Non native pond plant initiative- please read

[dampflippers]

I don't know whether you heard on the news this morning, but there is a new initiative by the government on non native pond plants.
They are highlighting how fast they grow, and what damage they can cause if they "escape" into natural waterways and ponds.
Please everyone, read about it here:
Be Plant Wise : Directgov
They advise you never to dispose of them in the wild, and to compost them if you thin out your own pond so they are not spread.
Also if they are in your pond, never dispose of water pumped out of your pond into the drainage system as some species can grow from a tiny fragment which will grow in the sewage tratment works and can spread from there.

Sermon over...read the article!
They also tell you never to give away non native pond plants.

ps they don't say you "have to" remove existing plants from your own garden pond, just beware they don't "escape".

[Jez]

A very good thread dampflippers, 1 which I would like to see becoming a sticky here and on other boards like the water life forum & reptiles and amphibian forum.