Invasive Plant Species Grant Program Launch Draws Crowd At Loudoun Winery

LOUDOUN COUNTY, VA — Several days before the launch of a grant program for property owners to combat invasive plant species, Bluemont Vineyard hosted a packed room to discuss the program.

Elected officials, county staff and experts attended the kickoff of the Loudoun County Invasive Plant Removal Grant Program with at least 100 registered attendees on Tuesday at Bluemont Vineyard. A previous kickoff event drew hundreds to the Barn at Brambleton in Ashburn. The meeting gave an overview of the grant program, which property owners will be able to apply for in the fall.

In June, the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors approved the Invasive Plant Species Management Program, which focuses on awareness and removal of invasive plant species that hurt the local economy and ecosystems. The board approved $2 million from the county's fiscal year 2024 fund balance to fund the grants. Applications for the first cycle of grants will open on Sept. 15 and continue through Sept. 26. The program will be administered by the Loudoun Soil and Water Conservation District.

Officials shared the urgency of addressing invasive plant species and encouraged residents to get involved with seeking new legislation on it.

Mike Littman, president of the Loudoun Invasive Removal Alliance, said educating more people about invasive plants will put more pressure on garden centers to stop selling invasive plants.

"This is not just the environment. It's about health and safety," said Littman. "It's about the economy, specifically the rural economy."

Littman credited Rep. Suhas Subramanyam (D-Loudoun) with helping set the stage for a Virginia bill requiring retailers to inform customers they are selling invasive plants. While that bill did not pass when Subramanyam was in the Virginia Senate, it did pass in 2025.

Subramanyam said his wife joined the Virginia Master Naturalists program and identified an invasive Bradford pear in their front yard. That led them to removing the tree last year. The congressman encouraged residents to help get a bill in Congress on addressing invasive plants.

"This is something that is going to be a legacy for our kids for our grandkids, something that we could do that's great for the environment," said Subramanyam. "Come with your ideas. We need your ideas, and I want to continue the work we started in the state senate."

Supervisor Sylvia Glass (D-Broad Run) had a personal experience with the Bradford pear falling in her yard during a hurricane.

"I'm really proud that we have this program, and I hope you all take this information that our staff is going to give you all so we can as a community help to alleviate the problems that we have with invasives," said Glass.

State Sen. Russet Perry (D-Loudoun), whose district includes rural parts of Loudoun County, said she become aware of the invasive spotted lanternfly during a farm tour. Perry said she will continue to advocate for solutions on the state level and encouraged residents to work with her to propose legislation. Bills for the next Virginia General Assembly session will be considered in the first few months of 2026.

"It's really people like you who are willing to show up and take your time at a meeting like this and be educated and be advocates and get things done," said Perry.

The program has received support from the Loudoun Invasive Removal Alliance, a coalition of homeowners associations seeking widespread support for removing invasive species from the county. The organization, which also hosted Scrape for the Grape to address invasive spotted lanternflies, has 80 communities representing an estimated 227,000 residents involved.

About the Grant Program and Invasive Plants

Marc Aveni, assistant director with Loudoun County's Department of General Services, provided an overview of the grant program launching on Sept. 15.

The grant program is open to individual homeowners, commercial property owners, houses of faith and homeowners associations in Loudoun County with invasive plants on their property. Aveni said the first step is getting a site assessment to determine whether invasive species are on the property and what the cost estimate is.

Applications are available online through the county's website. The applications should include goals of the invasive removal project, a cost estimate and the site assessment. Small-scale projects up to $5,000 will be expedited, while larger projects impacting more than 5,000 square feet or being located in an environmentally sensitive area will require more detailed review. The maximum grant a property owner can receive is $50,000.

"Because we're expecting so many applications, we will be ranking them for the species that are the most problematic, places that have high visibility so we can educate others," said Aveni. "We'll rank those projects, and we'll fund those projects accordingly. Don't worry if you don't get funded the second time. There's another time and there's another time. We hope to be able to fund all projects."

As part of the process, the property owners will get a site visit from the county before they can begin the project. After the project is completed, property owners will monitor the property for three years to ensure the invasive species don't return. Reimbursement for the project would happen after property owners submit invoices and cover up to three years of follow-up maintenance.

Additional application periods are tentatively scheduled from Nov. 15 to 27, Jan. 15 to 28 and every two months afterward, depending on funding.

At the meeting, Loudoun Invasive Removal Alliance's Littman shared examples of invasive plants that property owners may encounter. One of these is the Bradford Pear (or Callery Pear), which has a risk of falling during severe weather.

Another invasive, English Ivy, can cover the floor of the woods and cause trees to come down during storms.

According to Littman, Japanese barberry can attract ticks and mice, which can carry diseases such as Lyme disease.

Littman noted that Japanese stiltgrass caused a fire to get out of control for a Round Hill farmer who was doing a routine controlled burn.

The spotted lanternfly is enemy number one when it comes to invasive species in Loudoun County for its risk to grapes and other crops. But the invasive insect is also associated with the Tree-of-Heaven, its preferred tree host.

"The spotted lanternfly lives longer on it, reproduces on it, and the birds don't like to take the sap," said Littman.

The Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation has a full list of invasive plant species found in Virginia.