Japanese knotweed?

Davesnave

hammergirl28 wrote: »

We didn't buy a property because of this issue. Your lender may require you to have it removed by a professional, which is expensive and may take a couple of years. If you allow it to spread onto another persons property boundary you could be subject to a £5000 fine or up two two years in prison.

I've made a few amendments in the interests of accuracy. If people take the trouble to learn about the plant, buy the right equipment and chemicals and treat it correctly, there is no reason why they cannot eradicate it. The time required is not excessive compared with other land management projects.

We just live in an age where instant results tend to be expected.

I'm not aware of anyone being sent to prison for allowing their JK to spread, but I'm sure the Mail will tell us, if and when it happens!

moneyistooshorttomention

Sooner the better Dave eh? - ie re prison. I must admit I've only read about fines as a penalty - and am waiting with interest to see evidence of them being imposed.

It does need to be taken seriously - as a "local" here who is well up on whats what re this tells me it is very rare to be able to say "Thats it and the end of it - and Back to Normal" after it has been dealt with (ie because she says its not possible to go literally digging around in the garden some feet down as per normal without being at risk of any "remains" left deciding to come out of "dormancy"). The message I picked up from her was that one needed to either basically literally sift every single inch of soil to make sure every single fragment had been removed (even after that chemical treatment programme) OR make alternative arrangements to "let sleeping dogs lie" and not go digging around too much/too deep even after appropriate treatment. Agh!

Personally - my definition of "instant" = this month. As I understand a JK treatment programme = it takes 3-5 years usually. Three years is one heck of a time in my book. I might just restrain myself from going for "root cause person" if I had got rid of it in 3 months AND that was once and for all AND "root cause person" had covered all costs.

glasgowdan

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

It does need to be taken seriously - as a "local" here who is well up on whats what re this tells me it is very rare to be able to say

without being at risk of any "remains" left deciding to come out of "dormancy").

I feel sorry for the quotation mark key on your keyboard! :beer:

Davesnave

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

Sooner the better Dave eh? - ie re prison. I must admit I've only read about fines as a penalty - and am waiting with interest to see evidence of them being imposed.

I can think of a few other types of offenders I'd like to see incarcerated before we go locking-up the clinically dull, disinterested and disorganised, which is probably what most JK offenders turn out to be.

Besides, they could argue that the British upper classes haven't exactly set a great example, bringing the stuff here in the first place, along with other nasties like rhododendron ponticum, which has cost millions in management.

I don't recall any of the toffs who planted these 'exotics' on their estates, being unceremoniously bundled-off to the slammer.

cajef

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

.....and your qualifications/training/experience are?????

And yours are?

Every time someone posts on these forums about JK you appear scaremongering and giving your opinions, mostly second hand rumours and always from somebody or some "friend' you just happen to know that has JK on or near their property.

Davesnave is correct, with proper treatment and patience JK can be eradicated over time without paying expensive so called experts, I know as we have done it.

deFoix

I agree that the "Project Fear" surrounding JK is getting out of hand. Proper identification of the species on your (or surrounding) land is 90% of the problem solved. Most people haven't got a clue what it is and just allow it to spread.

RICs published a good report of its affect on property valuations. Basically the worst that can happen is that it takes up your patio or garden shed. It's extremely unlikely to affect the structural integrity of a building that was there first (many more houses are destroyed due to lightning damage).

Sprayed at the right time of year and in the correct dose and during a dry spell (i.e. not before it rains) a round of glyphosate will kill it. A few shoots may come back the next year in which case you can repeat.

Again NO need to spend 1000's on a management plan.

nimbo

Davesnave wrote: »

I've made a few amendments in the interests of accuracy. If people take the trouble to learn about the plant, buy the right equipment and chemicals and treat it correctly, there is no reason why they cannot eradicate it. The time required is not excessive compared with other land management projects.

We just live in an age where instant results tend to be expected.

I'm not aware of anyone being sent to prison for allowing their JK to spread, but I'm sure the Mail will tell us, if and when it happens!

Someone in Wakefield got an asbo and a think a 5k fine around this time last year. I think.
Not prison and they tried to ignore of for quite a while for it to get hat bad.

Davesnave

cajef wrote: »

Davesnave is correct, with proper treatment and patience JK can be eradicated over time without paying expensive experts, I know as we have done it.

The same is true for most other persistent weeds, but government and big business would rather Joe Average employed someone qualified to spray/treat.

I can see their point, in the sense that Joe Average may act stupidly in ignorance of the facts, despite all the information required being easily accessible.

Obtaining the necessary certificates to be 'qualified' takes a few days, costs in the region of £1k and requires one to undergo basic training, maybe hundreds of miles from home.

At present, one can still access all the equipment/chemicals needed, though for how much longer, I wouldn't like to say.

hammergirl28

I'm not aware of anyone being sent to prison for allowing their JK to spread, but I'm sure the Mail will tell us, if and when it happens!


Nimbo true LOL just got the £5k and prison thing straight of the government Enviromental Agency website