Hello All, Michael Pollen wrote about this issue in his book, Second Nature. It is an exploration of the concepts of "natural" and "nature" in our modern world. He's a wonderful writer and interesting thinker. He writes about husbanding natural landscapes as they go through extreme changes (after hurricanes, tornados, wild fires, etc) so that the bare ground that results is not covered by: kudzu, blackberries, broom or the like. He makes it clear that simply letting "nature take it's course" is not a very realistic solution if the landscape is to return to any semblance of it's original condition/appearance. Non native plants are so superior in colonizing disturbed places and can create conditions that are inimical to the re-establishing flora that is "native". And then he goes ahead and asks, "When was the plant introduced? What makes a plant native?" It's an interesting exploration, especially to those of us who care about native flora and belong to organizations that promote native flora. I would like to offer more information on the book, but it seems I have lent it out. I'm certain you know how that goes! Brook