Missouri Stream Team

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Missouri Stream Team It will also serve as an avenue for collaboration among Stream Teams, concerned citizens, and other watershed related groups.

This page serves as a resource for information about volunteer Stream Team activities and stream issues, while engaging citizens in promoting stewardship and enjoyment of Missouri's streams. Missouri Stream Team's page is an open forum where anyone with an interest in water resources can share information, ask advice or express responsible, respectful opinions. We encourage discussion and questions regarding stream issues, Stream Team events, and volunteer accomplishments; however, please keep the following Comment Policy in mind when posting:

To ensure that this page remains a place where everyone feels welcome, we have a few rules. We will remove comments that contain the following:
• Obscene, vulgar, profane, violent, or otherwise offensive and inappropriate language
• Threats or defamatory statements
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• Off-topic or repetitive posts

We strongly discourage posting personal information, including, but not limited to addresses, emails, and telephone numbers. Links to noncommercial sites relevant to stream resources are welcome. We reserve the right to block comments from Facebook fans who violate these rules.

What does honeysuckle have to do with healthy aquatic ecosystems? More than you might think!Ever wonder why Stream Team ...
10/23/2026

What does honeysuckle have to do with healthy aquatic ecosystems? More than you might think!

Ever wonder why Stream Team hosts a Honeysuckle Hack Challenge? Tune in to our upcoming webinar to discover how this invasive plant can impact aquatic ecosystems!

As part of our fall Honeysuckle Hack season, Dr. Cy L. Mott from Eastern Kentucky University will be sharing a spooky tale from the understory:

Sweet Name, Sour Story: Invasive Honeysuckle Impacts on Forested Pond Ecosystems

October 29, 6–7 p.m.

The link for registration is in the comments.

10/22/2026

This honeysuckle puller could be YOURS!

Imagine the impact you could make with this amazing honeysuckle puller by your side! 🌟

Since featuring this incredible tool on our social media, we've been flooded with requests from people eager to get their hands on one! Handcrafted by the talented K.S. from Stream Team #4922, these unique pullers aren't available for purchase, but we're thrilled to announce that we'll award a limited number to Stream Team volunteers who participate in October's Nightmare in the Understory Honeysuckle Hack Challenge!

To enter, submit your October challenge activity report and write "I want that puller" in the comments. That will enter you in the prize drawing.

If you've already sent in your report, that's okay. Just email [email protected] and tell us you want to be entered.

A Big THANKS to K.S. from Stream Team #4922 for supporting other volunteers and helping us fight invasive bush honeysuckle!

We're more than halfway through this year's Honeysuckle Hack Challenge, and we want to give a special shout-out to the S...
10/21/2026

We're more than halfway through this year's Honeysuckle Hack Challenge, and we want to give a special shout-out to the Stream Teams returning to the battle for another year!

These teams know that the fight against invasive bush honeysuckle isn't won in a single season. Even after mature plants are removed, seeds dropped in years past can continue sprouting new shoots, making follow-up visits essential to giving native plants a chance to recover.

It takes persistence, dedication, and a willingness to return to the same places year after year. Every season of effort makes a difference!

To all our participating teams, whether you're tackling a new infestation or defending ground you've already cleared, thank you for helping keep this Nightmare in the Understory at bay!

Don't forget to share your battle stories through an activity report by November 14th to be included in the challenge. Reporting link in the comments.

7,307+ Teams and going strong! Check out what's going on with Stream Teams around Missouri in our Fall Channels Newslett...
10/20/2026

7,307+ Teams and going strong! Check out what's going on with Stream Teams around Missouri in our Fall Channels Newsletter (link in the comments).

