Admittedly, it’s a bit of a hypocrisy when we go after a plant instead of curbing urban land grab, vast parking expanses, and the like… hard to get priorities straight. It’s meant to protect the local fauna and flora. The notion of invasive, though, isn’t meant to disparage the plant. Hi Jim! I’m the first to agree with you that this broom is definitely useful wherever it might be planted! Broom is wonderful for pollinators, beautiful and when you get down to it you can use it as fodder for less picky animals than cows and horses, house equipment, basket-weaving, water filtering… the list goes on and on! On the following map, you can check whether the plant botanists call Cytisus scoparius is officially registered as a weed in your state. Then, on bare ground, Scotch broom sprouts and dominates all other native plants within a few years. Weather patterns there often lead to dry seasons and fires wipe native plants out. In the United States, Scotch broom is especially problematic along the West Coast. Status, legality and regulations about Scotch broom Here is the most recent version of the map for Scotch or Scot’s broom: The Early Detection and Distribution Mapping System program makes it easy for volunteers to signal the presence of this plant with accurate localization. The University of Georgia manages a mapping system to report sightings of this weed across the United States. Even within these areas, however, it is sometimes listed as an invasive weed because it can take over land from less combative species. In green, on the map below, you can see where the plant is native to.

Invasive range: Australia, New Zealand, Canada, United States, Japan, Chile and Argentina, India, Iran, South Africa (the country) Native range: Austria, Belgium, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Czech Republic, Croatia, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro, Macedonia, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Serbia, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, United Kingdom Map of where Scotch broom, Cytisus scoparius, comes from In California, a particularly fire-prone state, fire prevention plans even call for pulling the plant out wherever possible. Many state and national programs today try to eradicate this threat to local biodiversity. Additionally, it is rated as an extreme fire hazard: a few licks of a candle and the entire shrub might ignite in dry weather. There wasn’t even any point in letting it grow, since the shrub doesn’t make for good fodder. However, in the late 20 th century, awareness rose about how invasive the plant could be. Horticulturists happily offered the plant, and others of the Cytisus family, for purchase to their customers for landscaping purposes. Scotch broom was first admired by botanists for its bright yellow blooming and dense growth. Invasive in – Oceania, North America, East Asia, portions of South America, Central Asia, South Africa Native range map of Cytisus scoparius Native and Invasive ranges of Scotch broom

Good to know – 5 excellent alternatives to scotch broom.

Sometimes local governments even have programs you can join in on to help eradicate the scourge! With the maps below, you can check for yourself whether or not to plant it. In many states in the USA, it’s declared an invasive weed.

This gave Cytisus scoparius strong resilience and adaptive power that makes it very invasive in many other places! This European native fought with other plants to secure its own living space in its native habitat. Scotch broom, although a delightful shrub, is not to be planted everywhere.