Never Forget…. July 28, 2021

Do you ever do something, but you can’t remember why you’re doing it?

Maybe you take the long route from the car to the house because the flags are slippy ….then one day you think ….duuuh why do I keep going the long way to the house….then you take the short cut and slip on the flags.

I think this must happen with Japanese knotweed removal.

People are just forgetting why Japanese knotweed was a problem in the first place.

Ask yourself the question?  Why is it that we’ve demonised Japanese knotweed so much?  What is it about this plant that raises it in your perception above the other problem plants out there?

Is it because of legislation?

Maybe that’s it.  Maybe it’s just because there’s a law saying that ‘you must’ deal with this plant in a correct manner.

Wellllll …. not really.

There was a reason for the introduction of the law – and that’s the reason why we all get in a bit of a blather about a plant.

The reason for the law…. is …..the difficulty in eradicating this plant…. plus the ease with which it can be spread.

So, let’s just remember that reason can we?

Let’s just focus on why the plant became a problem in the first place.

The reason I’m prattling on (again) is the number of sites where I see that an eradication strategy has been put in place but then – they’ve forgotten to follow this up and check that the plant is actually fully removed or not showing signs of re-growth.

There’s been zero monitoring.

A few days ago, I drove past a site I know that has been treated in Buxton and noticed that there is new growth appearing all along the treated section and rapid spread in all directions.

Nobody appears to be aware.

Everybody’s forgotten why this was treated in the first place.

Houses have changed hands and I can guarantee that nobody will be on top of this situation.  The house builder has sold all their houses and moved on to the next money-spinning project.

When I drive to work I go down the M67 – a couple of years ago there were some roundabout improvements carried out that involved removal of Knotweed.  As I sit at the traffic lights at the end of the motorway, I can see the plant that hasn’t been dealt with properly re-growing and spreading rapidly in all directions.

Building works have finished – the contractor has moved on – and the Knotweed hasn’t been dealt with.

At Japanese Knotweed Solutions Ltd we have full-time teams that cover the country, checking, monitoring and dealing with any new growth that appears on our list of covered sites.

We have a bespoke App for our teams that covers all revisits and gives a constant update to clients on their site and any problems that might occur.

We take aftercare seriously.

We know why Japanese knotweed is a problem and we remember to take it seriously.

Please when you look at employing a contractor to sort your invasive plant problems, look for somebody who’s in it for the long haul.

A quick spray is never the answer with Japanese knotweed – it’s a long game – and you need a player that knows the rules.

  

Mike C

CONFUSED July 7, 2021

I’ve got to admit to being more than a little confused about the rules around mask wearing and travel.

You wear a mask to enter a restaurant, then take it off when you sit down. You then sit next to people without masks …but… if you need the loo …you put your mask back on again.

Really? ….and this has scientific facts to support this does it? Does it really though ….reaaaalllly?

You wear a mask to go to your football match, then you can take it off when you sit down. You have a limited number of people sat at your football match …. unless it’s a UEFA final when all bets are off and anybody can come from all over the world bringing whatever variant of COVID is locally active.

You can snog your work colleague without a mask on …but only if you want to get divorced.

Hmmmm.

I used to think the anti-vaxers were all bonkers.

I’m beginning to see that some of their points are valid.

 

Mike C