I need Kudzu information help...(looking for best answer)?

Subject of Plant: Kudzu, a vine


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Effects on ecosystems:


What changes have been observed in the ecosystem since the species' introduction? How have other organisms been affected?

I need Kudzu information help...(looking for best answer)?
"Kudzu was introduced from Japan into the United States in 1876 at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition, where it was promoted as a forage crop and an ornamental plant. From 1935 to the early 1950s the Soil Conservation Service encouraged farmers in the South to plant kudzu to reduce soil erosion, and the Civilian Conservation Corps planted it widely for many years. Kudzu was recognized as a pest weed by the United States Department of Agriculture in 1953, and was removed from its list of permissible cover plants.





Kudzu is now common throughout most of the southeastern United States, and has been found as far north as Pennsylvania, and as far south as Key West, Florida. It has also been found growing (rather inexplicably) in Clackamas County, Oregon in 2000 [15]. In all, kudzu infests 20,000 to 30,000 square kilometres of land in the United States and costs around $500 million annually in lost cropland and control costs. It cannot tolerate extremely low freezing temperatures that bring the frost line down through its entire root system; however it does require some cold weather (a solid frost or freeze annually).





Kudzu is also becoming a problem in northeastern Australia.





Kudzu vines can make walking across an area nearly impossible, as it takes over all horizontal and vertical surfaces, both natural and artificial. Its dense growth obstructs all views and movement into the area. It kills or degrades other plants by smothering them under a solid blanket of leaves, by girdling woody stems and tree trunks, and by breaking branches or uprooting entire trees and shrubs through its weight."

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