Aren’t bittersweet berries beautiful this time of year? It’s almost like nature is providing you with all the makings for a gorgeous fall or holiday wreath for your door.
But wait—IT’S A TRICK! The berries of the bittersweet are deliciously colored in bright reds, oranges and yellows to attract birds to eat and spread the seeds of this invasive plant.
When you’re walking through an area that is infested with bittersweet berries, PLEASE, leave them where they are. Taking cuttings for wreaths and then later disposing of them will create the potential for seeds to spread and further our problem with bittersweet in Maine.
If you’d like to know more about Oriental Bittersweet and the damaging effects of this plant, please visit our resource library:
fortwilliams.org/education/invasive-plant-resource-library
Wonderful local native wreath ingredients are maple leaves, oak leaves, winterberry, pine cones, ivy, balsam fir, along with many others (please do not gather these in the Park, though!).
I hope that I’ve been able to convince you that bittersweet isn’t the lovely door hanger that it appears to be. On a final note, for the health of your own land, please think about discarding any wreaths in the trash instead of your compost to avoid the unintended spread of invasive plant seeds.
If you’d like to learn more about invasive plants in general, please contact me. I’m always happy to give tours of the Park and coordinate volunteer opportunities.
Happy Holidays Everyone!
Calie Ramisch, Landscape Gardener and Volunteer Coordinator
Fort Williams Park Foundation calie.ramisch@fortwilliams.org