UKC

https://www.flickr.com/photos/30701804@N03/14031128332/in/photostream/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/30701804@N03/14011236126/in/photostream/

Anyone know what this is? We were walking through a woodland in Cornwall and they were springing up all over the place.

Thanks in advance.

In reply to Submit to Gravity:

japanese knot weed - stand still long enough and it will get you

In reply to Submit to Gravity:

Nasty stuff! We surveyed a lot of sites which had been condemned because of the stuff last year!

Its roots grow through concrete and are extremely extensive, and it can be spread through its rhysomes getting caught in your boots and then planted somewhere else... even a bit the size of your fingernail can spread the shit.

I got a lot of free car washes by driving onto a site with it though - we couldn't leave without bleach washing our boots and fully washing the cars/vans we were using!

You really don't want this in your garden - if the bank finds out then you will never get a mortgage apparently!

In reply to alexcollins123:

I thought it must be something pretty invasive. I think I ought to throw my trainers out...

In reply to Submit to Gravity:

i'd certainly give them a brush off!!

In reply to alexcollins123:


Into my boss's garden.

In reply to Submit to Gravity:

The young shoots can be cooked with soya sauce and is a delicacy in Japan.

Best way of getting rid of it is using glyphosate and stem injection of not able to spray beside water courses.

Should be reported to local authority for them to deal with.

In reply to Lone Rider:


I've heard it can be used like rhubarb too. Andy Hamilton uses it to make ale.


Is it true that deliberately cultivating it is punishable by a prison sentence?

In reply to Submit to Gravity:

But I can see bluebells in those photos. If only - they alone carpeted the woodland floor. V sad.

In reply to aln:

it's super-mega-invasive! it'll regrow from small parts of the plant and needs to be sprayed repeatedly to get rid of it. it's illegal to 'release it into the wild' and there are also laws controlling how it's disposed of.

i have heard it's edible, but i wouldn't recommend it in case it's been recently sprayed with glyphosate and because putting the trimmings in your compost heap would be a really bad idea....