Natural Resources
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Natural Resources |
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city government news & events about apple valley employment resources |
Departments > Natural Resources > In Your Yard | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Purple Loosestrife Natural Resources staff recently collected loosestrife beetles by Circle Lake in Rice County. They were released into a City-owned wetland near Lake Alimagnet infested with purple loosestrife. Purple loosestrife is one of the exotic plants brought in from Europe long ago because it was a "pretty" and hardy perennial plant. As it has no natural enemies in the United States, the plant has become a major threat to many wetlands where it can out-compete native plants and take over the entire wetland. Loosestrife beetles are natural enemies from Europe which have been researched and found to feed exclusively on purple loosestrife plants. The beetles have been imported, raised, and released into wetlands as a biological control of purple loosestrife. It often takes five to seven years for beetle populations to become established and built up significantly for effective control. 2004 was the second year loosestrife beetles have been released into the Alimagnet wetland. Prior to freeing the most recent beetle catch into the wetland, a few loosestrife beetles were observed that apparently survived from the previous year's beetle release. The loosestrife beetle collection program is coordinated through the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Content updated on: 26-May-2004
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