Kudzu overtakes an abandoned house on Greggs Branch Rd., near Watauga Lake, TN. This invasive plant was imported in the 1930’s for erosion control. With no local predator, kudzu has run rampant in the warm humid South. The US Forest Service estimated in 2015 that kudzu consumed about 2500 acres, but other sources put that figure closer to 150,000 acres annually.

Photograph Copyright Jim Magruder, All Rights Reserved.