Japanese knotweed removal services expanding, but beware of ‘instant’ solutions

Japanese knotweed removal is a growing problem in the United Kingdom today, and has been a concern for some time already. An area the size of London is now affected by those invasive weeds and thousands of sites are contaminated with Japanese knotweed. Eradication is vital for site development and complete removal of Japanese knotweed is essential to remove the problem, as even small amounts of root material can grow to form new plants and spread again in the site.

Japanese knotweed was introduced to the United Kingdom as an ornamental plant from its original habitats, which include the volcanic soils around Mount Fuji in Japan hundreds of years ago, which is why the weed is called “Japanese Knotweed”. This simply means that the plant grows well in the United Kingdom’s less harsh conditions and Japanese knotweed out competes native vegetation completely. This results in it growing very quickly and being very hardy and thus flourishing in a variety of harsh locations and disturbed human-influenced environments. This also results in the plant having impressive and fast regeneration techniques even when all aboveground growth is removed.

Japanese knotweed is so damaging mainly because it can grow through drains, walls and even concrete floors and up to a rate of 4 inches a day, which is quite amazing for a weed. The British government has actually placed a conservative total cost on complete United Kingdom Japanese knotweed removal at £1.56bn. Potentially, Japanese knotweed removal can add hundreds of thousands of pounds to site development costs, and expert advice should be sought from professional companies who can provide bespoke Japanese knotweed solutions to save time and money in dealing with this invasive weed problem. 

However, beware of an increasing number of companies claiming to remove Japanese knotweed over night. These instant Japanese knotweed removal solutions are often vastly exaggerated claims and do not fully remove below ground root systems. It is essential to treat all below ground growth for complete Japanese knotweed eradication, as this rhizome (root) material can grow to form new plants from just one gramme of material and can remain dormant for some time before spreading out again in the site and invade again all the cleared space. Getting the right Japanese knotweed eradication strategy is vital for efficient and cost effective removal, and can be very different depending on the site requirements and the client’s needs. Thus choosing the right company is vitally important to get a professional, expert and bespoke Japanese knotweed eradication service.