From time to time, one hears postulations that honey bees make a major contribution to the problem of invasive weeds in this country. This theory may be a factor for some communities and government organizations in how they regulate beekeeping activities. Here's some good science to further debunk such theories. From an environmental media listserv: NEW LEAD ON HOW INVASIVE KNAPWEED SPREADS A study in the Oct. 20 2000 issue of Science says that diffuse knapweed (a notoriously invasive weed spreading in at least 23 states in the West, Midwest, and Northeast) is thriving partly because its roots secrete chemicals that stifle competing plants -- a process called "allelopathy." However, this form of chemical warfare doesn't work on nearly identical plants from the weed's native Eurasian habitat. ("Invasive Plants Versus Their New and Old Neighbors: A Mechanism for Exotic Invasion," pgs. 421 and 521. Available online by subscription: http://www.sciencemag.org.) A new application of an old research technique helped scientists discover the tricks of diffuse knapweed. Scientists are investigating the chemicals that this weed secretes. The study's authors are researching other knapweeds and leafy spurge for similar actions. They have not proposed any weed control strategies that might take advantage of their discovery.