Introduced Phragmites australis (common reed) is one of the most invasive plants in North America. The weed reduces native plant and animal diversity, disrupts ecosystem processes, and poses a threat to the native North American subspecies of common reed, P. australis ssp. americanus. Conventional methods for controlling introduced P. australis such as herbicides, cutting, and burning are prohibitively expensive, harmful to non-target species, and have seen little success.