Welcome!

Welcome to the website of Remove Invasives Partnership (RIP) of Franklin County

We are a community consortium working to educate the public, organize workdays, and to mitigate the impact of invasive plant species in the Frankfort – Franklin County region of Kentucky

Join the community initiative working to educate the public, organize workdays, and to mitigate the impact of invasive plant species in Franklin County!  Remove Invasives Partnership (RIP) of Franklin County works to protect our scenic native landscape by removing invasive pest plants and educating and inspiring the public to remove invasive plants.

If you or your organization would like to join this effort, we would love to have you!  There are no financial expectations for being part of the partnership.  To be considered part of the partnership, groups must commit to supporting efforts to remove invasive pest plants and educate and inspire the public as feasible for each organization.

Current Partners:

The Garden Club of Frankfort

Woods & Waters Land Trust

Envision Franklin County

Kentucky State University

Franklin County Extension

Frankfort Urban Forestry Advisory Board

Frankfort Parks Department*

City of Frankfort*

Franklin County Fiscal Court*

South Frankfort Neighborhood Association

Earth Tools, Inc.

Inside Out Design

Frankfort Audubon Society

*working to get formal approval

If you have questions or would like to discuss this more, please contact Chris Schimmoeller at c.schimmoeller@gmail.com

2023 Bradford Pear Bounty day!

Franklin County has put a Bounty on Bradford pear trees!
 
Bradford or Callery pears are invasive, non-native trees that are overwhelming the landscape.  The white flowering trees that bloom in early spring might seem pretty, but they are a serious threat to native ecosystems. They also decrease the value of pastures and ag land and they pop up in fence rows where their thorns make them hard to work around.   This once commonly planted ornamental tree is a wanted species now that people see the damage it causes.
 
Community efforts to remove these invasive trees are underway.
 
Please participate in the Bradford Pear Bounty Day on Saturday, March 25 from 9:30-noon at Franklin County Extension and get a native replacement tree for the Bradford Pear tree you cut down. 
For questions contact Extension at 502-695-9035

Due to high demand, only one container tree per household will be provided. We may be able to also provide addition trees which are seedlings from the Division of Forestry.

 

2x Work Party at Riverview Park, Feb 2023

Work Party!
Friday, February 10 & Friday, February 24, 2023
9am-noon
River View Park, Frankfort KY

NOTE: park in the Farmers Market parking lot and meet in the pavilion on the floodwall

Remove Invasives Partnership (RIP) of Franklin County, Frankfort Parks Department, and Bourbon on the Banks will be hosting two work parties to remove invasive plants along the riverbank at the park. 

Invasive plants can kill trees and other native vegetation that are critical sources of food and habitat for bees, birds, butterflies, and other beneficial insects. Invasive plants also prevent access and enjoyment of natural surroundings.

Everyone is welcome to join this community effort!  Please wear gloves and appropriate clothing.  You will learn how to identify invasive species and use the best techniques for removal. 

 

Fall 2022 Workdays, invasive plants & Bradford Pear Bounty

  • Friday, October 7, 9-noon  Happy Jacks Farm on HIckman Hill Road.  We’ll be cutting bush honeysuckle along the Elkhorn Creek.

  • Saturday, October 15, 9:30-11:30am — Bradford Pear Bounty Day at Franklin County Extension, lower parking lot. 
    Encourage your friends and neighbors to cut their invasive Bradford Pear and replace them with a free native tree. 
    The largest Bradford Pear cut in Franklin County wins a container tree from Inside Out Design.

  • Monday, October 24, 9-noon — Lakeview Park.  We’ll be working with park and road department staff to cut and haul off Bradford Pear and replant some sites with natives.

  • Wednesday, October 26, 4-5:30pm — Franklin County High School.  We’ll be cutting invasive bush honeysuckle and winter creeper on campus and nearby Lakeview Park with the Key Club.

  • Friday, October 28, 9am-noon — 1505 Peaks Mill Road.  We’ll be cutting bush honeysuckle along Peaks Mill Road on Schrader Hill.

eliminating the sale of invasive plants

Remove Invasives Partnership (RIP) has a goal of eliminating the sale of invasive plants in Franklin County.  Thank you for volunteering to reach out to local nurseries to encourage them to discontinue the sale of harmful plants and to provide native species as alternatives. 

