Giant Reed   (Arundo donax) 

DESCRIPTION

The Giant Reed, also known as wild cane, is a bamboo-like perennial and a member of the grass family (Poaceae). It can often reach heights of 20 feet or more. Giant Reed has a very strong root structure consisting of numerous creeping roots bundled together. From these fleshy roots stands a tough, 1/4 to 2 inch thick woody stem that supports many 1-2 inch wide, 12-inch leaves. Around August and September of each year the Giant Reed produces flowers from 2-inch long plume-like panicles. Giant Reed can grow in various soil conditions, from saturated soils to well drained soils. Because of its adaptability to varying soil conditions, Giant Reed can be found in a wide range of habitats, such as along roadsides, ditches, and around rivers, streams, and pond banks.

(Source: 1. Plant Conservation Alliance, Alien Plant Working Group (31 March 1998) http://www.nps.gov/plants/ alien/fact/ardo1.htm 2. Stephen E. Zurek, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. http://www.vnps.org/invasive/FSA RUN.html. )

IMPACTS

Giant Reed is an aggressive species with remarkable reproductive abilities. This ability to reproduce quickly allows Giant Reed to out compete native species of plants for land and food resources, thus establishing thick, concentrated stands. In addition, mature Giant Reeds stand can withstand flooding and drought. All of this combined with Giant Reed's ability to spread over geographic locations quickly, via natural waterways, allows Giant Reed to overtake large areas very quickly. These factors produce various results that make Giant Reed extremely undesirable.

Giant Reed is an extremely flammable plant, even when it is green. The thick stands of Giant Reeds can catch on fire quickly and easily, and through their extensive placement, spread fires rapidly through entire riparian systems.

Since Giant Reed suffocate native vegetation, it alters the food resources for local wildlife. Giant Reed can hardly be called an alternative food resource because of its lack of nutrients. Giant Reed has only proved to benefit a very small number of species, most of which use Giant Reed for shelter, not as a food resource.

When flooding occurs in areas heavily populated by Giant Reed, its stems and rhizomes break off in the flood currents and flow with the flood. These rhizomes and stems deposit themselves in drainage systems, along small agricultural ditches, on bridges, and in other flood control systems. The Giant Reed then quickly decides to reestablish itself in these new locations. This causes a costly cleanup, obstructed waterways, and quite possibly structural damage. This can put an economic strain on areas inundated with Giant Reeds.

Giant Reed has caused the biggest problem in the southern California riparian watershed areas.

Giant Reed, despite its bad reputation, does have a few good applications. It is used around the world in the production of musical instruments, primarily in the production of reeds for woodwind instruments.

(Source: 1.Santa Margarita and San Luis Rey Watersheds Weed Management Area, http://smslrwma.org/ADBiology.htm)

(Source: 1.Santa Margarita and San Luis Rey Watersheds Weed Management Area, http://smslrwma.org/ADBiology.htm)

Link to

Link  

Download an ArcView GIS Shape file (WinZip compression): 1) Coverage for Arundo donax (giant reed), 2) Coverage for Lepidium latifolium (perennial pepperweed) for both the Santa Margarita and San Luis Rey watersheds.  (Link to WinZip site)

Chopping, Cutting or Mowing: Giant Reed may be trimmed back by tractor-mounted mowers on even ground or by scythes on rough or stony ground. Unwanted vegetation can be removed faster and more economically in these ways than by manual means and with less soil disturbance than with scarification. Mowing must be repeated several times to ensure depletion of the rootstock. If only a single cutting can be made, the best time is when the plants begin to flower. At this stage the reserve food supply in the roots has been nearly exhausted, and new seeds have not yet been produced.

Prescribed Burning Flame Thrower: A flame thrower or weed burner device can be used as a spot treatment to heat-girdle the stems at the base of arundo plants. This technique has advantages of being less costly than basal and stem herbicide treatments and is suitable for use during wet weather; it cannot be used during periods of wildfire hazard. Its effectiveness is comparable to manual cutting. The timing of the treatment may affect resprouting behavior (Jones and Stokes Associates 1984).

