Remember the man-eating plant in “Little Shop of Horrors?”
Fiction meets fact as the invasive kudzu plant advances from the
southeastern U.S. to Canada. You’ve seen it smothering bushes,
trees and even abandoned homes along highways. It might also be
sneaking through local meadows, woods or climbing garden fences.
Kudzu can grow one foot per day and up to 90 feet in a single
season. It throttles native species, including trees, which are
girdled by the vine, broken by its weight or killed by lack of
light. Kudzu also produces isoprene and nitric oxide, which,
when combined with nitrogen in the air, form ozone. Ozone
irritates the eyes, nose and throat and can damage the lungs,
sometimes causing asthma or worsening asthma symptoms. As a
mutagen, it can cause lung cancer. Ozone also hinders the growth
of many plants, including crops grown for food. What should you
do to save your property from being swallowed up? Here are
several methods of control. Whatever you decide, do it right
away. The longer kudzu occupi