COASTAL 



TIDINGS 



Injection Best for Killing Pest Plant 



ew research from Clemson University suggests the best way to get rid of beach vitex — 

 an invasive vine spreading along the Carolina coast — is to wound the plant and inject an herbicide 

 containing imazapyras an active ingredient. 



Known as the "hack-and-squirt" method in forestry, this technique delivers the herbicide straight 

 to the plant's vascular tissues, which transport fluids and nutrients, explains lead researcher Chuck 



Gresham. A treated beach vitex plant dies 

 after about six months, and the herbicide 

 becomes inactive. 



Gresham experimented with different 

 herbicides and application methods on four 

 vitex-infested sites in Georgetown County, 

 S.C Other methods involved cutting the vine 

 to a stump and painting an herbicide onto 

 the raw edge, or applying an herbicide directly 

 to the stem. 



Bypassing the protective bark and 

 putting the chemical into a growing plant was 

 key in killing the tenacious invader, he adds. 



Working with the Carolinas Beach Vitex 

 Task Force, Gresham plans to use the hack- 

 and-squirt method in a major eradication 

 effort involving at least 50 locations in South 

 Carolina's Georgetown, Horry and Charleston 

 counties this year. 



In August, the task force received a grant 

 from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for the project. Site 

 selection is scheduled to begin in September. 



To learn more about beach vitex, visit www.beachvitex.org. — K.A. 



N.C. Seafood Festival 

 Features 'Carteret Catch' 



ABOVE: As part of the hack-and-squirt treatment, 

 a beach vitex stem is wounded with a machete and painted 

 with an imazapyr herbicide, marked with a purple dye. 



Wo 



'ould you like to sample fresh seafood 

 from Carteret County? 



Mark your calendar for the 20th Annual 

 North Carolina Seafood Festival, Oct. 6-8 in 

 Morehead City. 



Several vendors will be serving seafood 

 from North Carolina waters. Watch for booths 

 with a "Carteret Catch" flag or a "We Serve 

 North Carolina Seafood" sticker. 



The Carteret Catch brand guarantees 

 consumers that they are getting local Carteret 

 County seafood direct from the source. A 

 team of community volunteers developed the 

 program. 



"The campaign focuses on seafood caught 

 by commercial fishers, processed by seafood 



dealers and served in restaurants — all in Carteret 

 County," says Barry Nash, the North Carolina 

 Sea Grant seafood technology specialist who led 

 the campaign's marketing efforts. 



The festival also features an educational 

 tent. At the National Oceanic & Atmospheric 

 Administration booth, North Carolina Sea 

 Grant will display products, alongside National 

 Weather Service, National Ocean Service, 

 National Marine Fisheries Service, National 

 Undersea Research Program, National Estuarine 

 Research Reserves and other programs. 



For more information about the festival, 

 visit the Web: www.ncseafoodfestival.org. To find 

 about more about Carteret Catch, go online to 

 www.carteretcatch.com. — A.G. 



ABOVE: Lundie Spence conducted educational tours 

 on North Carolina beaches for many years. 



Spence Honored 

 with NMEA Award 



Lundie Spence, director of the 

 Centers for Ocean Sciences Education 

 Excellence Southeast (COSEE-SE), has 

 received the National Marine Educators 

 Association's (NMEA) Honorary Member 

 Award for 2006. 



Spence was honored in July at the 

 NMEA annual conference in Brooklyn, 

 N.Y. She was recognized for a career of 

 leadership and outstanding performance as 

 a marine science educator in the classroom 

 and in the community. 



For more than 25 years, Spence 

 worked as the North Carolina Sea Grant 

 marine educator. She was a driving force 

 in marine education in North Carolina, 

 including initiating the first Beach Sweep 

 that grew into the Big Sweep, a cleanup 

 that now covers the state's 1 00 counties. 



Spence also has served as president 

 of both the Mid-Atlantic Marine Education 

 Association and NMEA. 



Now, she oversees COSEE-SE, which 

 is administered by the South Carolina 

 Sea Grant Consortium in Charleston. 

 COSEE-SE's mission is to spark and 

 nurture collaboration among scientists 

 and educators to advance ocean sciences 

 education. Funded by the National 

 Science Foundation, the center is based 

 on partnerships among North Carolina, 

 South Carolina and Georgia Sea Grant 

 programs, along with regional universities 

 and educational programs. 



For more information on NMEA 

 or the awards program, contact Vicki 

 Clark, NMEA awards committee chair, 

 vclark@vims.edu, 804/684-7169. For more 

 information about COSEE, visit the Web: 

 www.cosee.net. —A.G. 



Coastwatch I Autumn 2006 I www.ncseagrant.org 3 



