Illinois recently became the third state to find the invasive spurge Asian copperleaf growing within its borders, and farmers statewide are being advised to keep an eye out for it.
A retail applicator found a plant growing in northern Illinois’ Stephenson County, which borders Wisconsin, during harvest in September. It later was identified as Asian copperleaf. It’s unclear how it got to Stephenson County.
Dr. Aaron Hager, a professor in the crop sciences department at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, is encouraging an awareness campaign about the plant…