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Nature Hannah

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  1. New research paper: https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s10530-018-1684-5.pdf?fbclid=IwAR3v2FSvO6YCwuDLuOFrXtyxocpYzHJv9apLFd6kEVl4XZXYl2tERyhkSBE

    Hi all, I'm Hannah. I've been called "The Knotweed Queen of Kalamazoo" but I've been on hiatus a while with the Pandemic and the death of my mother. I was in Germany for a while but I'm back and things in my Worldwide Japanese Knotweed Support Group on Facebook have been exploding in growth and feedback. (Currently 5.5K people from all over the world, and an admin staff of five from the UK, Germany, Sweden, US, and Canada)

    From this 2019 study I have coined the phrase, "Hit It In The Window", or "The F'ing Window", between "Flower Fade and First Frost"... a trimmed down version that laypeople can understand. (Most use ready mix RoundUp or have found an off-brand glyphosate. We remind them "The Label Is The Law" and to wear proper PPE)  So far, we're getting reports back of a 80-90% reduction in the first season of spraying In The Window. Some members are on their 5th season after spraying and reports are still good. I remind everyone to never assume that it is dead; that every year they need to be watching for "scout sprouts" and hit those in the window to "keep the alien asleep" and "send another Trojan Horse down to the roots".

    I've used the analogy of a Boss at the end of an old video game to describe what this method is doing. We wait until the Boss shows its weakness (in this case, the plant has been in a huge exhale all summer, but between flowering and frost kill it is IN-haling, and that's where we can slip a Trojan Horse into the roots. Behind enemy lines they'll 'cut the power', so in the spring when the plant tries to roar back to life it will be weakened and not know what hit it. We wait until The Window again, letting the plant think "the coast is clear" and it goes "business as usual" and then we "Hit It In The Window" again. This pattern of waiting and hitting the weakness continues "as long as you own the property", checking diligently for "scout sprouts". (I've also encouraged all my members to be taking detailed notes on their patches, including pictures and measurements annually)

    My UK admin, Brian, has also made the observation that spraying the stalks seems to have the same effect as spraying the leaves, which makes the "June Cut" unnecessary. The "June Cut" is primarily to "bring the canopy down to spray reach", but it also triggers growth in the roots/rhizomes and can put the plant into a 'frenzy' mode where it isn't 'in the mood' to take up the herbicide in the fall. 

    A great suggestion came from the members to just add the surveying for sprout to the annual yard maintenance "To Do" list so it is not so overwhelming a thought. Another couple members have suggested PAINTING the glyphosate onto the plants to avoid overspray/drift. Still others have shared how they covered their desirable plants with cardboard or plastic to protect them during treatment. 

    There HAS been pushback about the "RoundUp causes cancer!", but thankfully we have several herbicide specialists who respond and dispel the fears. (One civilian member said, "It's not like they're telling you to bathe in it or drink it! Just wear proper PPE!!!" which I got a kick out of.)  I just learned today that Bayer/Monsanto is going to be taking RoundUp off the market for domestic use this year in the US. Members have found a product called "Green Shoots" and seem happy with it but I/they'll be looking for some other alternatives.

    I really hope the "Nix the Knotweed" campaign isn't getting a foothold in Michigan. The "Constant Cutting" method was proven ineffective decades ago in the UK. "Nix the Knotweed" is ACTIVELY campaigning states to ban glyphosate, too, and I'm not sure what we'll then. One of my guys from the UK (Wales, I think) has shared that he knows people that have been cutting for decades and they are now becoming too old to keep up and the knotweed is taking back the ground.  

    I'm working on a series of videos and infographics to help explain how knotweed behaves. Several in the group are working on materials to help #SpreadTheWordNotThePlant I'll share what they come up with here. I'm hoping to really come up with some shareable Knotweed Awareness Campaign material this winter and start building networks in the communities represented in the group. (Massachusetts and Connecticut seem to have the highest representation for the US presently, and Quebec, Canada is starting to show up)

    All worthwhile developments and ideas I will share here to help my home state's Invasive Species Network :) 

    Tchuss! 

  2. A person in my Worldwide Japanese Knotweed Support Group just posted about knotweed that had been covered with an old pool for 5-10 years. This is what it looked like when they pulled it up, and the next picture was 24 hours later... pinked up!
    May be an image of grass

    No photo description available.

    May be an image of coral snake and tree

    May be an image of tree

    May be an image of tree

    May be an image of coral snake and tree

  3. https://www.umisc.net/

    The 2018 Upper Midwest Invasive Species Conference will be a Joint Conference with the 
    North American Invasive Species Management Association

    October 15-18, 2018 - Mayo Civic Center - Rochester, MN
    Abstract Submission Is Open. Deadline to Submit an Abstract for Presentation: Wednesday, April 11, 2018 at 11:00pm Central
    The Upper Midwest Invasive Species Conference (UMISC) is a biennial conference. The Conference host organizations and organizing committees are pleased to join with theNorth American Invasive Species Management Association (NAISMA) to organize the largest invasive species conference in North America at the Mayo Civic Center in Rochester, MN - October 15-18, 2018.

    The goal of UMISC is to strengthen management of invasive species, especially prevention, control, and containment. Invasive species research, prevention, and management has seen great strides but much work still must be done. 

    The most recent UMISC was held October 16-19 at the La Crosse Center in La Crosse, WI with 651 attendees from across the region bringing an unparalleled breadth of knowledge. The conference provides numerous opportunities to network with professionals, land managers, researchers, nonprofits, and others. We hope you will join us in 2018 for the next UMISC. Location TBA.

    Conference Hosts are the Invasive Plants Association of Wisconsin, Midwest Invasive Plant Network, Minnesota Invasive Species Advisory Council, and the North American Invasive Species Management Association.


