Himalayan Balsam
About Himalayan Balsam
Invasive non-native species (INNS) in the UK under Schedule 9 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act. Therefore, “it is an offence to plant or otherwise cause to grow these species in the wild.” Himalayan Balsam mainly grows on wasteland and riverbanks. It has bright pink or sometimes white tubular flowers. The leaves are a serregated oval shape, with slightly red edges. The stem is hollow with red joints.
The Problem
- One plant can produce up to 2000 seeds, which are dispersed by up to 7 metres when the seedpods explode causing it to spread quickly.
- It grows near rivers which transport the seeds over large distances.
- It is the fastest growing annual plant, growing up to 2.5 metres during one summer.
- It creates a dense canopy which shades out other native plants, causing them to die.
- The flowers produce large amounts of nectar and are very attractive to bees. This leads to bees pollinating the balsam and neglecting our native plant species.
The solution
- The most effective method of removing Himalayan Balsam is to pull the plant up from the root and then crush the roots.
- It flowers between July and October and the seeds become viable from mid-July onwards. Therefore, pulling of Himalayan Balsam should cease from July so that the seeds are not spread.
Great Glamorgan Way Project
- The Great Glamorgan Way Project carried out volunteer ‘Balsam Bashes’
- A large group of people working together to pull the plant up from the root is a time efficient way of removing large patches, without the use of chemicals
- This reduced the amount of regrowth in that patch the following year as the roots were destroyed
- Some patches may have to be pulled again the following year but in time the patch will be completely removed, allowing native British species to regenerate in its place