Phragmites have been a serious problem in Lambton County for several years, so it's not surprising that they've spread into Huron County.
The Executive Director of the Lake Huron Centre for Coastal Conservation says they're hoping an information session they're hosting Saturday will help people recognize the invasive species and distinguish from the native variety.
Erinn Lawrie says the native plant doesn't grow a tall as the invasive Phragmites, which can reach a height of 15 ft to 16 ft. The invasive Phragmites also grows in extreme densities -- as many as 200 stems in one square metre, which prevents any other plant or wildlife from using that space.
Lawrie says where they have Phragmites in standing water they cut the plant as close to the sediment as possible and the plant drowns. If the plant is on land they have permission to use herbicides to kill it.
The invasive Phragmites also has a toxin in its roots that kills any neighbouring plants and the density of the stems is so severe, that turtles have wandered into a patch and have starved to death because they were unable to get out.
The information session starts at 9:30am Saturday morning at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Goderich.