Below you will find information that will help in your conversations.  For more information on how to talk to nurseries, please look at the flyer from a similar initiative at this link:  https://plantright.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/PlantRight-CNPS_How-to-Talk-to-Nurseries_2015.pdf

·       Most landowners unknowingly purchase and plant invasive species. 
·       Many landowners express regret and frustration when planted species become problematic on their landscapes.
·       Due to survival strategies such as prolific fruit/seed production, wide tolerance of growing conditions, invasive plants escape their original planting site easily and invade other areas, including parks, public spaces, ROWs, and private property.
·       Invasive plants are widely recognized as a threat to natural areas.  Common problems caused by invasive plant infestations include tree death, erosion of creek and riverbanks, reduced tree reproduction, plant suppression, degraded wildlife habitat, loss of aesthetic beauty, impaired use of property.
·       A 2005 study estimated that the economic damages associated with invasive species in the United States reached approximately $120 billion/year (USFWS 2012).  This cost has increased substantially since 2005. 
·       Invasive species make land less attractive and less productive while reducing overall property values. 
·       Invasive plants have been formally identified by the Kentucky Invasive Pest Council, a nonprofit with membership that includes state and federal agencies and universities.  The board offers a list of plants that pose threats to the Kentucky economy and natural resources. Their complete list can be found at this link:  https://www.se-eppc.org/ky/KYEPPC_2013list.pdf  Here is a list of the top species that we are currently working to eliminate from markets in Franklin County:

UNACCEPTABLE GROUNDCOVERS AND VINES:
Asian bittersweet, Celastrus orbiculatus
Crown vetch, Coronilla varia (synonymous with Securigera varia)
English Ivy, Hedera helix
Honeysuckle Japanese, Lonicera japonica
Moneywort, Lysamachia nummularia
Periwinkle, Vinca minor
Porcelain berry, Ampelopsis brevipedunculata
Sweet autumn clematis, Clematis terniflora
Wintercreeper, Euonymus fortunei
 Wisteria floribunda, Wisteria sinensis

UNACCEPTABLE HERBACEOUS PLANTS:
Dame’s Rocket, Hesperis matronalis
Lesser celandine, Ranunculus ficaria
Ox-eye daisy, Leucanthemum vulgare
Purple loosestrife, Lythrum salicaria
Star of Bethlehem, Ornithagalum umbellatum
Sweetclovers, Melilotus alba, M. officinalis

UNACCEPTABLE TREES AND SHRUBS
Autumn olive, Elaeagnus umbellata
Barberry Japanese, Berberis thunbergia
Bradford/Callery Pear, Pyrus calleryana
Buckthorn, Rhamnus cathartica, Rhamnus frangula
Burning Bush, Euonymus alatus
Bush honeysuckles, Lonicera maackii, L. morrowii  L. tartarica, L. standishii, L. fragrantissima
Butterfly Bush, Buddleja davidii
Chinese Holly, Ilex cornuta
Golden Raintree, Koelreuteria paniculate
Heavenly bamboo, Nandina domestica
Japanese barberry, Berberis thunbergii
Japanese spiraea, Spiraea japonica
Mimosa, Alibizia julibrissin
Norway maple, Acer platanoides
Princess tree, Paulownia tomentosa
Privet, Ligustrum sinense, L.vulgare

UNACCEPTABLE GRASSES
Giant Reed, Arundo donax
Maiden grass/ Chinese silver grass, Miscanthus sinensis

RIP is also soliciting letters from area businesses, including nurseries, that support a ban on the sale of invasive plants.  These letters should be addressed “To whom it may concern” as they might be used in a future statewide effort to ban the sale of invasive plants.

RIP (Remove Invasives Partnership) of Franklin County was formed in 2017 to protect the local ecosystem by removing invasive pest plants and educating and inspiring the public to remove invasive plants.   Since then, RIP has conducted 18 workshops involving nearly 200 people that have educated the public while improving East Frankfort Park, Dolly Graham Park, Cove Springs Park, Lakeview Park, Liberty Hall, Melodye Park, and areas in Peaks Mill as well as select private properties.  For questions or more information visit www.ripfc.net or contact Chris Schimmoeller at c.schimmoeller@gmail.com or 502-226-5751.

Friday 30 Oct 2020 – East Frankfort Park Workday

WWLT has scheduled an invasives workday at
East Frankfort Park
Fri 30 Oct
9 am-noon

1.) please let them know if you will attend: info@woodsandwaterstrust.org

2.) wear masks, bring loppers, handsaws, work gloves and your own water / snacks.

“We’ll cut and treating large bush honeysuckle and have a brief training at the beginning depending on who attends. Please spread the word. There’s lots of room to spread out, and everyone should bring a mask. If we have several folks, we’ll split them into groups to make social distancing easier.

If any of you have the ear of landscapers, arborist, parks employees, land managers, etc who professionally use herbicides and chainsaws, this is a weekday, and there’s lot of big plants.”