Open in App
  • Local
  • Headlines
  • Election
  • Sports
  • Lifestyle
  • Education
  • Real Estate
  • Newsletter
  • New York Post

    Invasive, fast-growing plant threatens homes, property prices as it spreads across the US

    By Brooke Kato,

    2024-09-07

    https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=4KDtBr_0vON7aoR00

    This may be one pest you can’t weed out.

    An invasive, non-native plant species has grown root and spread, posing a threat to manicured yards and even home foundations across the American Midwest, North West and North East.

    The Japanese knotweed is a shrub-type plant that was brought to the US in the 1800s, according to The Wall Street Journal , and while its summertime flower blooms are breathtaking, it’s merely a mirage hiding the havoc it wrecks.

    https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=46o6Bo_0vON7aoR00
    Japanese knotweed has taken root in the US, and despite its captivating blooms, it’s threatening your garden, yard and home. é Raymond Orton – stock.adobe.com

    This street has been crowned the greenest block in Brooklyn, with some plants dating back to the 1940s: ‘It’s like a museum out here’

    With the capability of growing three feet per week, infestations of the looming plant — which have stalks that look like bamboo, per CNY News — are rapid and near-impossible to eradicate, cropping up in the cracks of concrete or asphalt just when you think you’ve vanquished it.

    Robert Naczi, the New York Botanical Garden’s curator of North American botany, told the Journal that an entire plant can grow just from a minuscule piece of root, thriving in just about any condition.

    “You have to respect this plant,” Naczi said. “They’re known to grow inches per day in the spring.”

    NYC seniors pen last-ditch plea to save beloved Elizabeth Street Garden: ‘I believe in miracles’

    The plant has been known to grow as tall as 15 feet.

    Across the pond, homeowners in the UK must disclose if Japanese knotweed has taken up root on the property when selling the home, with the potential to be prosecuted if it spreads, per the Journal. There’s even knotweed insurance available for regular maintenance, although it still is a detriment to the values of their homes.

    The Daily Mail reports that there are now fears that the plant “threatens to catastrophically devalue homes” in areas of the US where it can grow.

    https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=4PQh7G_0vON7aoR00
    Japanese knotweed was brought to the US by an unsuspecting botanist, per the Journal, and has since become a worrisome infestation. Kristof Lauwers – stock.adobe.com

    CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR MORNING REPORT NEWSLETTER

    One Maine couple detailed their laborious attempts to rid their new home of knotweed to the Journal, and that, even years later, it still hasn’t vanished.

    Various methods are available to curb the plant or kill it altogether — such as routine mowing or digging up roots, per the Journal. Other experts might advise chopping down the plant when it flowers and injecting it with herbicide, although a pesticide expert is recommended.

    Researchers have discovered a particular kind of bug — Aphalara itadori — which is known to eat Japanese knotweed.

    In 2020, scientists from the University of Massachusetts in Amherst were allowed to release them and monitor their impacts, discovering that they are successfully making a dent in the giant knotweed population, although it’s unclear how the critter will affect Japanese knotweed.

    “I’ve never been so excited to see a plant suffering before,” Jeremy Andersen, a research assistant professor who is part of the university’s team, told the Journal.

    “They looked like their life essence had been sucked out of them.”

    For the latest in lifestyle, top headlines, breaking news and more, visit nypost.com/lifestyle/

    Expand All
    Comments / 2
    Add a Comment
    Rust Bucket
    09-09
    wonder how goats like it. goats will eat every piece of kudzu they can get their little lips on. you can see kudzu growing up right next to property that has goats but you won't see any of it cross that fence line
    WASP Bitch
    09-08
    When we as humans release species to combat invasive introduced species it rarely ends well.😬🤘
    View all comments
    YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
    Local News newsLocal News
    The Shenandoah (PA) Sentinel3 days ago
    Alameda Post20 days ago
    The Shenandoah (PA) Sentinel24 days ago

    Comments / 0