Are weeds just plants ‘whose virtues have not yet been discovered’? Ralph Waldo Emerson Are weeds all bad to be dug out or killed off in your gardens and public spaces? Are native weeds worse than alien invaders? First lets see what plants we are talking about

Invasive or Noxious Native Weeds under the Weeds Act 1959,

• Broadleaved Dock (Rumex obtusifolius)
• Curled leaved Dock (Rumex crispus)
• Spear Thistle (Circium vulgare)
• Creeping Thistle (Circium arvensis
• Common Ragwort (Senecio jacobaea)
• Ragwort Control Act 2003  see DEFRA’s mini-site on Common Ragwort .

I don’t know about you but there is a chance some of these weeds appear in my garden along with other miscreants such as willow herb (Chamaenerion angustifolium) , ground elder, convolvulous and bluebells. And that is just the start of my weed trail.

Invasive non native alien plants

• American skunk cabbage Lysichiton americanus
• Chilean rhubarb      Gunnera tinctoria
• Curly waterweed      Lagarosiphon major
• Floating pennywort             Hydrocotyle ranunculoides
• Giant hogweed         Heracleum mantegazzianum

• Himalayan balsam   Impatiens glandulifera
• Nuttall’s waterweed             Elodea nuttallii
• Parrot’s feather         Myriophyllum aquaticum
• Japanese knotweed
• New Zealand pigmyweed
• List of aquatic weeds RHS
• Plus an additional list of 30  less widely spread species Government list
• With the above you must not do any of the following – import, keep, breed,transport, sell, grow, cultivate or permit to reproduce

Weed Worries

• Lawn weeds are unsightly but are they worth loosing sleep over.
• Fat hen and bitter cress get everywhere and must leach some nutrient from soil and compete with more important plants but a limited amount of live and let live makes for a more peaceful existence.
• Dandelions are colourful and have interesting seed heads although it is their propensity for seed distribution that gets them on my weed list.
• It is the weeds that get in and amongst my more treasured specimen plants that give me angst. Horses tail have never inflicted me with their presence but it would concern me if I had to work an invaded garden
• Self sown rouges including buddliea, goat willow and odd trees can catch me out for one or two years but are big enough to get rid of.