The intruders
● Park managers have drafted a plan to implement different methods to eradicate these species. The plan may be read at www.nps.gov/sagu online.
● Buffelgrass, top left, is aggressive and reproduces quickly. It can fuel hot, fast-burning fires and is now popping up in alleyways and back yards.
● Fountain grass, bottom left, and buffelgrass share the same genus. Fountain grass is aggressive like buffelgrass. It is used for landscaping, especially in the cities, because of its aesthetic appeal.
● Oleander is becoming invasive, starting to escape cultivation when no one thought it could.
● Saharan mustard and malta star thistle are annual plants. Saharan mustard is in the same genus as the turnip. It looks like a mustard plant with a flower. One plant makes about 1,000 seeds. Saharan mustard has almost completely taken over in the dune areas. Malta star thistle is a yellow-flowered plant that easily wipes out native vegetation as it spreads.
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● These plants have spread quickly throughout the Sonoran Desert because their seeds stick to cars, pets, clothing, etc. Humans, without knowing it, have been responsible for transporting these "noxious" species.
