I guess it’s time for “The Talk.” No, not that talk. Not unless you’re an adolescent who stumbled upon this gardening column by accident while searching your grandma’s kitchen counter for the missing jar of Nutella and you need the lowdown on the birds and the bees. No, this talk is about not planting invasive species in your garden or giving amnesty to noxious weeds and other big, bad plant bullies.

I can understand you not wanting to confront the Himalayan blackberries beyond the borders of your back yard. They do, after all, present an unending battle, kind of like trying to keep your toilets spotless or seagulls from anointing your windshield while parked by the waterfront.

But there are smaller battles against noxious and invasive species you can take on and even win. You can start by not willingly planting these odious plant varmints on your property or allowing them to thrive unmolested.

What is a noxious weed? The Island County Noxious Weed Control Board states in a nifty pamphlet you can download from their page on the WSU Island County Extension website, “Noxious weeds are non-native plants that are highly destructive, competitive and difficult to control.” Some are poisonous to people and livestock, some destroy native plant and animal habitats, both on land and in waterways, and some can affect land values and crop yields. It’s your responsibility as a homeowner to control them, not nurture them.

Some of the most common ones I find in people’s landscaping that were either planted or considered a happy accident by the homeowners are butterfly bush, English ivy, yellow archangel and even spurge laurel.

Though butterfly bush, or Buddleja davidii, is considered a Class B noxious weed, meaning property owners are required to control its spread, it’s become so widespread it’s been put on a list with other plants like oxeye daisy, Scotch broom and Himalayan blackberry that are recommended for control “where feasible.” In other words, the powers that be have given up on the willingness of property owners to take these plant bullies to task.

Have you noticed how often one can find English ivy in the garden when they never planted it? That’s kind of the point with these plants. Their super power is to spread with no help from humans. Yet humans keep helping them anyway by bringing them home and plugging them into the ground.

There are four specific cultivars of English ivy the county asks you not to plant. They are Hedera helix “Baltica,” “Pittsburgh,” and “Star”; and Hedera hibernica “Hibernica.” If you have a serious ivy planting compulsion, put it in a pot, snip off its flowers and keep it from touching the ground.

Yellow archangel, or Lamiastrum galeobdolon, is another Class B noxious weed you are very much required to control. Introduce this creeper to your landscape and not only will you reap the rewards of having every square inch of your property inundated, but also the neighbors’ property and nearby forest understory. Even the most organic loving gardeners who’ve been faced with this demon have had to turn to poisons to kill it. Don’t let it in in the first place and you may be able to keep your high “green” standards.

Finally, what’s the deal with so many people who insist on harboring spurge laurel (Daphne laureola)? Are you insane? I’ve had people tell me they like it because the birds eat the berries. All parts of it are poisonous, people! You’re killing the birds. End of story.

The next time you start cussing while hacking the Himalayan blackberries back, just remember this: all those enormous thickets of nasty prickles and Norway rat habitat were made possible not only by someone’s misguided introduction of a non-native species, but also by the unwillingness of property owners to work toward their eradication.

Now, for many invasives, that unwillingness has become inability.