Arizona naturalist asks residents to remove invasive plants

OPINION — Thanks to the fall and winter rains, this is a big year for invasive species.

We call plants like Sahara mustard, London rocket and stinknet invasive because they take over our landscapes if we don't eliminate them. All three of these plants use up resources like water and soil nutrients and can keep our native plants from thriving.

If  you like to see poppies, lupines, bladderpods, desert marigolds and scorpion weed, then you need to remove invasive species from your property.

Invasive species make fires burn hotter and change the composition of the soil. Our native insects and birds don't interact with invasive plants, and so when invasive plants take over, insect and bird populations decrease.

If  you want to help keep the regional park plant systems from being invaded, Google Desert Defenders Maricopa Regional Parks.

Join me at one of the many removal events at the White Tanks or other regional parks.

Joette Conger is an Arizona master naturalist. Please submit comments at yourvalley.net/letters or email them to AzOpinions@iniusa.org. We are committed to publishing a wide variety of reader opinions, as long as they meet our Civility Guidelines.