At Heritage Park in Oconee County, an invasive plant species called the “autumn olive” is continuing to grow and cause harm to native plants found in the park.
Cindy Pritchard, executive director of the Keep Oconee County Beautiful Commission, is holding bi-monthly removal days, through February 2026, to help keep the invasive species out of the park.
It was starting to grow big enough to have ecological impacts, but also was impacting the use of the park,” Pritchard said.
The autumn olive can outcompete native plants in the area by changing soil fertility and creating too much shade, according to the United States Department of Agriculture.
“It is not a native plant, and it is choking out the natives,” Pritchard said. “We have seen as quickly as two weeks after removal in specific areas that the natives are returning.”
While these removal days will help native plant species thrive in Heritage Park, the autumn olive will continue to grow in other similar areas around the park and throughout the state of Georgia.
Jacob Ogden is a senior majoring in journalism with a Certificate in News Literacy.
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