While talking with a staff member at my local nursery this morning, they said Wisteria ( sinensis) and Burning Bush (Euonymous elata) are now banned for sale in Maryland as invasive species.

I did a quick search, and here is what I came up with:

http://mda.maryland.gov/plants...

Invasive Plant Lists and Requirements
Tier 1 Invasive Plants
The following plants are designated as Tier 1 invasive plants in Maryland April 11, 2016. Efffective immedicately a person may not acquire a new Tier I invasive plant. According to phase-in provisions these plants are subject to the restrictions below as of April 12, 2017.

Ficaria verna (fig buttercup)
Geranium lucidum (shining cranesbill)
Iris pseudacorus (yellow flag iris)


Restrictions - Except as provided below, a person may not propagate, import, transfer, sell, purchase, transport, or introduce any living part of a Tier 1 invasive plant in the State. These restrictions do not apply to the transfer, lease, sale, or purchase of real property on which an invasive plant is located.

Exemptions - A person may conduct a prohibited activity if:

The person receives approval from the Secretary before conducting the activity; and
The activity is for the purpose of:

Disposing of the invasive plant
Controlling the invasive plant
Using the invasive plant for research or educational purposes; or
Exporting the invasive plant out of the State.

Tier 2 Invasive Plants
The following plants are designated as Tier 2 invasive Plants in Maryland, effective April 11, 2016.
According to phase-in provisions, these plants are subject to the restrictions below as of July 12, 2016.

Euonymus alatus (burning bush)
Ligustrum obtusifolium (blunt-leaved or border privet)
Wisteria sinensis (Chinese wisteria)
Wisteria floribunda (Japanese wisteria)
Wisteria x formosa (floribunda x sinensis hybrids)


Restrictions

A person may not sell or offer for sale at a retail outlet a Tier 2 invasive plant unless the retail outlet posts in a conspicuous manner in proximity to all Tier 2 plant displays, a sign identifying the plants as Tier 2 plants. Required insignia can be found under Information for Nursery & Landscape Professionals on the right hand side of this page.
A person may not provide landscaping services to plant or supply for planting a Tier 2 invasive plant unless the person provides to its customer a list of Tier 2 invasive plants.



Penalties

The Secretary may impose a civil penalty not to exceed $500 for each violation.
Title 12 Criminal Penalties

Legal Authority: Md. AGRICULTURE Code Ann. § 9.5-101 et. seq.

For Pete Sake, that is really the last straw. I think the elected officials should concentrate on important issues rather than what kind of plants you can grow and sell. If they have nothing else to do why have them around. Taxes would go down.

We have had some of the most stupid laws come out of our assembly that you can imagine. I think the last one was naming the State Soil.........I can not believe our tax dollars are being spent on such crazy things. I personally think some of those plants listed are very pretty and you can always trim them if they bother you. Sorry to disagree, but I am fed up with regulations and restrictions.

Long time coming. I don't know what takes legislatures so long. This isn't govt overreach. It is about recognizing the very real problems many exotics create when they inevitably escape from our little controlled gardens. Those problems resulting in billions of dollars and billions of dollars in person hours dealing with them. Kudos to Maryland...stop dragging your feet on the others under consideration.

PS - there were 3 burning bushes on the propert we bought last year. They were the first things to die. We are still dealing with seedlings...and the ones from properties around us.

I would have to agree. I understand what JB is saying, But here in NJ I did not plant it, but it is coming up everywhere even in the woods. A neighbor down the street had it and I assume the seeds blew around. That is the same for sweet Autumn Clematis. It seems to grow wild here so it is coming up everywhere, all through the yard and other flower beds. The woods next to my yard was consumed with it when I moved here in 2001. I am still pulling it out and trying to kill it.

When I lived in PA we had two plants that were everywhere in the suburban areas. Bittersweet and oh my, now I can't think of the name of it. Vine and little white flowers that smell so good. I always wondered why people got so upset because it smells so good. I had a problem with Ivy. It was originally planted by the landscaper around the house as a ground cover under the bushes and it kept climbing up the stone house and under the gutters, etc. That was a problem but it was pretty. I have always loved Wisteria and it amazes me that it could be such a problem. We have none here.

I still have a problem with the government telling me what to plant. I am old an cranky.

I have 2 1/4 wisteria that are planted directly in the ground. The white one is behaving itself rather nicely. The purple one, wisteria sinensis, likes to send out looooooooong roots. Every now and then, I see one popping up far from the parent. Then, I have to gently dig down to the root and trace it all the way back. It's fine if it's open ground and not deep. Invariably though, it's deep and under rock, which makes it hard to remove.

I've since learned my lesson. The rest of my wisteria are all in pots with an air gap in the bottom.

There used to be some growing along the road on the corner. It made it's way a good 50 feet up into the trees. When the county came along a couple of year sago to clear the brush, they had a heck of a time getting rig of that sucker.

Wisteria and porcelainberry are the current bane of my existence. Both are beautiful but are quite aggressive. I have several of both that are over 100 years old. Their progeny are all over my block and no telling where the birds have spread them. I have been cutting them to the ground for years. This last year I went after every root and shoot I could find and with multiple instruments of destruction finally feel like I put a dent in these demons. Then in the fall, we had thousands of seedlings popping up all over. We will be battling the seed bed for years.

And ivy...DOH! Pulling those holdfasts takes off the paint, mortar, etc!!!

This is amazing to me. I guess because we live on a farm (christmas trees) that because most of our gardens are bulbs, etc.and we do so much spraying that we have no signs of anything like you all are describing. I love wisteria but have not seen it since I moved here. When I lived in Monmouth County, NJ I had a woods full of wild Laurel which was absolutely beautiful. Some was in my yard also. That is protected here in NJ.

Wisteria is destroying forests down here... Once started, there's no killing it.
I have some on my property, plus vinca... Crowding out the rare native understory plants...

I've fought the good fight against English ivy... On other properties...

These thugs look nice... The first time you see them.... Grow them for a few months, and soon regret having them....

Good for Maryland.... Now if only the rest of the country would follow suit.

If everybody stops planting this stuff, we might be able to make some kind of a dent in the escaped populations that continue to spread.

@UrbanWild

Here's a suggestion. Go to Home Depot or Lowes and look for Bayer Advanced Brush Killer. It's a blue plastic jug.

- Pick a wisteria that you want gone
- Cut it off a couple of feet above the ground
- Stick the end (that goes into the ground) into the jug and let it sit for an hour or so. If the vine is too big to fit, pour the liquid into a bucket. Just make sure that it's protected so that critters and kids don't get into it.

The root stock will suck up the liquid and the whole, or at least most of, the runners and suckers should die off in a couple of days.

I sprayed this on poison ivy and Virgina creeper a few years ago. They're all gone now. I occasionally find a piece growing somewhere, but my guess is that it's the birds doing what birds do when they doo doo. (sorry, couldn't resist!)