Giant Hog weed

John Howard · May 18, 2010

I was under the impression that it was the EA who were responsible for controlling this plant. I rang them this morning to report some out breaks on the Upper Severn.

I was told that its not in their remit. I have scoured the EA and DEFRA web sites but can find nothing.

Any one know who is responsible for controlling it?

Graham Whatmore · May 18, 2010

Not really sure if anyone is resposible for its control but it is a very aggressive plant as well as being harmful, even just touching it can leave a person with some very painful results that can re-occur for as long as 6 years. Never try to pull one down to gain access to a swim because you will almost certainly suffer as a result, even cutting it down will have the same effects.

Giant hogweed worth a read for you river users but it isn't confined just to rivers, it can grow anywhere.

the indifferent crucian · May 18, 2010

Your PDF wwouldn't open for me, Graham, but this does from WIKI.

[ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_Hogweed"]Giant Hogweed - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia@@AMEPARAM@@/wiki/File:Reuzenbereklauw.JPG" class="image"><img alt="" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e0/Reuzenbereklauw.JPG/220px-Reuzenbereklauw.JPG"@@AMEPARAM@@commons/thumb/e/e0/Reuzenbereklauw.JPG/220px-Reuzenbereklauw.JPG[/ame]

It is an offence to cause it to grow, Huh?

Well the National Trust has allowed it to grow in Winkworth Arboretum, where once there was a lake and a fly fishing lake still exists there. Suddenly the stuff is everywhere along the valley and has now appeared in a local meadow from which the waters flow South to the Arun. I think it will start spreading both North and South from Godalming and it's darn near unstoppable.

One patch on the roadside in Hascombe has been dug up three times and holly planted. The holly couldn't take the road fumes and the Hogweed has re-appeared yet again this year. It actually seems to be spreading upstream !

Pretty as it is the local stream borders are rife with Himalayan Balsam, to the detriment of native plants.

Ruddy gardeners !!!!

arbocop · May 18, 2010

It's the landowners responsibility to remove it.

The Widlife and Counrtyside Act lists schedules it, which means it is an offence to plant it in the wild, or allow it to spread onto anothers land. It is not an offence to allow it to grow as such, but if it spread to a neighbours land, then you could be liable for the costs of removal.

Under the Environmental Protection Act 1990, If you remove the stuff, it has be disposed of at a registered site as it is classed as controlled waste. This is because it can spread from a small piece of root.

The easist way of dealing with it is to treat it with chemical herbicides.

I agree though, it's horrible stuff.

slime monster · May 18, 2010

There is a huge patch of it in a small park garden in Cockington village near where I live ..a popular destination with holiday makers

edit......I may be wrong there the plant I mentioned looks like gigantic Rhubarb

Fred Bonney · May 18, 2010

I'm pretty certain I read somewhere that there is proposal to bring in a natural insect predator to deal with it!!!

Thinking about it, that may be for Japanese Knotweed

or

Himalayan balsam

S-Kippy · May 18, 2010

Fred Bonney said:
I'm pretty certain I read somewhere that there is proposal to bring in a natural insect predator to deal with it!!!

Thinking about it, that may be for Japanese Knotweed

or

Himalayan balsam

Bloody stuff that is.I understand you have to spray it 3 years in a row at just the right time to have any effect at all.

Wobbly Face (As Per Ed) · May 18, 2010

Giant Hogg weed or Rusian Hog weed, causes burns to skin.

Fred, it's the Japansese knotweed that the insect is being introduced for.

904_cannon · May 18, 2010

If its not the EA's remit I wonder why they are then sending laminated info sheets on alien plants and asking people to contact them.
The more I see and here from the EA the more confused I'm becoming,
Hogweed Looks like we'll just have to put up with it

Graham Whatmore · May 19, 2010

Crucian, the reason you maybe can't open that link is that it is a PDF file requiring Adobe reader (free) to enable this.

Dave Burr · May 19, 2010

I've been trying to control the hogweed on the Red Lion section of the Wye for about eight years and it is a complete pain in the botty!

I tried digging it out but that was much too difficult. In order to spray it I have had to obtain a license from English Nature to allow the use of organophosphate pesticide within ten metres of the waterway as there is a very large onus of responsibility with these chemicals.

Having sprayed the plants they will come back for at least three years before they start to die off and each one you miss spreads thousands of seeds to start the whole thing off again. This would not be so bad but many farmers/land owners have done nothing about their hogweed so it just gets worse.

Enter the Wye and Usk Foundation. They have been funded to eradicate the weed from the river and have sprayed it for the last couple of years. On our section the culmulative effect of years of management are definitely having an effect but it is a long haul.

