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National Invasive Species Information Center
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Home / Terrestrial Invasives / Terrestrial Plants / Mile-A-Minute Weed

Mile-A-Minute Weed

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Mile-A-Minute weed
Mile-a-minute vine, foliage - Photo by Britt Slattery; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Scientific Name: 
Persicaria perfoliata (L.) H. Gross (formerly known as Polygonum perfoliatum L.) (ITIS)
Common Name: 
Mile-a-minute weed or vine, Asiastic tearthumb
Native To: 
Asia (Stone 2010)
Date of U.S. Introduction: 
1930s (Stone 2010)
Means of Introduction: 
Introduced accidentally as a contaminant of nursery stock (Stone 2010)
Impact: 
Forms dense mats that crowd out native species (Stone 2010)

Spotlights

Spatially Targeted Drone Carries Biocontrol Weevil to Hard-to-Reach Patches of Mile-a-Minute Weed (2020)

USDA. FS. Northern Research Station.

Inadvertently introduced in the northeastern United States in the 1930s, mile-a-minute weed is a highly aggressive invasive plant that is replacing native species in many areas of the Nation. While a biocontrol agent has been identified, finding and reaching dense patches of mile-a-minute weeds has been a problem for land managers. The solution may be drones carrying environmentally friendly pods packed with tiny weevils.

Distribution / Maps / Survey Status

Early Detection & Distribution Mapping System (EDDMapS) - Mile-a-Minute Vine
University of Georgia. Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health.
Provides state, county, point and GIS data. Maps can be downloaded and shared.
Pest Tracker - Survey Status of Mile-a-minute Weed
USDA. APHIS. Cooperative Agricultural Pest Survey. National Agricultural Pest Information System.

Images

Google Images - Mile-a-Minute Weed
Google.
Invasive.org - Mile-a-Minute Weed
University of Georgia. Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health.

Videos

YouTube - Mile-a-Minute - Invasive Plant in Maryland

Google. YouTube; University of Maryland Extension. Home and Garden Information Center.

Selected Resources

The section below contains highly relevant resources for this species, organized by source. Or, to display all related content view all resources for Mile-A-Minute Weed.

Partnership
Fact Sheet: Mile-A-Minute Weed
Massachusetts Introduced Pests Outreach Project.
Global Invasive Species Database - Persicaria perfoliata (vine, climber)
IUCN. Species Survival Commission. Invasive Species Specialist Group.
Invasive Plant Atlas of the United States - Mile-A-Minute
University of Georgia. Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health.
Invasive Species Compendium - Persicaria perfoliata
CAB International.
New York Invasive Species Information - Mile-A-Minute Weed

New York Invasive Species Clearinghouse.

Federal Government
Biology and Biological Control of Mile-a-Minute Weed (Jul 2015) (PDF | 2.5 MB)

USDA. FS. Forest Health Technology Enterprise Team.

FHTET-2008-10. See also: FHAAST Publications for more resources.

Pest Alert: Mile-A-Minute (Jun 2009)

USDA. FS. Northeastern Area State and Private Forestry.

Fire Effects Information System (FEIS) - Polygonum perfoliatum
USDA. FS. Rocky Mountain Research Station. Fire Sciences Laboratory.
National Exotic Marine and Estuarine Species Information System (NEMESIS): Chesapeake Bay Introduced Species Database - Polygonum perfoliatum
Smithsonian Institution. Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. Marine Invasions Research Lab.
PLANTS Database - Asiatic Tearthumb
USDA. NRCS. National Plant Data Center.
U.S. National Plant Germplasm System - Persicaria perfoliata

USDA. ARS. National Genetic Resources Program. GRIN-Global.

State and Local Government
Fact Sheet: Mile-a-Minute Vine (Polygonum perfoliatum) (2014) (PDF | 206 KB)
New Hampshire Department of Agriculture, Markets, and Food. Division of Plant Industry.
See also: New Hampshire's Prohibited Invasive Plant Fact Sheets for additional invasive trees, shrubs, vines, and herbaceous plants
Forest Pests: Invasive Plants and Insects of Maryland - Mile-a-Minute (Aug 2012) (PDF | 584 KB)

Maryland Department of Natural Resources. Forest Service.

See also: Invasive Plants and Insects Fact Sheets for additional species to help control invasive species in Maryland
Invasive Plants in Pennsylvania: Mile-A-Minute (PDF | 151 KB)

Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.

See also: Invasive Plant Fact Sheets for plant species (trees, shrubs, vines, herbs and aquatic plants) that have impacted the state's natural lands

Mile-a-Minute Vine (Polygonum perfoliatum)

Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

Academic
Factsheet: Mile-a-Minute (2019) (PDF | 587 KB)

Pennsylvania State University. Pennsylvania Sea Grant.

See also: Aquatic Invasive Species: Resources for additional species information

Invasive Plant Series - Mile-a-Minute Vine (Jan 2016) (PDF | 703 KB)

Purdue University Extension.  

See also: Pest Management - Exotic Invaders for more fact sheets.

Connecticut Mile-A-Minute Vine
University of Connecticut. Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture.
Insects, Pests, and Diseases: Mile-A-Minute

Pennsylvania State University. Cooperative Extension.

Introduced Species Summary Project - Mile-a-Minute Weed
Columbia University. Center for Environmental Research and Conservation.
Maine Invasive Plants Bulletin: Mile-a-Minute Weed
University of Maine. Cooperative Extension.
See also: Maine Invasive Plants & Entire Series for entire series of 22 fact sheets and invasive plants brochure (available in HTML/PDF or for purchase)

Citations

  • Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Persicaria perfoliata. [Accessed Mar 19, 2015].
  • Stone, K.R. 2010. Polygonum perfoliatum. In: Fire Effects Information System. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory.