Japanese Knotweed Control Project

To survey, control and eradicate Japanese knotweed from Skye and Lochalsh
[Funding curtailed - project suspended]

Japanese knotweed is a perennial plant that can grow in excess of 3 metres in height. The plant forms dense thickets that die back in winter, only to re-grow more vigorously the next year. Does this sound familiar? Have you seen it? Is it on your land or near to you? If so you have had contact with a plant that can push through concrete, spread quickly and it is against the law to cause it to spread. First DON’T PANIC and definitely don’t take it on by yourself. The reason this plant is such a problem is because it spreads by a dense mass of underground stems called rhizomes. It can spread through fragments of its rhizome and its live stem, putting forth rootlets from a piece as small as the top of your thumb. If cut without very special control it will spread from the cut material, resulting in a garden or field of Knotweed. It has no native predators, it blocks drainage channels, it kills the undergrowth and alarmingly it can grow through concrete , push over brick walls and grow through underground cables and pipelines.

The good news is that Japanese Knotweed can be controlled through some simple methods, it can take a few years to get rid of it completely, but it can be done. For advice on controlling this invader please call the Japanese Knotweed Project through the link on this web page We can check if it is knotweed and we can give advice on how to control it.The project began in 2007 with funding from the Highland Coucil Local Biodiversity Community Grant, aimimh to reocrd and highlight areas for control. If you see any Japanese Knotweed on Skye or in Lochalsh please take a note of where it was and let us know through the survey sheet which can be downloaded from this page.The project is building a database of all the knotweed sites in Skye and Lochalsh and any records sent in can be checked against our database and new information added. For more information about Japanese Knotweed check the SEPA web site or go to The Japanese Knotweed Alliance.

If you have knotweed on your land

• Do not cut it
• Do not strim it
• Do not pull it up
• If it's in a public place, alert the 'land owner' (e.g. Transport Scotland, Highland Council).
• If it's on private land, and according to circumstances, discuss with the land owner.