into the day’s unusually warm sunlight, First Selectman Pat Llodra mentioned health and safety. Because “we want to reduce the incidence of Lyme disease,” the barberry, which provides a habitat for ticks and their carriers, needs to go.

Holding a poster with a photo of a barberry bush, Conservation Commission Chairman Mary Gaudet-Wilson also mentioned the environmental reasons to remove the invasive species that crowds out native plants in the landscape.

Conservation Commission member Adria Henderson also warned that the bush is still for sale in Connecticut. “Don’t buy it,” she advised. The blitz campaign is a joint effort of the Conservation Commission, Land Use Agency, Newtown Health District, and the Parks and Recreation Commission.

Offering a few more details, Land Use Agency Deputy Director Rob Sibley explained that although there are many cultivars of barberry, Berberis thunbergii (Japanese barberry) is listed on the Connecticut List of Invasive Plants and carries a fine if transported, moved, or sold within the state. Berberis thunbergii is shade tolerant, and forms dense stands in a variety habitats ranging from closed canopy forests to wetlands, pastures, and meadows. It is readily dispersed by birds.

Contact the Land Use Agency at 203-270-4276.

The flyers include the following information:

Background

Barberry is an invasive plant that also provides shelter for white-footed mice — major carriers of blacklegged ticks that transmit tick-borne diseases such as Lyme disease. The high humidity and shade provided by the barberry makes a perfect habitat for tick survival.

Barberry is one of the first shrubs to green up in the spring, providing an opportunity for early identification. Search IPANE (Invasive Plant Atlas of New England) for Berberis thunbergii for additional pictures.

Residents should cut barberry down on their property and bag cuttings to be taken to the transfer station for proper disposal.

Dig up roots if possible and take for disposal.

Check for ticks after completing your work.

Neighbors can work together to do the same.

 

Removal

Barberries produce fruit in the fall. Removal should occur before then if possible. This limits the spread of the potent berries that have an incredibly successful germination rate.

Clip back the longest branches to make digging up the plant more manageable.

Dispose of every branch, plant or berry in yard waste bags.

Lop off the center stem to a height of 8 to 10 inches. This allowance will provide a good-sized stump to hold onto when digging around the plant for full removal.

Digging out at the farthest point where foliage reaches out from the stem ensures digging up as many roots as possible.

Dig down and remove the dirt from around the barberry plant. Avoid cutting or hacking at roots since these plants can resprout quite easily from leftover roots. Set the dirt in a pile beside the plant.

Grab onto the stump and lift straight up. The plant should pull easily from the ground. If not, continue digging.

Check the plant roots to ensure that pieces were not chopped off during digging. Remove every bit of root possible to prevent the barberry from re-sprouting.