Broadcast Burning: Large areas of weed infestation may be burned in order to remove the standing mature plants. This may be accomplished with or without a pre-spray of herbicides to kill and desiccate plants, Notably flammable plants usually do not require any pre-spray treatment. Used alone this method will not prevent resprouting from root crowns. Burning is best followed by 1) herbicide treatment of stumps, 2) subsequent burning to exhaust soil seed bank and underground food reserves, and/or 3) revegetation with fast growing native species. Other considera- tions for the use of prescribed burning include the time and cost of coordinating a burn, and the soil disturbance resulting from firebreak construction.

Chemical Control 
Detailed information on herbicides are available in such publications as Weed Science Society of America (1983) or USDA (1984), and will not be comprehensively covered here. The Weed Science Society publication gives specific information on nomenclature, chemical and physical properties of the pure chemical, use recommendations and precautions, physiological and biochemical behavior, behavior in or on soils and toxological properties for several hundred chemicals. In applying herbicides it is recommended that a dye be used in the chemical mixture to mark the treated plants and thus minimize waste. The chemical glyphosate has proven most effective of eliminating the Giant Reed and its reproductive rhizomes.

Credit & Org: Santa Margarita and San Luis Rey Watersheds Weed Management Area (Foliar application of herbicide in thick Arundo stands using ladders)	Credit & Org: Santa Margarita and San Luis Rey Watersheds Weed Management Area (Dead Arundo plants that were foliar sprayed with herbicide)	Credit & Org: Santa Margarita and San Luis Rey Watersheds Weed Management Area (Mechanical removal of Arundo plants (above and below ground)

(source from: 1. The Nature Conservancy, Element Stewardship Abstract For Arundo donax , http://tncweeds.ucdavis.edu/esadocs/documnts/arundon.html; 2. Stephen E. Zurek, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University http://www.vnps.org/invasive/FSA RUN.html; 3. Tom L. Dudley. Noxious Wildland Weeds of California: Arundo donax Department of Integrative Biology. University of California http://ceres.ca.gov/tadn/arundoWW. html). 

  Arundo donax (giant reed, giant cane): Santa Margarita and San Luis Rey Watersheds Weed Management Area
    http://smslrwma.org/Arundo1.htm
This site includes very excellent and well-organized information about Arundo donax.  

Invasive Alien Plant Species of Virginia Giant Reed (Arundo donax): Virginia Native Plant Society
    http://www.vnps.org/invasive/FSARUN.html
This site provides information on giant reed's description, habitat, distribution, threats, and control.

Giant Reed: Weeds on the Web, Wildland Invasive Species Program
    http://tncweeds.ucdavis.edu/esadocs/arundona.html
This site includes "Element Stewardship Abstract" for Giant Reed and 6 good images.

  Team Arundo del Norte 
     http://www.teamarundo.org/
Team Arundo del Norte is a forum of local, state, and federal organizations dedicated to the control of Arundo donax (giant reed), where it threatens rivers, creeks, and wetlands in Central and Northern California.

Taxonomic Info on Arundo: Integrated Taxonomic Information System 
    http://sis.agr.gc.ca/pls/itisca/next?v_tsn=41449&taxa=&p_ifx=plglt&p_lang=

Arundo Fact Sheet: Global Invasive Species Database
    http://www.issg.org/database/species/ecology.asp?si=112&fr=1&sts=sss

Arundo Management Information
    http://www.boprc.govt.nz/www/green/weed51.htm
This site includes a brief information about the following management methods: Physical Control, Disposal, Slashed vegetation can be left to rot, be mulched or composted, Chemical Control, and  Recommended Approach.

Element Stewardship Abstract for Arundo donax, Giant Reed

Link   http://tncweeds.ucdavis.edu/esadocs/documnts/arundon.html
This abstract describes very detailed information about giant reed's general description, natural history condition management/monitoring.