Phragmites australis management in the United States: 40 years of methods and outcomes

• Published in: AoB Plants Vol. 6
• Main Authors: Hazelton, Eric L. G., Mozdzer, Thomas J., Burdick, David M., Kettenring, Karin M., Whigham, Dennis F.
• Format: Journal Article Book Review
• Language: English
• Published: England Oxford University Press 2014
• Subjects: in North America and Europe; Invited Reviews; SPECIAL ISSUE; Watersheds; Common reed; ecological restoration; invasive plant; management; herbicide; watershed restoration; invasive species; Phragmites australis
• ISSN: 2041-2851; 2041-2851
• DOI: 10.1093/aobpla/plu001

We reviewed all available studies on Phragmites australis management in the United States. Our results show that there is a heavy emphasis on herbicides to manage Phragmites, relative to other methods, and a lack of information on what types of plant communities establish once Phragmites is removed. Our model of Phragmites establishment and reproduction describes the invasion as a symptom of watershed-scale land use and disturbance. We advocate more holistic approaches to control and management that focus on improving water quality and minimizing human disturbance to deter future invasion and improve resilience of native plant communities. Studies on invasive plant management are often short in duration and limited in the methods tested, and lack an adequate description of plant communities that replace the invader following removal. Here we present a comprehensive review of management studies on a single species, in an effort to elucidate future directions for research in invasive plant management. We reviewed the literature on Phragmites management in North America in an effort to synthesize our understanding of management efforts, identify gaps in knowledge and improve the efficacy of management. Additionally, we assessed recent ecological findings concerning Phragmites mechanisms of invasion and integrated these findings into our recommendations for more effective management. Our overall goal is to examine whether or not current management approaches can be improved and whether they promote reestablishment of native plant communities. We found: (i) little information on community-level recovery of vegetation following removal of Phragmites; and (ii) most management approaches focus on the removal of Phragmites from individual stands or groups of stands over a relatively small area. With a few exceptions, recovery studies did not monitor vegetation for substantial durations, thus limiting adequate evaluation of the recovery trajectory. We also found that none of the recovery studies were conducted in a landscape context, even though it is now well documented that land-use patterns on adjacent habitats influence the structure and function of wetlands, including the expansion of Phragmites. We suggest that Phragmites management needs to shift to watershed-scale efforts in coastal regions, or larger management units inland. In addition, management efforts should focus on restoring native plant communities, rather than simply eradicating Phragmites stands. Wetlands and watersheds should be prioritized to identify ecosystems that would benefit most from Phragmites management and those where the negative impact of management would be minimal.