KUDZU ERADICATION PROJECTS

Kudzu Grants have been approved and awarded to non-profit organizations throughout the county to fight this invasive plant and, it's making a difference. Wonderful public spaces such as Vaughn Creek Greenway, Melrose Falls, Wilder Forest, and FENCE have already benefited from this program. Before and after pictures prove the efforts are paying off and the momentum is gaining. Kudzu control is not a "one and done" endeavor, which is why it is so important to be aware of the creep of this vine, not only in the public spaces but at home, on your doorstep so to speak. Please, watch out for the signs of kudzu on your field edges and tree canopies no matter how small. Together, we can attack this menace for years to come.

Norman Wilder Forest

Since 2010, a group of dedicated volunteers have been working to remove Kudzu and other invasive plants from Norman Wilder Forest. Working in coordination with Conserving Carolina and AmeriCorps staff; this group of volunteers referred to as “Kudzu Warriors” have made enormous progress.

Polk County Schools

In 2023, PCAC partnered with Polk County Schools to begin removing invasive plants from school property. The initial targets were the Middle School football field and Tryon Elementary School. The fence surrounding the football field was covered with Kudzu and it was even starting to take over the stands.

Vaughn Creek, Tryon

Vaughn Creek Greenway is an out and back trail following the course of Vaughn Creek for nearly a mile. Opened in 2013, the public space has 25 acres that give access a boulder strewn stream, native flora and benches poised along the highlights of the trail. With Appearance Commission support many invasive plants have been removed from this site.

Highway 176 Project

Conserving Carolina (CC) owns the property of Melrose Falls (aka Twin Bridges). This property is sensational in early spring with an abundance of wild flowers. In places, white trilliums forms a dense showy carpet. CC is also diligently ridding the property of invasive plants and has received several Appearance Commission grants to rid the area of kudzu in the steep ravine along Hwy 176 going down to the North Pacolet River.

Tryon Congregational Church

The Congregational Church of Tryon can be traced to a Sunday School class open to people of all denominations in 1891. The location of the class was in a building on Melrose Avenue where the current church stands. The parishioners of the church decided to actively remove invasive plants with funding and sweat equity from their roughly one-acre wooded lot this year with the assistance of grant money set aside by Polk County Commissioners.

Tryon Cemetery

The Tryon Cemetery is the final resting place of some of Tryon's earliest residents. Located at 425 Markham Road, 3.3 acres were initially bought in 1892 by local residents and donated to the town for a public cemetery. The property became an active cemetery in 1900 and the Tryon Cemetery Commission was established in 1923. Grant money allocated by the Polk County Commissioners is working to remove nonnative plants from this site.

Garrison Baptist Church

The Garrison Baptist Church was established in 1877 and at first was located on Hwy. 108 near the present-day location of McFarland’s Funeral Home, but the church has occupied a foundational location on Markham Road in Tryon’s Eastside neighborhood since the early 1920s. A half-acre lot of kudzu and bamboo is currently in process of being removed with the financial efforts of parishioners of the church and grant money supplied by the Appearance Commission.