Follow the simple
steps listed on the back of any of the popular wildflower seed
mixes for sale, and voila! A thick carpet of
kaleidoscopic blooms will grace your garden. Problem is, you
probably just broke the law.
At least, that’s
what researchers with the University of Washington’s Center for
Urban Horticulture discovered when they grew the contents of 19
popular seed packages available in stores and mail-order catalogs.
Every packet contained at least one species of plant listed as
noxious or invasive in at least one state – a fineable misdemeanor
in some regions – and several packets’ lists of seed “ingredients”
came up short, or the packets had no itemization
whatsoever.
“It’s not unusual,” says Dr. Faith
Campbell, an invasive weed expert with the American Lands Alliance.
Invasive species are commonly – though not intentionally – sold in
nurseries and seed packets across the country, she says. In fact, a
federal law requires seed companies to list the total contents of
each packet, as a preventive measure, though few do. “The
University of Washington research was the first serious attempt to
study the problem,” Campbell says, “though people have been
muttering about it for years.”
Enforcement of the
little-known invasive plant law is lax because there’s little
funding for either federal or local enforcement. “I can’t recommend
using any wildflower seed mixes,” says Lorraine Brooks, who headed
the project as part of an honor’s thesis for her bachelor’s degree.
A safe approach to growing a wildflower garden, she suggests, is to
buy each specific flower species separately after checking the list
of banned plants in your state.
For information
on the noxious or invasive plants listed in your state, check the
USDA’s Animal and Plants Health Inspection Service at
www.aphis.usda.gov/ppq/permits/fnwsbycat-e.html.
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline The garden of good and evil.
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