Remembering Joe Bachant, The Father of Stream Team - The Missouri Stream Team community mourns the passing of Joe Bachan...
10/18/2026

Remembering Joe Bachant, The Father of Stream Team -

The Missouri Stream Team community mourns the passing of Joe Bachant, affectionately known as the Father of Stream Team. Joe was a visionary whose passion for Missouri's waterways and belief in the power of volunteers laid the foundation for a program that has connected generations of Missourians through conservation and stewardship. People like Joe, who possess the clarity to envision what is possible, the determination to bring that vision to life, and the ability to build a community to sustain it, are extraordinarily rare. Nearly four decades later, his vision continues to guide our work and inspire thousands of volunteers across the state. Joe may be gone, but his spirit lives on in every Stream Team and every Missourian who takes action to protect our waterways. We are deeply grateful for the legacy he leaves behind and extend our heartfelt condolences to his family and loved ones.

Memorial tributes to Joe can be published through the funeral home online tribute page (link in the comments).

Nightmare in the Understory: A Discovery Success Story.Honeysuckle (Lonicera spp.)Growing up on what remains of my famil...
10/17/2026

Nightmare in the Understory: A Discovery Success Story.
Honeysuckle (Lonicera spp.)

Growing up on what remains of my family’s farm, I remember finding buckeyes and eating pawpaws on the hillside by the stream near the sugar maple grove. I always wondered why no new buckeye trees appeared and why the pawpaws stopped making fruit. After reading some peer-reviewed journals, I learned that the pawpaws weren’t producing fruit because of genetic isolation. Still, that didn’t explain why no new pawpaw or buckeye plants were growing. I realized the problem must be phenolic compounds in the soil left by bush honeysuckle.

Outside of work, I started the tough job of clearing honeysuckle and other invasive plants from the hillside. I also had to deal with winter creeper, but that’s a story for another time. Even so, I enjoyed working with the soil and finding all the life hidden there. I was excited to see fine white and light gray threads of mycelium, watch the Six-Spotted Tiger Beetles (Cicindela sexguttata) race around me, and smell geosmin every time I turned the soil. Geosmin is the natural organic compound that gives healthy soil its earthy scent. The best discovery, though, was Dead Man's Fingers (Xylaria polymorpha), a saprobic fungus I had never seen before.

As this challenge goes on for another two weeks, I invite you to join me. Go out, pull up that honeysuckle, and see what wonders you can find in the understory. b

Nightmare in the Understory: Dealing with the Seed Bank.Honeysuckle (Lonicera spp.)Cutting or digging up honeysuckle onc...
10/16/2026

Nightmare in the Understory: Dealing with the Seed Bank.
Honeysuckle (Lonicera spp.)

Cutting or digging up honeysuckle once won’t solve the problem. You’ll need to come back next season and keep working to control it.

Amur honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii) produces round, bright red berries in late summer and fall, and these sometimes stay on the plant through winter. Each berry contains several small seeds. Birds, mammals, and other animals eat the berries and spread the seeds in their droppings. This animal-driven seed dispersal helps the plant spread far and wide.

Unlike some invasive weeds whose seeds last for decades, Amur honeysuckle seeds don’t survive long in the soil. A Wisconsin DNR study found that most seeds either sprout in the first two springs or rot. By the third year, only a few seeds can still grow. In Missouri, cold, wet winters help break seed dormancy, so seeds are ready to sprout quickly in spring.

Research on L. maackii shows that seeds from both self-pollinated and open-pollinated berries can sprout in just a few weeks if conditions are right. In tests, 47.3% of self-pollinated seeds and 41.7% of open-pollinated seeds sprouted, usually within 2 to 4 weeks after the soil warms to 59-68°F (Cambridge University).

Even though this challenge takes place throughout October, remember to return in spring to pull up any new honeysuckle seedlings. While you’re there, notice which native plants can now grow better and thrive.

Tune back in tomorrow to see a successful honeysuckle removal story.

10/15/2026

Nightmare in the Understory: How a volunteer-made tool helps remove honeysuckle.
Honeysuckle (Lonicera spp.)

Getting rid of bush honeysuckle is hard work, no matter the method. A creative volunteer from the Missouri Stream Team Program noticed that many tools can help pull out the whole plant, roots included, more quickly. So he took those ideas back to his workshop and started building.

