Japanese Knotweed (Fallopia japonica) on May 28, 2008
Submitter does not have a specimen
Description of specimen
I can easily provide one. I am having difficulty keeping this stuff from spreading into my backyard.
Commentary
Dear Richard,
Thanks for reporting knotweed. Yes, knotweed is a severe problem. This aggressive plant is taking over stream banks and degrading important riparian habitat. We definitely need to prevent its further spread!
Unfortunately, it is already widespread in your area, so not all populations are targeted for control; there are just not enough resources to control it all. Land managers are taking a strategic approach and controlling knotweed where it is clearing threatening an important resource – like a natural are or a structure.
It is still important to keep it out of your yard to prevent its further spread. Not to mention it will destroy your yard, as well! I would suggest contacting your local Soil and Water Conservation District (http://www.oacd.org/districts.html) or for additional information about knotweed control in your area. They may also be able to help you approach your neighbor about controlling their population. Many people, once they realize the negative effect of knotweed and how it actually decreased the value of their land, will be motivated to control it. Good luck!
We hope you will keep on reporting! By looking for and reporting some of the less abundant, but equally as aggressive, invasive species, we can control them before they become tomorrow’s Scotch broom, English Ivy, or even knotweed. Check out this website for a list of plants and animals that are priority for early detection and control in Western Oregon: http://www.westerninvasivesnetwork.org/pages/plants.php
My neighbor to the east is cultivating Japanese knotweed as a privacy barrier in his backyard. It is spreading into my backyard (102 Cedar Lane) and the backyards of other neighbors. I am spraying to control it but it just keeps sending out shoots -- farther and farther into my grass. I cannot use this property for growing anything else while this stuff is there. What can I (we) do about this? Please contact me before contacting the neighbor in question. Thank you.
Expert Reviewer
Tania Siemens WISE Program Coordinator (Watershed and Invasive Species Education) Oregon Sea Grant Extension Oregon State University tania.siemens@oregonstate.edu 541-914-0701
Thanks for reporting knotweed. Yes, knotweed is a severe problem. This aggressive plant is taking over stream banks and degrading important riparian habitat. We definitely need to prevent its further spread!
Unfortunately, it is already widespread in your area, so not all populations are targeted for control; there are just not enough resources to control it all. Land managers are taking a strategic approach and controlling knotweed where it is clearing threatening an important resource – like a natural are or a structure.
It is still important to keep it out of your yard to prevent its further spread. Not to mention it will destroy your yard, as well! I would suggest contacting your local Soil and Water Conservation District (http://www.oacd.org/districts.html) or for additional information about knotweed control in your area. They may also be able to help you approach your neighbor about controlling their population. Many people, once they realize the negative effect of knotweed and how it actually decreased the value of their land, will be motivated to control it. Good luck!
We hope you will keep on reporting! By looking for and reporting some of the less abundant, but equally as aggressive, invasive species, we can control them before they become tomorrow’s Scotch broom, English Ivy, or even knotweed. Check out this website for a list of plants and animals that are priority for early detection and control in Western Oregon: http://www.westerninvasivesnetwork.org/pages/plants.php
Thanks!
Tania Siemens
OSU Sea Grant/The Nature Conservancy
tania.siemens@oregonstate.edu
Tania Siemens
June 7, 2008, 12:20 a.m.