Zombies

Wednesday, January 11th, 2012

A sharp decline in honey bee numbers could be linked to a ‘zombifying’ parasitic fly, scientists believe. Colony collapse disorder, marked by the sudden disappearance of worker bees, was recognised as a serious problem in 2006.

Evidence has emerged that Apocephalus borealis, which is known to attack bumble bees is also targeting honey bees.

The fly lays its eggs in the abdomen of a bee which then displays ‘zombie’ like behaviour, abandoning its hive to congregate near lights – ……the bees then then violently attack any humans in an effort to consume their flesh *

(*nb this last bit was made up by MC)

The research is publicised today in the online journal Public Library of Science ONE.

Sorry – this has nothing to do with Japanese Knotweed but I love Zombie movies.

Mike C

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Cedric Barton Clough

Wednesday, November 2nd, 2011

This is a quick blog to remember my dad.

Cedric passed away on the 13^th of October after a short illness, but his influence on me will carry on for the rest of my life.

My dad first introduced me to nature and environmental issues, we collected frogspawn and listened for the first cuckoo together. We looked out for cowslips and orchids and threw stones at magpies as well as chasing cats that were damaging nests.

We climbed Snowdon and Helvellyn and walked all over Kinder Scout together. He taught me the sounds of various birds and the identification of all of our native trees.

I’m pretty sure this is where my interest in invasive plants first came from and he shall be remembered every time I hear the weather forecast.

Thanks dad.

Cedric Barton Clough 06-02-1931 to 13-10-2011

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Let’s all stop Paying the Inland Revenue – it makes sense and ££££££££££

Wednesday, October 26th, 2011

I have just been reading about one of our competitors who owed the Inland Revenue over a million pounds.

A million pounds.

A…million…pounds

So you’re thinking that they would be forced into Liquidation?….. Naah.

They managed to get a CVA (Creditors Voluntary Arrangement) – some sort of deal whereby they were allowed to carry on trading to allow them to try and pay back a percentage of the money owed.

They didn’t stick to this agreement.

So you’re thinking they would be forced into Liquidation?….. Naah.

They managed to get another arrangement.

…and then they just get to carry on trading as if nothing ever happened.

Oh and by the way – the owner is away on holiday for a two week break – he’s a bit stressed.

So dear reader – how come I get hassled and threatened by the Revenue if I am a day late with the PAYE?

How come I get threatened with having my possessions impounded if Im late with the VAT…?

I’m beginning to think maybe I’m the bigger idiot.

So well done to the company in question…

Little question for him though…

Surely if we all did this – wouldn’t the Country just stop running?

Mike C

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Frankfurt Motor Show

Wednesday, October 12th, 2011

For those of you that think Mike Cloughs life is easy – let me put you straight – going to the Frankfurt Motor Show and back in a day was hard work.

I have a love of cars. I don’t hide it – I currently drive a Porsche GT3 RS – it’s something I have always wanted, I work hard, I bought one.

I have always lived my life along the lines that when you are on your death bed – it won’t be the things that you did …that you regret – it will be the things that you DIDN’T.

So…what the hell does this have to do with Japanese Knotweed.

Well….it comes back to my blog of a few weeks ago comparing Porsche cars with Ford cars.

At the Frankfurt show there were lots of different car makers showing their best vehicles and their most extravagant models. There were companies that had dancing girls. There were companies that had so many give always that you needed a trolley to carry them all in…. (Skoda actually gave you a trolley as well)

But Porsche gave nothing away.

Porsche hadn’t got any dancing girls.

Porsche had a great product simply displayed…

I’m thinking maybe the companies that shout and make a fuss are generally the ones that have a weak product.

The product should be able to stand on its own merits and its history.

Check our history, check the projects successfully completed, check our testimonials.

We may not have won Le Mans – but as far as performance goes – we are the Porsche of the Japanese Knotweed Industry.

Mike C

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Huanglongbing

Wednesday, July 27th, 2011

Sometimes a word just grabs you and you have to write about it…the Asian Citrus Psyllid carries a devastating plant disease called …huanglongbing…which is causing wide spread panic amongst citrus growers.

Why is this relevant?

Well – last year saw the release of the Psyllid aphid in the UK following a public consultation the government decided to take the unusual step of releasing a bio control agent to try and stem the spread of Japanese Knotweed. Japanese Knotweed Solutions fully support the measures taken by CABI (a non-profit organisation) and are in contact with the team of researchers who are monitoring the spread of the insect.

We do have some concerns about possible vectoring of disease by the Psyllid but are assured by the detailed analysis carried out by CABI that this should not be an issue.

However…HUANGLONGBING…

I see people running down the street screaming.

Mike C

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Knotweed Man…

Wednesday, March 2nd, 2011

…Knotweed Man (sung to Spiderman) …he can spot knotweed where no-one can, can he spray – yes he can, can he dig it up and take it to a licensed tip…ok enough.

I recently managed to convince all of my team that I am ‘odd’ by asking the question – ‘can anyone else smell Japanese knotweed (JK) as they drive along…?’

