Seemed Like A Good Idea Back Then…..
But now it can knock €000’s of your home’s value
Japanese knotweed (fallopia japonica) only arrived in Europe in the 1840s, and was brought from Japan by the famous German planthunter Philip von Siebold. It was first introduced into cultivation in the west of Ireland as an exotic ornamental perennial.
Its statuesque silhouette, handsome foliage, vigorous growth habit and popularity with bees (they love its flowers) meant that it quickly found favour with gardeners, so much so that by the early 1900s the influential English plantswoman Gertrude Jekyll was praising its “quick growing ways”.
Deal With It Early
Repeated treatment over several growing seasons with a glyphosate-based systemic herbicide is one, although this should only be carried out according to strict guidelines (see pcs.agriculture.gov.ie/sud).
Another (the most time-efficient) is burial of infested soil/plant material on-site, in which case it is wrapped in an impermeable root barrier membrane and incarcerated to a depth of 3m. Yet another is the licensed excavation and transport of infested soil/ plant material to an approved waste facility.
For those clients looking for an organically-acceptable method of control, and who are willing to play the longer game in terms of efficient control, repeated regular cutting back of the plant over a period of several years is also sometimes sufficient.
Caden Grimes Estates is registered with the PSRA for the Selling and Letting of property, Licence 001883
Our thanks to Botanist and ecologist Dr Frances Giaquinto