NORTHPORT, Maine — Last summer, two very unwelcome out-of-towners put down roots in the village of Bayside, until locals got rid of them in the dead of night.
It wasn’t a matter of xenophobia. It was a matter of safety, according to town officials who are asking residents to keep a close eye out this summer to see if there’s been a return of the intruder: giant hogweed.
The noxious plant’s sap is an extreme irritant. When skin touches the sap, the results can be painful blisters and burns that can cause permanent scarring. Contact with eyes can cause blindness.
“Be on the lookout. Don’t touch it,” Denise Lindahl, a selectman, said Monday. “Just let us know and we’ll deal with it.”
When the large plants were spotted last summer on George Street, the main route for Bayside village, it caused consternation for many who live in town.
“I was very concerned,” said Dan Webster, adding that he’s staying away from all plants with little white flowers. “I wouldn’t touch any of these plants now. I’m afraid. The symptoms don’t sound at all fun.”
Giant hogweed is a native of the Caucasus region of Asia, and can grow up to 14 feet tall or higher. Its leaves are several feet long and stems measure as much as 4 inches thick. But the flowers are the plant’s most remarkable aspect: white clusters that can measure 2 feet across.
Because of those flowers, hogweed can be mistaken for angelica or cow parsnip. But those plants do not grow as big.
“It’s a really spectacular and very large plant,” Ann Gibbs, state horticulturist with the Maine Department of Agriculture, told the BDN last fall.
At that time, the agency had documented at least 20 sites around the state with giant hogweed, including the Bayside site. About half of the sites are located in Hancock County, including several in Acadia National Park.
The plant used to be popular with estate owners who searched for exotic plants from around the world to fill their ornamental gardens, experts have said.
Now, state and federal agencies are working to eradicate giant hogweed, which generates a large crop of seeds each year, making that work a challenge.
Lindahl is hoping that if giant hogweed is spotted again in Bayside, or elsewhere in Northport, landowners or concerned gardeners won’t take it upon themselves to cut down the plant, as happened last year.
“Oh my God,” the nurse recalled thinking when she learned of the nocturnal hatchet job. “Professionals have to come in, and have the right gear on, so they don’t touch it.”
She said that she did not hear of any giant hogweed-related injuries last summer, though the Maine Department of Agriculture gave a heads-up to Waldo County General Hospital just in case.
But she did hear that some residents think it’s a pretty plant and “we shouldn’t do anything to it.”
She and other town officials vehemently disagree.
“We’re trying to nip it in the bud this year,” Lindahl said.
Northport residents who spot giant hogweed can call the town office at 338-3819.
Around Maine, sightings should be reported to the Maine Department of Agriculture at 287-3891.
It is now official,now that it is in print, and someone wants to do the right thing and ” nip it in the bud” there will be a group of enviro whack jobs that will find seeds and spread this plant to the four winds. They will think they are Johnny Hogweed Seed. You can bank on it.
Excuse me but could you elaborate on your statement a bit. Kinda a mean comment without any reasoning as to why i deserve it. I have an open mind and have been known to retract a post or two.
For starters–enviro whack jobs is kind of mean too. Environmentalists are a varied breed but it is a small percentage that choose militant action or law breaking to fight for their chosen cause. I suppose this fringe element could be construed to be whack jobs–sort of like Westboro Baptist church members and abortion clinic terrorists are religio whack jobs–that doesn’t mean all church goers are nut cases.
I consider myself to be environmentally conscious–I recycle religiously, donate regularly to several environmental groups, pick up and dispose of other peoples litter, plant trees and…….try to educate people about and eliminate invasive species such as japanese knotweed and giant hogweed. I consider it be a no-brainer that if we trash our planet, we don’t have a back-up plan and we really should walk gently–a lot more gently than we do now. I will be the first to report Hogweed when I see it and the last to suggest planting it anywhere. Actually–there is no need to plant it–just allow it to continue through it’s seed cycle and pretty soon it will be everywhere.
