Japanese Knotweed

[Diane]

From:

Guess who has won the Star letter in the Birdwatching magazine

Originally Posted by henrya

Sounds like a good idea to me - Japanese Knotweed is a marvellous plant.

henrya

I do hope you're joking. I work for an environmental consultancy and we get called out to try and eradicate this pest of countryside and waterways. It smothers native plants and spreads like wildfire. We are running a series of workshops and conference about it at the moment, it's such a problem.

[StuartDH]

It's certainly an impressive plant, if only for staking the claim of being the world's biggest female ( there are no male examples of it anywhere in Europe and all examples in the UK originate from a single clone).

However, there are certainly many people who wish it'd never been taken out of Asia.

[John]

Originally Posted by Diane

I do hope you're joking. I work for an environmental consultancy and we get called out to try and eradicate this pest of countryside and waterways. It smothers native plants and spreads like wildfire. We are running a series of workshops and conference about it at the moment, it's such a problem.

Hiyup, Diane's about. lol

I remember you talking about this at the time, passionately.

Watch out folks. lol

[henrya]

People get too het up about Japanese Knotweed. It generally only takes hold in unmanaged areas, and a lot of people find it a bonus - what else would be there? Wall to wall nettles? Learn to live with, I say, and if you really don't like it, get out there and pull it up (and dry and sell the stems for bee houses!). It grew in our garden in London when I was young, and it never escaped from the one flower bed, never attacked us or strangled the cat, and gave my brother and me hours of harmless fun building wigwams, and just watching it grow. So fast - magical!

henrya

[John]

Originally Posted by henrya

People get too het up about Japanese Knotweed. It generally only takes hold in unmanaged areas, and a lot of people find it a bonus - what else would be there? Wall to wall nettles? Learn to live with, I say, and if you really don't like it, get out there and pull it up (and dry and sell the stems for bee houses!). It grew in our garden in London when I was young, and it never escaped from the one flower bed, never attacked us or strangled the cat, and gave my brother and me hours of harmless fun building wigwams, and just watching it grow. So fast - magical!

henrya

I think you may be on a wrong one here Henrya. This is a plant you do not ignore and if it is allowed to take hold in this country untold problems will arise. Remember Diane talks from authority regarding this problem. I don't think her assessment should be dismissed so lightly.

We have enough trouble with introduced plants, and wildlife in general, that we ought to start to fully understand the ramifications of anything that isn't supposed to be here.

Aside from plants we have seen what introduced animal and birdlife can do. Some seem to fit in ok, witness the Little Owl, but others like the Grey Squirrel (as much as I love them) and the Ruddy Duck (one of my favourite ducks) have caused untold problems. So much so that the Ruddy Duck has to all intents and purposes contributed to the fall in numbers of the White headed duck through hybridisation over in Spain. That has sparked a cull all over Britain of the Ruddy ducks because of that.

We all know that Grey Squirrels have pushed our native Red Squirrel virtually out of England now, (with only a few pockets of them left south of Scotland). The reckless release of mink into our waterways resulting in ground nesting birds succumbing to their eggs being predated.

On the plant side I am not so clued up but by comparison if introduced species to wildlife can do so much harm it stands to reason that introduced plant life could create similar problems.

[henrya]

John,

Quote
This is a plant you do not ignore and if it is allowed to take hold in this country untold problems will arise.
Endquote

It has already 'taken hold' over most of England and Wales and quite a bit of Scotland, and I've yet to see any evidence that it has done any real harm. I can't see what these 'untold problems' are likely to be.

henrya

[John]

Originally Posted by henrya

John,

Quote
This is a plant you do not ignore and if it is allowed to take hold in this country untold problems will arise.
Endquote

It has already 'taken hold' over most of England and Wales and quite a bit of Scotland, and I've yet to see any evidence that it has done any real harm. I can't see what these 'untold problems' are likely to be.

henrya

Oh well, we agree to disagree. No doubt someone with a better knowledge on the problems will enlighten us.

[henrya]

John,

Quote
Oh well, we agree to disagree. No doubt someone with a better knowledge on the problems will enlighten us.
Endquote

Fair enough. Have a look at the Botanical Society of the British Isles view on this topic at


www.bsbi.org.uk/html/alien_invaders_.html

henrya

[John]

I'm sorry henrya but reading that paper doesn't enlighten me as it generalises. If it was specific to the plant we are talking about then I could take the information aboard.

Remember, in my earlier statement, I did say that not all introduced species are a problem, just some of them. Find me a paper to read that supports the plant we are debating and then we can make a more informed decision.

[StuartDH]

Here's some info from the Knotweed Alliance

http://www.cabi-bioscience.org/html/...d_alliance.htm