In this video, I’ll show you a technique called Mechanical Root Docking, created by K.S. from The Tireless Cutters Stream Team 4922. This tool can pull out plants up to two inches thick, and even bigger ones if the soil is wet. With this Root Docking method, you can get most of the roots out without as much hard work.

Come back tomorrow to learn about the honeysuckle seed bank and how to make your root docking efforts successful for years ahead.

10/14/2026

Nightmare in the Understory: How to remove honeysuckle by hand, with tools, or using a saw.
Honeysuckle (Lonicera spp.)

Bush honeysuckle usually has shallow roots, so you can often pull-out seedlings and small plants by hand, especially when the soil is damp. However, plants that were mowed or treated with herbicide and have regrown might look small, but their roots are often much larger than they appear.

In this video, I’ll show you a technique called Root Docking, developed by J.D. from the Restoration Stream Team 5065. Root Docking takes no more time than the Hack and Sq**rt Method, but it guarantees no resprouting. Root Docking removes a part of the plant called the crown, which is where the trunk meets the roots.

If pulling doesn’t work, you can use a forged steel field hoe, a double-bit axe, a pack or chopping axe, or even a folding saw. I’ll share a bonus tool tomorrow.

Benefits of Root Docking:
1. No stumps to trip over
2. Minimal soil disturbance
3. No resprouting
4. Works on all honeysuckle plants, no matter what size
5. No soil compaction from heavy machinery
6. No chemicals to harm people, plants, and soil
7. Protects water quality

Come back tomorrow for a special tool built by a Missouri Stream Teamer in action.

Nightmare in the Understory: How to Identify Honeysuckle SpeciesHoneysuckle (Lonicera spp.)In Missouri, the most common ...
10/13/2026

Nightmare in the Understory: How to Identify Honeysuckle Species
Honeysuckle (Lonicera spp.)

In Missouri, the most common bush honeysuckle is Amur honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii). There is also another invasive Asian bush honeysuckle here: Bell’s honeysuckle (Lonicera × bella), which is a hybrid of Lonicera morrowii and Lonicera tatarica.

Amur honeysuckle appearance:
Amur honeysuckle is a multi-stemmed shrub with arching branches that can reach 15 to 30 feet in height and width, creating a dense canopy. Mature plants have gray to light brown bark with shaggy, peeling strips on older stems. The shrub looks like a multi-trunk umbrella, with branches that bend downward. Its leaves grow in pairs along the stem, are elliptical to oval, taper to a point, measure 2 to 3 inches long and ½ to 1½ inches wide and are dark green on top and lighter underneath. The leaves are smooth and not toothed. Mature stems have a hollow center, which helps tell them apart from native honeysuckles. The roots are reddish-orange and spread out from a central white root.

Bell’s honeysuckle appearance:
Bell’s honeysuckle is a multi-stemmed shrub with arching branches that can grow up to about 20 feet tall and often forms dense thickets. Young stems are light brown, a bit hairy, and hollow between the nodes. Older stems are gray-brown, shaggy, and have peeling bark. The roots are fibrous, shallow, and can produce new shoots. The leaves grow in pairs, are oval to oblong, smooth-edged, 1 to 3 inches long, widest at or below the middle, and have a rounded base. The top of the leaf is green, while the underside is often slightly fuzzy.

Both Amur and Bell’s honeysuckles grow leaves one to three weeks earlier than native species and keep their leaves a couple of weeks longer in the fall.

The picture shows the four invasive honeysuckle species (Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources). Amur and Bell’s honeysuckles are already in Missouri, while Morrow’s and Tartarian honeysuckles are quickly spreading in from the east.

Tomorrow, we will share one of several ways to remove honeysuckle without using herbicides.

Address

2901 W Truman Boulevard
Jefferson City, MO
65109

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 5pm
Tuesday 8am - 5pm
Wednesday 8am - 5pm
Thursday 8am - 5pm
Friday 8am - 5pm

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+18007811989

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