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Alien invasion
Stopping invasive species a challenging job
By Sean Percy
To the untrained eye, the clump of bushes
looks like just another plant alongside
upper Southview Road. But Blake
Fougère recognizes it as the possible end
of Powell River’s plant life as we know it.
The alien invader is Japanese knotweed
Fallopia japonica, an innocuous looking
broad-leafed plant with bumps on the
stalks that give it the appearance of bamboo,
though it is not closely related.
Fougère, a professional forester and stewardship
officer for the Ministry of Forests
and Range, spotted a patch of the knotweed
about 12 metres long by three metres
deep growing alongside the road. Last
month, with an excavator and a crew to
spot any leftover chunks of root, the patch
was dug up and buried deep in a nearby
sand pit. The process cost about $1,000.
Just up the road are several more patches.
It will be more costly to remove these because
there’s no convenient sand pit.
But Fougère says something has to be
done or the alien invader will take over
and displace the native vegetation. In
England, the plant has taken over vast areas
and is now a banned substance.
Fougère has also spotted patches of knotweed
along Willingdon Creek. It’s particularly
dangerous in riparian areas because it
grows rapidly and spreads quickly as chunks
What you can do
• Start by not planting non-native species.
• Learn to identify local invasive species in your area.
• Remove them if you have them on your property.
• Don’t dump gardening waste in the bush.
• If you’re operating a grader, excavator or mower,
make sure it’s properly cleaned before moving from
one location to another.
of root break off and float downstream, begetting
new plants that displace native vegetation.
Worst of all, it’s not a good stream
bank stabilizer, leading to rapid erosion.
ROOT CAUSE: The roots of Japanese
knotweed break easily, and even a small
fragment can grow a whole new plant.
The knotweed has no natural predators
or parasites in this part of the world to
keep its rapid growth in check. The longterm
solution is to find the right bug to
introduce to control the weed, says Ernie
Sellentin, the invasive alien plant technician
with the ministry. But that takes years
of research to ensure that it’s the right bug
that doesn’t attack native plants and further
throw the ecosystem out of kilter.
Eventually, says Sellentin, every species
will turn up everywhere, but that
may not be good for the planet, so he
urges people not to plant species that
could spread out of control.
“If you plant something, it could be
there for the next 400 years. Who’s going
to look after it when
you’re gone?”
Japanese knotweed is
seen in a number of yards
and gardens around Powell
River. An unsuspecting
gardener likely spread
the Japanese knotweed
by dumping clippings or
roots alongside the road.
Then it spread further
when a few bits of root got caught in the
blade of the road grader.
Powell River’s infestation is small and
might possibly be controlled. Along the
SPACE INVADER: Blake Fougère stands
beside a clump of Japanese knotweed on
Southview Road. The plant grows rapidly
and displaces native vegetation.
Cowichan River, however, it has shown up
in 88 sites in a 30-kilometre stretch. It will
take hundreds of thousands of dollars and
heavy herbicide use to kill it. But if that’s
not done soon, the size of the infestation
and the cost to control it will double every
five years, said Sellentin.
But there are success stories. At Carruthers
Road in Okeover, Fougère attacked
a small infestation of giant hogweed, a
particularly heinous alien containing phototoxic
sap that can cause third degree
burns on human skin.
“We’re hoping we’ve eliminated that,”
said Fougère.
MOTORISTS
Watch for Cyclists!
CYCLISTS
Be Aware. Be Safe.
WEAR A HELMET
Powell River
Brain Injury Society
4735 Marine Avenue
Powell River, BC V8A 2L2
604 485-6065
info@ braininjurysociety.ca
www.braininjurysociety.ca
Powell River Living : april 2009 11