Japanese Knotweed

Comment by steve loftus on November 13, 2008 at 11:30pm

i dont think you can move knotweed,as it only takes around 2g of plant to spread it elsewhere.
it will be an E.A license you need,call customer services on 08708 506 506 they will advise you what you can do

Comment by martin on November 14, 2008 at 5:20pm

There are specialist firms who deal in knot weed eradication it might be easier to use them instead.

Comment by steve loftus on November 14, 2008 at 8:35pm

information supplied from defra website
* Japanese knotweed is an invasive non-native species which, having been brought to Britain as an ornamental garden plant in the mid-nineteenth century, is now established in the wild.
* It is an offence under section 14(2) of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 to "plant or otherwise cause to grow in the wild" any plant listed in Schedule 9, Part II to the Act. This includes Japanese knotweed.
* It is not an offence to simply have it growing in your garden or on your land and there is no legal requirement to control it if it is (unless doing so forms part of a legally binding contract or agreement with another party).
* It is not listed in the Weeds Act and is not a 'notifiable' weed so there is no need to report its presence on your land (unless doing so forms part of a legally binding contract or agreement with another party).
* Any Japanese knotweed contaminated soil or plant material that you intend to dispose of is likely to be classified as 'controlled waste' under the Environmental Protection Act 1990. Untreated knotweed is not regarded as a 'hazardous waste' under the Hazardous Waste Regulations 2005 but material containing knotweed that has been treated with certain herbicides could be.
* The Control of Pesticides Regulations 1986 require any person who uses a pesticide to take all reasonable precautions to protect the health of human beings, creatures and plants, safeguard the environment and in particular avoid the pollution of water. Approval from the Environment Agency should be sought before application of pesticides in or near water.
* Vigorous growth can damage buildings and hard surfaces as well as causing problems for native wildlife. Whilst it is therefore prudent to control and dispose of Japanese knotweed it should be done in such a way that does not contravene the above legislation.

Further information

You can get advice on managing controlled waste and the use of pesticides near water from the Environment Agency on their customer services line; 08708 506 506. If you see anyone illegally moving or disposing of controlled waste you can call their incident hotline on 0800 80 70 60.

You may also find the Environment Agency’s short factsheet on Japanese knotweed useful.

Comment by steve loftus on November 14, 2008 at 9:13pm

i spray or inject with roundup pro-biactive twice yearly,usually gone by the second year,always use a systemic weedkiller. around £250 per treatment per site,at this price we will normally guarantee eradication in 2 years, 3 years on a huge infestation

Comment by vhowe on November 14, 2008 at 10:45pm

If spraying near water you need to check requirements as well. A lot of Japenese knotweed on river banks her in Scotland.

Comment by steve loftus on November 14, 2008 at 11:11pm

ROUNDUP PRO-BIACTIVE,UNLIKE NORMAL OFF THE SHELF ROUNDUP, IS AQUA SAFE IF USED IN THE CORRECT DOSES,BUT ALWAYS SPEAK TO EA CONCERNING SPRAYING NEAR RIVERS OR WATERCOURSES

Comment by Shaun on November 15, 2008 at 1:25am

What is the best practise approach to dealling with this problem? e.g. washing footwear before leaving area to prevent cross contamination, dealing with cut waste material do you leave it onsite to die off? etc....

Comment by steve loftus on November 15, 2008 at 8:13am

i believe ,after reading E A and DEFRA, you can burn waste on site,do not cut with strimmers though or any other shredding type of cutter,pulling would be best,and yes,give boots a wash.

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