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Welcome to the North Carolina Exotic Pest Plant Council Website

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Take the North Carolina's Top 10 Most Invasive Plants Survey

Join us for the 2nd Annual North Carolina Invasive Species Awareness Week

Invasive plants in NC negatively impact:
  • Human health
  • Recreational opportunities on land and in the water
  • Native plants and animals
  • Natural systems
  • Drinking water sources

The goal of Invasive Species Awareness Week is to educate the public about the problems caused by invasive plant species. To get involved and learn more you can:





What Is An Invasive Plant?

Everyone in Southeastern US is familiar with kudzu, which has become the poster child for invasive plants.  Scenes of cars, buildings and entire fields engulfed by the plant have become common over the past 100 years.  Introduced at the Japanese pavilion in the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, this ornamental has since become known as "the plant that ate the South".  While there is no eradicating kudzu from the Southeast, the goal of the NC-EPPC is to prevent the next kudzu from invading our forests, crops and, as is sometimes the case with kudzu, our homes.

  • It is estimated that $34.7 billion a year are spent on invasive plant control in the United States.  Introduction of invasive plants can be detrimental economically, environmentally and can negative impacts on human health. 

  • Invasive plants can displace native vegetation such as Longleaf pine, interrupting fire regimes and modifying soil characteristics.  For example, the endangered Red-cockaded woodpecker (RCW) is dependent on Longleaf pine trees to make it's home.  If these pine trees are not available, not only does the RCW have no where to live, but neither do the other wildlife that inhabit empty RCW nests, such insects, frogs and other birds, ultimately destroying the ecosystem.

  • Plants such as hydrilla and English Ivy can harbor an environment that allows mosquito populationst to thrive, thus increasing the chance of mosquito borne illness to humans and pets.

  • Invasive weeds such as Alligator weed can clog waterways, inhibiting recreation and degrading water quality.



What You Can Do
  • Join NC EPPC.
  • Take an interest in invasive plant issues.
  • Learn to identify invasive plants, especially those that are not yet in NC but have been selected as early detection targets, and report them to any member of the NC EPPC Board of Directors or to the NC Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services at 1-800-206-WEED or newpest@ncagr.gov.
  • Participate in local conservation groups and volunteer for invasive plant survey and control activities.
  • Use non-invasive plant alternatives for landscaping


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