The latest round of plants added to Pennsylvania’s noxious weeds list reads like a directory of popular landscaping options.
Japanese barberry (Berberis thunbergii), callery or Bradford pear trees (Pyrus calleryana) and Ravenna grass (Saccharum ravennae; Tripidium ravennae) have been staples of urban and particularly suburban landscaping for decades.
All three are invasive species whose seeds are readily spread by bird droppings. But the barberry is a particular problem for multiple reasons, according to plant biologists.
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