Alaska Declares War

....on my bloomin' tree.

Biologists in Alaska are sounding a warning about a popular ornamental tree found in many northern gardens.

The Alaska state government has added the Mayday tree, prunus padus, to its list of invasive species.

I haven't seen them invading anything around here, although in some places in the bush around Anchorage

Mayday trees are winning the war in the woods against local trees like willows and birch.

"In some areas the under-storey is completely Mayday seedlings, and so the only green you see in the early spring is prunus padus or the Mayday tree," said Michael Rasy, who has been mapping the spread of the tree to wildlands around Anchorage for the University of Alaska.

It sounds quite lovely to me, but then I'm a fan of dandelions as well.

Rasy said Yukon should be on the alert for Maydays that aren't content to stay where they're planted.

"The latitude is similar, we have similar climates," he said. "It was pretty shocking to see how this tree has misbehaved in this area."

So far, mine has been really well-behaved. One might even say contented. I wonder if it might feel a little differently if I pruned the prunus.