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CORVALLIS - They block our way through the woods. Crowd out native plant and wildlife species. You don't want them in your backyard - they reduce property values. Yet they're almost everywhere.

Invasive weeds cover millions of acres and cost society millions of dollars in Oregon and most of the rest of the world.

The first step in getting rid of any invader is to learn to recognize your enemy.

Hot off the press is a new guide to the Pacific Northwest's most dominant or potentially invasive weeds, published by the Oregon State University Extension Service. "Invasive Weed Identification and Management (Pacific Northwest's Least Wanted List)" is a 44-page guide, written by OSU Extension weed specialist Jed Colquhoun.

The pernicious plant invaders covered in the guide include species rampant on both sides of the Cascades, including: Scotch broom, English ivy, false brome, kudzu, purple loosestrife, yellow starthistle, toadflax, Canada thistle, knapweed and more than 30 others.

The guide provides color photos of each species, lists identifying characteristics, origin, habitat, ecology and gives several choices for control strategies, including physical removal, biological control, burning and herbicides.

"The list of species covered is not all inclusive of all invasive weeds in the Pacific Northwest," explained Colquhoun. "It focuses on the most dominant or potentially invasive species that plague our land."

"Invasive Weed Identification and Management," EC 1563, is available by mail for $5 per copy plus $3 shipping and handling. Send your request and check or money order payable to OSU to: Publication Orders, Extension and Station Communications, 422 Kerr Administration, OSU, Corvallis, OR 97331-2119.

To preview this publication and more than 100 others published by the OSU Extension Service on invasive weeds in the Pacific Northwest, visit OSU Extension and Experiment Station Communications website at: http://eesc.oregonstate.edu. Click on "Publications and Videos," then "Agriculture" and then "Weeds."