Shame

A knock at the door. I look out and see Ed Alverson, who works for The Nature Conservancy in Eugene, and who is one of my biggest local heros. "I have a question about your planting strip," he says. "Oh, goody," I think, "He noticed all our native plants!" I go out and he points out this plant:
"Do you know what this is?" he queries politely (almost too politely).
"Uhhhh, it's a clematis...some one told me it's a native," I reply cautiously.
"Well, there is a native clematis that is very similar, but it has serrated leaves. This one is very invasive and we're trying to keep it from spreading around Lane County."
"Oh, no! I've been encouraging it!" I cry, much chagrined. I didn't tell him I had even given people seeds for it! Here are some seeds:


It's a lovely evergreen vine with delicate tiny white, delicately scented flowers and beautiful long slender feathery seeds. PULL IT OUT THIS WEEKEND! My apologies if I'm the one who told you to plant it in the first place!


While you're at it, dig up your privets:


Your cotoneasters (spelling?):








and anything else that isn't native, but which makes berries that birds could eat and spread.

While you're at it, if you suddenly have big lovely yellow irises, they're bad as well.


We filled up the whole trailer to overflowing with invasive plants to take to the big commercial composter here (Lane Forest Products) to be sure the seeds would be done in by their higher heat and grinder uppers.

All of our trellises are bare! Luckily the fall rains and planting season should be on the way soon. Does anyone know where we can get some of the NATIVE clematis?