Invasive Species, Kudzu
1930s • Eastern U.S.
Only in the eastern United States is kudzu really considered a pest. Beginning in the 1930s, kudzu began to rapidly spread across the Southeast. "Impacts of kudzu in the southeastern USA include loss of productivity of forestry plantations (estimated at about 120 USD per hectare per year), smothering and killing of native plants and denying access to lands for hunting, hiking, and bird watching." In Alabama, one of the states with the worst infestation, kudzu is estimated to cover more than 250,000 acres.
"Kudzu," Claire M. Wilson, Auburn University, encyclopediaofalabama.org.
"Newberry County, South Carolina. CCC enrollees planting kudzu on gully bank on C. C. Spoon's farm..." Courtesy of the US National Archives and Records Administration
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