Invasive plants can be a real pain to deal with, and many times, the people dealing with them are not the ones who planted them, as new homeowners inherit the problem along with their new house.
In one such case, a new homeowner recently took to the r/NativePlantGardening subreddit to celebrate having finally eradicated an invasive plant that had come under their control.
"Removed five big burning bushes (Euonymus alatus) that I got with the house!" the poster wrote.
The other members of the subreddit were quick to congratulate them on their stellar work.
"Nice job. Such a pain to remove too. I just recently found out we have a native burning bush, Euonymus atropurpureus. Looks similar, great for wildlife. I don't understand the insistence in non natives when we have natives that are virtually the same," one commenter wrote.
Other commenters helpfully pointed out that even after removing five bushes, this homeowner's work was not over yet.
"Nice start— definitely a few year of lots of seedlings ahead. Obvious they're very conspicuous in fall tho so easy to get (on a small scale)," one such expert wrote. "Cutting and treating stems is best way to kill the euonymus- they grow back otherwise and pulling makes a big mess and gives iffy results."
The Morton Arboretum describes burning bush — which is native to parts of Asia — as "Not Recommended" for North American gardeners, writing that: "It has invasive traits that enable it to spread aggressively."
Many commenters lamented how pretty the invasive plant was, wishing that it played a bit nicer with the local flora. However, as the first commenter pointed out, there are plenty of native options that North American gardeners can opt for that are just as attractive.
As always, whenever planting something new in your garden, it's a great idea to do some research first to make sure you're going with a native species that is already adapted to live in your local ecosystem. Taking that step can save you a lot of money, stress, and time in the long run.
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