| Archive for Downsizer For an ethical approach to consumption |
| JB |
Views sought on knotweed predatorViews sought on knotweed predator |
| vegplot |
I caught the tail end of a radio 4 item on the way to work this morning. The interviewee was pretty confident the control species wouldn't be invasive itself having been tested against control groups of 90 similar species to JKW. But he didn't say whether other non-related plant species were tested. |
| sally_in_wales |
from what I've heard over the last year of two I think this has been pretty exhaustively tested and not something they are rushing into.
I've got slightly mixed feelings though, on one hand, knotweed is a serious problem and needs a serious solution, preferably one that doesnt involve repeated use of pesticides, but the deliberate and widespread introduction of a non native species is a very significant undertaking. For me, it all boils down to how certain they are that they have thought of all the different issues and what will happen to this species if and when it eventually runs out of knotweed |
| dpack |
cane toads ,i should rest my case with that but
15000 years back there were no british native species (maybe the odd polar bear ) is jkw really a problem or just good at exploiting underused niches ? i like deer and otters and oak trees which are quite recent in geological time how long does a species have to live here before it is called "native"? 150 years for grey sqizzers is not enough but 2000 is for sycamore and 12000 is ok for oak are rhinos native ,they were quite common half a million years back and 300 million ago the coal was formed from monkey puzzle trees in a pangean swamp near where australia is now think global and long term before calling something "non native "imho |