Trumpet Creeper Invading China?

Well, if you’ve ever tried to get an out of control trumpet vine under control, what ‘til you hear this story. Dave Creech, of the SFA Arboretum in Texas, writes delightful columns called “Life on the Green Side.” Sadly, one was a tale of woe. Professor Yin Yunlong of the Nanjing Botanical Garden asked Creech to look at a problematic vine taking over and undermining the integrity of a portion of the Great Wall. Amazingly, it was our native trumpet creeper, Campsis radicans and not the far less aggressive Asian species, Campsis grandiflora - the one you’d expect to find since its native to that country. Sadly, our native Campsis has been introduced into that part if the world and is acting just like a thug outcompeting their native species, just like Asian wistarias have overtaken parts of our forests and woodlands.