Environment Blog

Four ways to stop pests from spreading

According to the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA), homeowners and gardeners can help minimize the economic, ecological and human impacts of invasive plant and animal species to Minnesota by following these four easy guidelines:

According to the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA), homeowners and gardeners can help minimize the economic, ecological and human impacts of invasive plant and animal species to Minnesota by following these four easy guidelines:

1. Verify that the plants you are buying for your yard or garden are not invasive. Replace invasive plants in your garden with non-invasive alternatives. Ask your neighborhood garden center or nursery staff for help in identifying invasive plants!
2. Clean your boots before you hike in a new area to get rid of hitchhiking weed seeds and pathogens.
3. Don't "pack a pest" when traveling. Fruits and vegetables, plants, insects and animals can carry pests or become invasive themselves.
4. Don't release aquarium fish and plants, live bait or other exotic animals into the wild.

For more information on invasive species, go to the Invasive Species Exclusion Unit on the MDA's website. The MDA also has an "Arrest the Pest" hotline at 651-201-6684 (Metro Area) or 1-888-545-6684 (Greater Minnesota). Call the hotline to:

• Get the latest updates on invasive/exotic species such as the gypsy moth, soybean rust, sudden oak death, Asian longhorned beetle, emerald ash borer, bark beetles, and other destructive insect, plant and disease pest species.
• To request informational brochures.
• To speak to a pest specialist.
• To report suspicious pest species arriving on plants or articles from foreign countries or other states.