inVASIVE SPECIES - ZINE
This zine is an illustrated handbook for identifying invasive plants in the Sonoran Desert and urban areas around Tucson, AZ. My research has led me beyond the oversimplified notions of 'good versus bad', recognizing that each species provides insights into ecosystem conditions and healing. It underscores the crucial role of Indigenous peoples as primary land stewards and recognizes the unintended colonial impacts of conservation efforts.
Rather than only advocating for eradication, the zine promotes thoughtful plant utilization to help restore our relationship with the planet, fostering a mutually beneficial coexistence. The resilience of these plants encourages us to rethink our strategies. The zine explores uses while giving insight to identification and resources to learn further. This is the first edition, with plans for another edition as my knowledge grows.
GOALS / Interests:
Mitigate the negative impact of invasive species
Explore their beneficial qualities for the collective good
Share this evolving knowledge
Offer alternative perspectives
Negative impacts
Outcompete native plants for resources (h2o, sun, nutrients, habitat)
Reduces the region’s natural biodiversity (plants, insects, habitat)
Better adapted to wildfires unlike native species
Can cause extinction of native species
Disturbs sacred sites and impacts tribal lands fire hazard & Better Adapted to survive wildfires unlike native species
PLANT IDENTIFICATION APPS
Picture This (free version has been my go-to but sometimes asks you to pay; can ID insects, tree rings, birds, more, 98% accuracy)
Seek from I-Naturalist (a popular go-to & very user-friendly, kid-safe, no logins)
I-Naturalist (share data, contribute to citizen science, connect w others)
Plantnet (citizen science platform)
Google Lens (good for cross-refence backup when uncertain of ID)
REPORT / map
Contribute to community science! Help with mapping, research and mitigation.
Stinknet.org (for Stinknet only)
Wild Spotter app (Limited species)
Featured Invasive Species
STINKNET *
TREE OF HEAVEN - (included in booklet but grows further north near Jerome/Globe)
WHY LEARN MORE
Deepen your relationship to plants & place
Climate justice - it impacts us all regionally and globally
Many Invasive plants offer benefits: medicine, food and construction
Many Common westernized control methods (discarding to landfills, chemicals) can risk resistance, harms native flora, fauna, humans, earth
Indigenous people preserve 80% of Earth’s remaining biodiversity despite accounting for only 6.2% of the overall population
* PLEASE NOTE: I’m not an expert in this field and this info is neither comprehensive nor is it a foraging guide.
Please do your own research and gather from credible sources, especially when it comes to consumption as there are often plant lookalikes that can be hazardous and toxic to consume or handle. Even edible and/or medicinal plants can be hazardous when misused. Check the list below to explore further.
REMOVAL / Collection
Make sure to properly identify as there are many lookalikes.
Don’t eat anything you cannot 100% identify or use.
Practice good intention and bring a decolonialized mindset
Offer something in its place: poem, plant, song, native seed
Don’t collect or consume anything you cannot identify or use
Removing native species can facilitate spreading invasives
Boot brush your tires & shoes when done to reduce spread
Unlike native plants, removal of these plants is encouraged
Limit seed and root spread through intentional handling
Uses - Craft / food / medicine
CRAFT - Grassweaving Technique (may work for fountain grass)
CRAFT - Giant Reed - 8 Uses
FOOD - Falling Fruit - collaborative map of the urban harvest
FOOD - Native Food Guide (English & Espanol) - Desert Harvesters
FOOD - Firefly Forest
FOOD - The Forager’s Path
FOOD - Savor the Southwest
MEDICINE - Desert Tortoise Botanicals - John Slattery
MEDICINE/FOOD - SW Foraging & Medicinal Plants - Slattery
MEDICINE - Albuquerque Herbalism
RESTORATIon
LEARN MORE - LOCAL RESOURCES
AZ Desert Museum: Zoo, natural history museum and botanical garden that provides education and conservation; co-organizes volunteer invasive species removal events.
AZ Native Plant Society: They promote knowledge, conservation and restoration of Arizona native plants and their habitats.
Borderlands Restoration Network: partner to grow a restorative economy by rebuilding healthy ecosystems, restoring habitat for plants and wildlife, and reconnecting border communities to the land through shared learning.
Central AZ Conservation Alliance (CAZCA): Collaborative, community science program focused on finding, mapping and removing invasive species at local parks and preserves.
Coalition for Sonoran Desert Protection: Coalition of SW groups who seek to protect and restore the Sonoran Desert in southern Arizona.
Native Seed Search: Nursery that educates and conserves and shares seeds of the SW.
Spadefoot Nursery: Local nursery featuring pesticide-free native and desert-hardy plants and knowledge.
SW Vegetation Management Assoc (SWVMA): fosters cooperation between vegetation managers and increase awareness about invasive vegetation.
Sonoran Desert Cooperative Weed Management Area (SDCWMA): prevention and management (including removal tips) of invasive plant species in Pima County.
Sonoran Institute Resource Guide: Invasive Plant Management in the Sonoran Desert
Tucson Audubon: Invasive Education, Plant Mapping and Treatment
UofA Cooperative Extension: AZ invasive plant research.
Watershed Management Group (WMG): provides people with knowledge, skills and resources for sustainable livelihoods. Frequent monitoring of waterways and Giant Arundo removal.
INVASIVE.org: Database of Invasive species in North America.
US Dept of Agriculture: Field guides for managing invasive species.
volunteer EVENTS
* Interested in contributing to this resource and zine?
Seeking contributors that have successfully used these plants for craft, medicine, food, construction, science, etc. Email revoltaarttucson@gmail.com