Download Burning Bush - Natural Biodiversity

BioBullies
Impacts: It threatens a
variety of habitats such as,
forests, coastal
scrublands and prairies.
The burning bush will
produce dense thickets,
displacing many native
woody and herbaceous
plant species. It colonizes
by root suckers making it
spread easily.
Suspected Means of
introduction: It was
introduced to the U.S.
around 1860 for landscaping purposes. It can still be
purchased today at
nurseries and remains
very popular despite its
invasive nature.
Winged
Burning Bush
Euonymus alatus (Thunb.) Sieb.
Description: The winged burning bush is a deciduous shrub that can
grow up to 20 feet. It is a multiple stemmed, angular branching shrub
with conspicuously winged stems. The average plant will grow 5-10 feet
high. The leaves are dark green and grow in pairs along the stem. In
autumn the leaves turn a red-purple color. The flowers are greenish in
color, with 4 pedals, and bloom in late spring. The purplish red fruits
mature in the summer.
BioBullies
Native Range: Central
China, northeastern
Asia, and Japan
Resources for
Identification and
Control of burning
bush
Winged
Burning Bush
Euonymus alatus (Thunb.) Sieb.
Plant Invaders of
Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas–
National Park Service and
U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service
Plant Profile Database USDA
Invasive.org
University of GA, US Forest
Service, USDA APHIS
Noxious Weed Fact Sheet
PA Dept. of Agriculture
Weed of the WeekUSDA Forest Service
Invasive Exotic Plant
Tutorial-DCNR
Native Alternatives:
Virginia sweetspire
(Itea virginica)
Fragrant sumac
(Rhus aromatica)
Red chokeberry
(Photinia pyrifolia)
Habitat: Burning bush can be found
in the U.S. from New England to
northern Florida and the Gulf Coast,
and also Illinois. It will escape
cultivation and invade roadsides, old
fields, and forest edges. It will grow
in many types of soils; being pH
adaptable. It will tolerate full shade.
Biology: It can reproduce by seed
which birds disperse and also
locally through vegetative
reproduction. Hundreds of
seedlings are usually found below
the parent plant, which is called, “
seed shadowing.”
Natural Biodiversity
www.naturalbiodiversity.org
Control Methods: It is best not to
plant burning bush. Seedlings can
be removed by hand or dug out.
Shrubs can be cut repeatedly to
the ground to control it. Roots can
be removed with a weed wrench.
Herbicides like glyphosate and
triclopyr can be applied to the cut
stems.
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Johnstown, PA 15902
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