Forests in northeastern North America face a multitude of historical, current, and emergent threats, including invasion by non-native plants. Amid these complex and changing scenarios, it is challenging to identify passengers and drivers of change. Effective prevention and management of invasive species requires understanding the species' ecological impacts and empirical assessments of management outcomes within the context of co-occurring stressors. We evaluated the independent and combined effects of Vincetoxicum rossicum (pale swallow-wort) management, impacts, white-tailed deer, and non-native earthworms on forest understory plant communities. While management reduced V. rossicum cover it did not result in increased cover or diversity of native vegetation. Further, transplanted seedlings of four native species persisted at similar rates between managed and unmanaged areas. Exclusion of white-tailed deer and lower invasive earthworm abundance were associated with larger plants that were more likely to reproduce. Management did not result in the expected positive effects on native vegetation, likely due to the combined impacts of co-occurring stressors. Methods that assess invasive plant species impacts within the context of multiple stressors are important for achieving management and conservation goals.
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