Who: Land managers, land owners, researchers, policy makers, graduate students

What: The North American Invasive Plant Ecology and Management Short Course (NAIPSC) is three days of intense instruction and learning for those interested in the basics of invasive plant ecology and management.

The NAIPSC materials will reinforce proven scientific methods and present relevant hypotheses and practices related to invasive plant ecology and management. This approach will stimulate thoughtful discussion, provide problem-solving applications and encourage retention of the main themes presented throughout the 3-day course. Participants with limited understanding in integrated control methodology, mapping and monitoring technology, restoration ecology and plant taxonomy will learn the basic principles of invasive plant ecology and the latest techniques for managing infested areas.

Where: University of Nebraska-Lincoln West Central Research & Extension Center, 402 West State Farm Road, North Platte, NE 69101.

The location for the NAIPSC is ideally located in the west central region of Nebraska and is host to some of the most offensive rangeland, riparian, and wild land invasive plant species found in North America.

Why: Invasive plant species can establish in diverse environments and, with the increase in human mobility, they are no longer restricted to isolated pockets in remote parts of the world. Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum L.) in rangelands, purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria L.) in wetlands, and tamarisk (Tamarix spp.) in ripar¬ian areas are examples of invasive plant species that are common to North America and can be found in monocultures and patches covering many thousands of hectares. Across the world, invasive plant species like water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes), cogon grass (Imperata cylindrica), and mile-a-minute weed (Persicaria perfoliata L.) have choked waterways, altered fire regimes, or caused the abandonment of farmland due to their dominating and persistent characteristics. Clearly, the effects of invasive plant species have reached global scales and their related costs have been estimated in the billions of dollars. Control techniques are widely available and include biological, chemical and cultural, yet inasive plant species continue to threaten many ecosystems on regional scales, particularly rangelands and wild lands across North America.

How: The 2012 NAIPSC will include presentations, hands-on workshops, site visits and instructor-led discussion sessions on the latest in invasive plant ecology and management. CEU and graduate student credit will be available.

When: June 26-28, 2012

Other Details: Online learning community
A partnership has been established with the Plant and Soil Sciences eLibrary team. An invasive plant species online learning community has been developed in which the participants for the NAIPSC can continue discussions with each other, as well as the instructors. This “community of learning” environment has been developed as part of a recently funded NSF grant to enhance the Plant and Soil Sciences eLibrary. The community includes features such as: access to eLibrary lessons specific to participants, an online chat and blogging feature, Webinars, and links to WSSA and eXtension. The goal of the invasive plant community of learning is to provide social media/Web2.0 capabilities to complement the current educational materials being made available in this short course and partnering websites.

Contact: Steve Young, NAIPSC organizer (syoung4@unl.edu)