Japanese knotweed and how to tackle it…
Japanese knotweed and how to tackle it…
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1/4 Japanese knotweed
Japanese knotweed has long been feared by property owners, and London is a hotspot.
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2/4 Japanese knotweed
The strong roots can rampage under fences, damage paths and patios and work their way inside the cavity walls of houses, even emerging two storeys up out of the chimney stack. Removing knotweed from the London Olympics site cost £70 million.
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3/4 Japanese knotweed
If you have knotweed growing in your garden you must declare it if you sell and this is likely to reduce the value of your property.
Getty Images/Maskot
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4/4 Japanese knotweed
Bamboo makes a great urban privacy screen, rapidly growing to 6ft. But the roots of "running” varieties can travel 20ft, easily ducking under a fence or wall and popping up next door in the form of thick, spiky shoots.
Alamy Stock Photo
London is a hotspot for Japanese knotweed, the garden blight notorious for how difficult it is to get rid of.
So rampant is it, it can even reduce the price of your home by tens of thousands of pounds due to its ability to grow under fences, damage paths and patios and even work its way inside cavity walls of houses.
So is there anything you can do if you find Japanese knotweed in your home?
What should you do if you find knotweed in your garden?
If you have a major infestation or you plan to sell your home in the next five years, contact a specialist.
Most mortgage companies want a firm associated with the trade body the Property Care Association, so check its website to find a member near you.
However, if you have only a small clump and don’t plan on moving any time soon, you could aim to get rid of it yourself, says RHS chief horticultural adviser Guy Barter. “It’s evil stuff. It’s a lot of work and not feasible if there’s a vast infestation, but you can dig it out with a spade.
“Because it’s classified as ‘controlled waste’, you can’t let any plant material leave the garden. So stack it up to dry on plastic or concrete and then burn it. Or put it in rubble bags and leave it to die for a few years to be sure.”
Barter suggests combining digging up the plant with a herbicide such as Roundup.
“But if you’re organic, just dig it up.” If knotweed is coming in from a neighbouring garden, he says to dig a deep trench on the boundary and line it with a strong root barrier.
Try ecomerchant.co.uk for root block impermeable membrane, from £6.25 per linear metre. Knotweed is the most notorious but by no means the only plant likely to have Londoners tearing their hair out.
Bamboo
Bamboo makes a great urban privacy screen, rapidly growing to 6ft. But the roots of “running” varieties can travel 20ft, easily ducking under a fence or wall and popping up next door in the form of thick, spiky shoots.
If you plant bamboo, make sure you choose one described as “clump-forming” so it doesn’t get out of control.
If your neighbour’s bamboo is coming into your garden, talk to them about it first, suggests Barter.
If they won’t remove it, you could offer to pay for a contractor to do it. And if this doesn’t work, dig a trench at least 20in deep and line it with a strong root barrier. In this case, a nice clump of bamboo leaves between you and them might be a welcome thing.
To discover what knotweed looks like and for further good guidance for homeowners, visit rhs.org.uk/advice
