Flowering Rush, an invasive aquatic plant, can grow as an emergent along shorelines and as a submersed plant in river. This exotic was likely brought to North America from Europe as a garden plant that grows well in wet environments. While single flowering rush plants are not a "problem," this exotic can form dense stands which may interfere with recreational lake and lake use. Flowering rush may also crowd out native plants and wildlife. A permit is required to remove flowering rush because it is difficult to distinguish from native plants.
Discovered in the River Raisin in 2003, it only took ten years for this species to overtake the waterways. Removal efforts, including hand digging, have not deterred its onset. In 2014, the City of Monroe Commission on the Environment initiated a Flowering Rush Eradication Program funded by Monroe County Environmental Grant Fund, using an herbicide treatment in an effort to preserve the native habitat.
Residents in the affected area will be receiving notice via a direct mailer to their property, as required by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE).
Additional information on native and invasive plant species in the River Raisin habitat can be found in the pages of the ‘River Raisin Legacy Project Field Guide’ linked below. Free hard copies of the informational 36 page booklet are available at Monroe City Hall, 120 East First Street, first floor, Water Department counter.
Questions? Please contact our Water Department @ 734-384-9150.