If that be whacko, I retract my award.
You must be proud of what you do and you should be. It is unjust to classify all environmentalist “whack jobs” and i do not, but a certain percentage, who call themselves environmentalist, are whack jobs. This holds true with any handle you put on a group. Even Baptist and abortionist. Have a nice day
Must be some way to get a high from it.
“”But she did hear that some residents think it’s a pretty plant and “we shouldn’t do anything to it.” “”
So you are with them kc?
I have one right next to my mail box.
hhmmm seeds get blown onto the mail truck get taken for a ride the whole route..
Will in that case at least tell your letter carrier!
The first Maine Superweed. The price we pay for the collective use of pesticides! Be on the lookout for this one…..you DO NOT want the kids to get into this one. (Nor do you!)
“Giant hogweed is a native of the Caucasus region of Asia….” It’s not from pesticides. More like ly as they say in the aricle, from rich folks waning to have strange and unusual plants in teir gardens to impress guests.
Huh?
How do these things get to Maine or America ? Are we not controlling these things at our borders ? Wait, I forgot we do not have real borders as others do.
As stated in the article large estate owners (such as those with paid groundskeepers on staff) used to import exotic plants for their landscaping projects. I’ve read elsewhere that during the late 1800s this practice flourished with folks searching out evermore unusual species in order to be the first to have them. This practice brought a lot of unwelcome plants to this country. In the gardening craze of those times not a lot of thought was given to learning about the history and habits of each species. I believe that’s how purple loosestrife came to be here and bittersweet vine as well. Both pretty but invasive and pesky as all get out.
Huh…… A, Did you ever try to buy plants in New Brunswick, Ca and bring them into the country?
B. Hogweed is native to the orient NOT Mexico. C. Seeds MIGHT have entered Maine on Gr Gr Grandaddy’s clipper ship years ago???????? That said I saw them in Mendacino Calif. in 1979.
I was fascinated by the GIANT queen anne’s lace plants. I Have NEVER seen them on this coast even in the many botanical gardens I visited. D. WhenI took the master gardener class, one of the volunteer jobs for required hours to earn your certificate: was eliminating invasive plants in the area. Environmental Activists are definitely not going to make them proliferate.
Maine’s first superweed. The price we pay for abusing the environment with pesticides and the like.
Be mindful that the kids (or adults!) don’t touch this thing. Note to Bonnie: other articles I’ve read about hogwart say its been spotted in Lisbon.
I’m thinking this isn’t new to Maine. I’m almost positive I’ve seen it in many places and pretty sure I’ve actually come in contact with it. I was just looking up reactions and it looks prettttttyyy familiar. Yuck!
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Yeah, it does look like that. I had a very strange rash that was one giant blister a couple years ago that i thought was poison ivy at first but it didn’t end up the same.
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Agreed. I’m also not far from bayside so who knows where it could be.
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In my experience it’s the anti-science, anti-government right-wing nut jobs who seem intent on destroying God’s green earth just for kicks. Look at the “bucket biologists” who transport invasive fish that destroy native populations. Or their support of “national sacrifice areas” over large parts of the country to get a few months’ worth of oil and gas.
It’s too bad they can’t transfer their hatred of illegal immigrant humans to those of the rest of the biosphere. Whoops, I used a scientific term. Sorry.
How in the world did you think to turn a story about hogweed into a raving screed against conservative Americans??
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To be safe I feel that we should cover everything in a nice layer of asphalt.
Think I smoked some of this hogweed back a few decades right before a Pink Floyd concert. I could have sworn I saw Syd hovering in the rafters with some flying monkeys and a rapidly melting witch.
Easy to kill. Roundup, or cutting off with a shovel below grade. The flower head should be bagged before any action. Much easier to kill when they are small. Seeds remain viable in the soil, so look for more.
Even better, call someone.