The River Green

I hereby declare war on Fallopia japonica, also known as fleeceflower, monkeyweed, Huzhang (Chinese: 虎杖; pinyin: Hu3 zhang4), Hancock's curse, elephant ears, pea shooters, donkey rhubarb, sally rhubarb, Japanese bamboo, American bamboo, and Mexican bamboo. It is neither bamboo nor rhubarb and is commonly known as Japanese knotweed, locally as Richard's Bane. This evil plant is listed by the World Conservation Union as one of the world's 100 worst invasive species. In the UK it is illegal to spread Japanese knotweed by the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. In the US it is listed as an invasive weed in Ohio, Vermont, Virginia, New York, Alaska, and Washington.



As it rises to between 6 and 8 feet in height, this plant will effectively render between 4 and 5 feet of the water table dry within an area of 2 feet in all directions from the rhizome, thereby killing anything growing in the vicinity. The broad leaves canopy the area of growth, starving surrounding plants of sunlight and act as water collectors that channel rain water down the main stalk.

Japanese knotweed will continue to grow unless herbicide is used in late summer/early autumn, during its flowering stage.

The extent to which this plant damages any given ecosystem is unimaginable.

Anyone with a yard or any type of area around their homes should join my fatwa against this herbaceous enemy. You are either with me or against me.

Labels: knotweed , yard