The only danger from Hogweed is the sap. If it gets on your skin and the skin is subsequently exposed to sunlight (UV), it will blister - and I mean blister and cause irritation. If you do decide to knock or chop one down just be sensible and wear long sleeves etc.

If you find it on your fishery get the club to notify the landowner - they have a legal responsibility to deal with hogweed. Quote Healthe and Safety, that seems to get most people's attention nowadays.

Newfie's Drool · May 19, 2010

Dave Burr said:
I've been trying to control the hogweed on the Red Lion section of the Wye for about eight years and it is a complete pain in the botty!

I tried digging it out but that was much too difficult. In order to spray it I have had to obtain a license from English Nature to allow the use of organophosphate pesticide within ten metres of the waterway as there is a very large onus of responsibility with these chemicals.

Having sprayed the plants they will come back for at least three years before they start to die off and each one you miss spreads thousands of seeds to start the whole thing off again. This would not be so bad but many farmers/land owners have done nothing about their hogweed so it just gets worse.

Enter the Wye and Usk Foundation. They have been funded to eradicate the weed from the river and have sprayed it for the last couple of years. On our section the culmulative effect of years of management are definitely having an effect but it is a long haul.

The only danger from Hogweed is the sap. If it gets on your skin and the skin is subsequently exposed to sunlight (UV), it will blister - and I mean blister and cause irritation. If you do decide to knock or chop one down just be sensible and wear long sleeves etc.

If you find it on your fishery get the club to notify the landowner - they have a legal responsibility to deal with hogweed. Quote Healthe and Safety, that seems to get most people's attention nowadays.

Best way would be to spray it with roundup pro, Quattro or roundup 450 but for you to purchase and use these chemicals you will first need a licence to obtain and use the chemical plus gain permission from EA or controlling body. These are not pesticides but are total herbicides.
Then you will have to monitor and continue to spray as set periods keeping records.
To remove the weed when dead you may well have to have a waste carriers licence and supply the care of duty paperwork to the reg tip.
The only problem is this weed will continue to return if its on land next to your borders.
If you use the chemicals you should be wearing PPE at all times.
I tend to use roundup 450 and it will kill all weeds if used correctly and mixed right at the correct amount ie 50ml for 5ltrs. Its not a sudden kill but will take 3 to 4 weeks depending on conditions like temperature.
Trouble is it wipes all plant life out and so must be used with great care.

sagalout · May 20, 2010

slime monster said:
There is a huge patch of it in a small park garden in Cockington village

Nah mate that's giant gonnera (spelling?)

Graham Whatmore · May 20, 2010

Its actually spelt Gunnera Sag also known as giant rhubarb and very spectacular they are too.

frippe · May 20, 2010

Wow, good read... I see this in alot of places, have done for years. I never knew it was harmful in such a way. Could I be mistaking it for something else?

I was down the canal yesterday and was sitting next to some (or at least I thought it was), looking at various pictures it does look like the stuff.

keith harris · May 20, 2010

Hi John.
We get a lot of outbreaks of the hog weed on the banks of the river tees .One of the club members sprays it to keep under control and as doing it for years and killing it off . He even spotted some at a commercial he fishes and treated that their as well . If you want any details or anything to do with treatment .I will look out for him and get some details ...cheers

arbocop · May 22, 2010

It can be treated now with a stem injection technique. Works really well on both knotweed and hogweed.

Costly and time consuming though.

the indifferent crucian · May 23, 2010

I do have Adobe Graham, I don't know why it wouldn't play?
,

By pure co-incidence I have just returned from a dog walk where I know the landowner digs a ramp down to the water for horses ( I want my dog to get a little more confident around water, he's a bit too timid )

I hadn't walked this stretch for a year or two, .... no more.

What a shock, the Hog Weed is everywhere as well as a fair bit of Knotweed too. I'm only about 3 miles from the source of the river and I know it joins the Arun and therefore goes off down to the South Coast .

The only place it wasn't establshed was amongst the beds of Wild Garlic, which just might be important.

I first saw some two years ago and destroyed it, about a mile upstream. Clearly it will be everywhere soon.

Andrew Macfarlane · May 24, 2010

It's less likely to burn in the colder months. During the summer though, it can cause a caustic-like burning sensation, although I've never suffered badly for more than 20mins or so. I've seen some nasty welts appear on a mate of mine though. Luckily I've always been beside the water, so any time I've crashed through the stuff and got some milky sap on me, I always wash it off ASAP.

Don't lick them...

arbocop · May 24, 2010

Native hogweed burns a bit as well if you get the sap on your skin in the sun. It's not as bad as Giant Hogweed, but still worth wearing long sleeves if strimming it.

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