The Midwest Invasive Plant Network is working with the Northeast Illinois Invasive Plant Partnership, Chicago Botanic Garden, Lake County (IL) Forest Preserve District, and The Nature Conservancy of Indiana to provide information about ornamental plants that have become invasive plants in native areas to both nurseries and consumers. Some of these species include -
Burning Bush (Euonymous alatus) (this species is banned in Massachusetts and declared invasive in Connecticut and New Hampshire)
Butterfly Bush (Budleja davidii) (it’s sale has been banned in Oregon and it is on the Washingston State Noxious Weed List)
Callery (Bradford) Pear (Pyrus calleryana)
Common or European Buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica) (on the Illinois Exotic Weed Act List)
Japanese Barberry (Berberis thunbergii) (voluntary phase out of 25 cultivars in Connecticut)
Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica) (declared invasive in NH)
Oriental (Asian) Bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus)
Porcelain Berry/Porcelain vine/Amur Peppervine (Ampelopsis brevipedunculata)
Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria)
Information about similar species and their native alternatives can be found here:
MIPN Landscape Alternatives for the Midwest
Chicago Botanic Garden Regional Invasive Plant List
Heading out to a garden center or a nursery to shop for your garden? Bring along the Landscape Alternatives app on your iPhone or iPad to help you make informed choices!
You can download it for free here: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/landscape-alternatives-for/id559865258?mt=8
Some native plant resources:
Native Plant Use in Landscaping (INHS)
University of Illinois Extension
USEPA Illinois Natural Landscaping Resource List
Illinois Best Plants: USDA Plant Hardiness Zones
GLIN: Plants of the Great Lakes Region
Illinois Green Industry Association
