Lunchtime Chats with Karen Bacon: Investigating non-chemical controls for management of Japanese knotweed

Japanese knotweed (Reynoutria japonica) is one of the most problematic non-native invasive species in both Ireland and the United Kingdom. Currently, most control methods require the use of a glyphosate-based herbicide, a chemical that is under increasing scrutiny at the EU level and may not have its licence renewed in 2022.  This session described an experimental approach that tested (1) how effective glyphosate-based herbicides have been at reducing the next year’s growth two UK sites and (2) the use of desiccation of rhizomes and crowns as a potential alternative control measure for this species.