I thought everyone could do it – once you get your nose accustomed to the slightly sweet smell of decay – it becomes easier to find JK on site.

When driving back from a meeting last week I was diverted due to a road traffic accident. The diversion took me along a road I hasn’t driven on before in Runcorn. As I drove along my ‘Knotweed Senses’ began to prickle, the hairs on the back of neck stood up – and sure enough – around the next corner – a huge stand of knotweed…

I met a client on site recently and he told me that the area was free of invasive weeds and that he couldn’t see any signs of Japanese knotweed. However again my senses were on alert….the site was beside a river, it was poorly maintained, there were signs of fly tipping – yet there appeared to be no JK?

I sniffed the air and sure enough I could taste Knotweed – I followed my nose towards a brick wall – climbed a couple of steps and looked beyond the brickwork….and sure enough a stand of knotweed, within the boundary perhaps 50 metres long by 10 metres wide.

It always pays to look everywhere for invasive plants. It also pays to sniff everywhere for knotweed – but only if you have the training!

Mike C

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Stressed…

Wednesday, January 19th, 2011

How much can one man take! I had flu over Christmas and ended up at the doctors describing various symptoms and having all sorts of tests. The results came back and the first question that the doctor asked was … ‘are you under stress?’

Well the answer would be …yes.

Welcome to the world in which I live! It’s stressful being in business, it’s stressful being a business owner, it’s stressful being in the construction industry and it’s stressful when you have employees! It’s stressful when you are quiet and it’s stressful when you are busy.

It’s stressful when you are owed a lot of money and it’s stressful when you make a lot of money because you know the taxman will be coming to get his share…

It’s also stressful writing about being stressed because you know that people reading this will now realise that you are stressed.

At this point I should say that I’m not dying - I have a rash on my leg which is stress related – a bit like Tony Soprano had…itches like hell though.

Mike C

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Business Oxygen…

Wednesday, December 15th, 2010

There is a limited supply of oxygen in the world which we all require to breathe – there is also a limited supply of ‘business’ in the world that we all require to keep trading….

Companies which waste business ‘oxygen’ should just stop and give up.

What I’m getting at here is companies which make no money and only carry on by the skin of their teeth entering into dodgy deals to pay back money that they owe.

We here at Japanese Knotweed Solutions know what projects cost. We know how much labour rates are and we know what machinery costs. We know how much chemical treatment costs (down to the last penny!). We also know how much landfill costs….. and we know what profit we make on every project….

So how come some companies will win a project and be less than ‘break even’ on their quotation?

I can hear all the quantity surveyors out there saying…. “well they must have ‘sharpened their pencils’ a bit”.

Duuuh…bollocks.

To be in business YOU HAVE TO MAKE A PROFIT.

If you aren’t making a decent margin how will you pay those Tax Bills? …how will you cover that unexpected breakdown of machinery or the inclement weather….?

In simple terms – no profit means you will cease trading – it’s only a matter of time.

So come on main contractors – use some common sense – don’t just go for the cheapest possible price – go for the company that will still be around when you need them.

Profit should not be a dirty word!

Mike C

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Mike Clough is a Softy…

Wednesday, November 24th, 2010

Is it me or are nettle stings getting worse?

I suspect it’s me…! I’ve been working behind a desk too long and I need to get out and do some real work…

I now spend all my time driving up and down the country (Glasgow, Perth, London, Harrogate – and that just the last five days!) I wear suits and shoes that have never seen a field or mud…my hands are all soft and my nails are manicured.

So… I have become a soft lardy shadow of my former self - and thus when brushing past a nettle recently I jumped as if hit by an electric shock. Wasps now scare me to death and I’m not over keen on spiders…

Enough.

I’m getting a landrover and re-discovering the real Mike Clough.

Watch this space.

Mike C

PS it may take some time.

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A Good Day on the River…

Wednesday, September 15th, 2010

I have always liked talking to people on the same wavelength as me, and yesterday was one of those days.

Most people walk around with their heads in the clouds thinking about X Factor and what Cheryl Cole was wearing, missing the fact that their city and surroundings have been taken over by Alien plants….

…but yesterday I got to talk to a group of thirty or so enthusiastic ‘Alien killers’.

The Group were a team of volunteers working in and around the centre of Sheffield trying to combat the spread of Japanese Knotweed, Himalayan balsam and Giant Hogweed. They spend Saturday nights discussing chemical applications and timing of ‘balsam bashing’… rather than whether the amateur singers were using ‘auto tune’.

It was a real pleasure to talk to them – it also made me feel a little less of a weirdo!

So thank you to the residents of Sheffield and lets hope that over the coming years maybe being proud of your City, and getting involved with ‘Community Action Groups’ becomes more popular than Simon Cowell! Maybe ‘balsam bashing’ could become a TV covered reality show…there’s an idea!

…and maybe one or two people on benefits that need something to do could get involved as well…? (This is probably a Politically incorrect statement …so ignore the last paragraph…)

Mike C

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