Siberian pea shrub

A couple of readers on our homesteading blog asked why I was planting a Siberian pea shrub Caragana arborescens).  The answer is --- for chickens!  And bees, and nitrogen-fixation.  Eric Toensmeier includes Siberian pea shrub in his top 100 forest gardening species, so I figured I couldn't go wrong.

However, it looks like I might have ordered too quickly.  Despite Toensmeier promising that this native of Asia isn't invasive, a search of the internet turns up reports of invasiveness throughout the cold parts of North America.  Siberian pea shrub is listed as an invasive in Wisconsin and probably will soon be listed in Alaska and parts of Canada as well.

On the other hand, it's possible that we're too far south for Siberian pea shrub to really thrive --- the species is hardy from zones 2 to 7 and we live near the southern end of its range.  And, if all goes well, the chickens should eat all of the seeds, so there wouldn't be any for wild birds to spread around.

Even though I decided not to plant guomi for this very reason, I think I'm going to take a chance on Siberian pea shrub.  But I'll watch the surrounding woods with an eagle eye and rip it out if the plant seems to be invading.  Even if Siberian pea shrub beans are a great source of protein for our chickens, it wouldn't be worth adding a new invasive to our already-ailing wild areas.