A gorgeous plant, but oh so invasive. Once you’ve got it, good luck getting rid. On the plus side, the butterflies love the flowers (you can see one in this shot) and the young shoots that come up in the spring can be dug and used like rhubarb.
Japanese Knotweed (Fallopia japonica)
cripes – this stuff is madly invasive over here – it’s illegal to introduce it and you have a legal requirement to remove it if you find it in your garden….
http://fennelandfern.blogspot.com/2008/10/on-grapevine-garden-news-japanese.html
Not that bad here but certainly not something you would plant. Apparently eating it is how some places keep it in check.
This is one of my weeds that I didn’t know was a weed until I let it grow all summer the first year we lived here. Now it is the foundation of my compost pile every spring.
I believe that they are currently considering trials of a pest/predator for it in the UK as it is such an invasive (and now illegal) plant.
This plant is EVIL & impossible to get rid of once it’s taken root. I’ve been fighting it all spring and summer & can’t tell you how happy I am to see it dying in the cold, cold weather. Only problem is I know I’ll be battling it again next year. If you have any suggestions for how to get rid of it, I’d be HUGELY appreciative.
NOTE to the Composter: Don’t put it in your compost!!! You are just spreading it to the rest of your garden. Even a teeny cutting is enough to get it started in a new spot and it’s muscle out all the good stuff you want to grow.
{ok… I’ll take a deep, cleansing breath now}
Here in Japan, people put down heavy plastic sheets or even old tatami (straw floor) mats to prevent it from coming through. It has to be a strong sheet though because it will break through anything less. I suppose a few two-by-fours would work as well.
As for eating it. It is delicious. Especially since rhubarb is hard to come by in Japan, itadori (Japanese Knotweed) is a great substitute for rhubarb sauce or jam. The neighbors all think I am crazy when I come back from the mountain with a basketfull, but the older ones reminisce about when they were children they used to eat it with salt as a snack.
Of course, to eat it, you generally have to get it early in the season when it is not so fibrous.
They are indeed considering a biological control. Let’s just hope that introducing one alien to combat another doesn’t cause further problems….
http://fennelandfern.blogspot.com/2008/10/on-grapevine-garden-news-japanese.html
whoops – just realised I posted that link twice…sorry!