    UMISC is open to any member of the general public. Attendees typically include:
    • researchers
    • land and water resource managers
    • natural resource professionals
    • academics
    • nursery and landscaping professionals
    • agricultural professionals
    • forestry professionals
    • restoration consultants

     
    • environmental specialists
    • lake association members
    • landowners
    • governmental agency staff
    • nongovernmental organization staff
    • others interested in controlling the spread of invasive species in the Upper Midwest.
  4. A few more from an alley in Kalamazoo, the power station near the senior center in kzoo, growing through a car, between utilities (in the UK there's some pics of it growing in the wiring and disrupting services), at a "No Dumping" Site where it was dumped and took off, and swallowing a house.

    IMG_3363.JPG

    IMG_3392.JPG

    IMG_4102.JPG

    IMG_4103.JPG

    JK growing through Kalamazoo car 3.JPG

    Knotweed spread Air Conditioner Fraternity kzoo.JPG

    No Dumping ignored- riverbank kzoo.JPG

    taking over house.jpg

  5. I've called Best Way Disposal and sent them some information. They said they have 'rejection notices' they can leave on the carts saying why it was rejected. I suggested they add a line/box for knotweed for the future, with a little explanation/direction. The danger we might run into is that if people can't send it somewhere, they'll start dumping, which could make the problem worse. So, there will need to be a path/directions for disposal set up before or con-current with implementation of rejection of the material.

    Stop Knotweed at the Curb.jpg

  6. I know it's controversial, but I have to be true to the information I'm getting from the UK.

    • Knotweed can be dormant in the soil for around 20 years. (according to many sources in the UK, including their Environment Agency)
    • Countless 'knotweed' businesses have been developed in the UK, whose sole purpose is to treat and monitor properties with knotweed infestations.
    • These companies sell their services in 10-year contracts: application of herbicide (roughly 3 years) and then monitoring for regrowth the rest of the 10 years.

    Some declare it eradicated after two years of no regrowth, but given the 20-year potential dormancy, this is- in mine and others opinion- not wise.

    I think this idea is something we in Michigan should latch on to, and see about replicating in our service areas. 

     

    During the field trip to West Michigan CISMA this year, I heard it over and over: "We just don't have enough people to monitor all this property for knotweed!"

    Also, with funding running out and grants not being awarded (among other reasons for dissolution), CISMAs and others who have been treating knotweed for the public run the risk of having poked the bear for a year or two, only to not be there when it rages back in an explosion of growth. (which could leave the problem worse than when the strike teams first arrived- this plant fights back).

     

    I encourage any organization with the ability, to explore providing the entrepreneurial public with opportunities to start an Invasive Species Treatment Business.

    I understand the risk and fear of people being out there, 'going crazy' with treatments and things, but I feel that that is where -> WE <- can provide the guidance and support so that it is done RIGHT. Legitimately. (Think: partnerships in the community with business training associations- like ISCBC did with the Aboriginal Business Centre for their event. Maybe DNR/MDARD can be involved to create a 'fast track' program-...hate the name...- to promote this or make it easier to get information on herbicide training/certs...)

    They promoted the following:

    • Finding the Entrepreneurial Mindset
    • Goal Setting and Business Planning
    • Financing Your Business and Understanding Cash Flow
    • Business and Financial Administration
    • Market Research and Marketing Your Business
    • Requirements to Start Up and Invasive Species Management Business

    And required the following:

    * Underemployed resource industry workers

    * Interested in starting up their own invasive species service-based business

    * Hold a valid Industrial Vegetation and Noxious Weed Pesticide Applicators Certificate

    * Aware of invasive species and management issues in the region

    *Attendance to Orientation

     

    We CAN'T fight knotweed alone. It will suck up all our resources in a short amount of time.  We need to build an 'army'... for lack of better terms.... A private sector army that HAS the time and resources to watch this stuff for 10+ years at a time. I'm diving into research papers and I keep coming up with the same result: We are going to be overrun by knotweed. (This researcher says forests are going to be a thing of the past because of knotweed: http://gearsofbiz.com/poison-ivy-an-unlikely-hero-in-warding-off-exotic-invaders/196733  The paper is here: https://bdj.pensoft.net/articles.php?id=20577

    But we still have time to do something about it. I'm looking forward to working with anyone who wants to chat/come up with some state plans/ideas :)

    Here is the link to the course being put on by Invasive Species Council of British Columbia: http://bcinvasives.ca/resources/programs/invasive-species-training/northeast-bc-invasive-species-business-development-workshop/invasive-species-business-development-workshop-dec-5-6

     

    Here is the link to an article about a guy quitting his job to start up a knotweed company WITH DRONES!http://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/local-news/sourge-japanese-knotweed-moves-dolgellau-13852836

     

    And just for some extra fun, here are three FANTASTIC two-minute videos from Invasive Species Council of Metro Vancouver:

     Knotweed video #1 -Intro

    <iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/J99e_rTJ66U" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

     Knotweed video #2 –How it spreads

    <iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZTgoan0jLnQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

     Knotweed video #3 -Handling

    <iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZzG63ujtCo8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

     

     

  7. I belong to a National Parks Employee Group on Facebook. I asked about knotweed in the parks and they've given me some resources to look into what the National Parks are doing for invasive species monitoring and treatment. Here's the links:

     

    https://irma.nps.gov/Portal/

     

    There's also one called "PUPS" that you have to be a ranger to have access to, but maybe you can call in favors if you need to ;)

    Quote

    "you can get there through insideNPS - on the right side there are quick links, one of them says something like "Systems", a list of all the NPS databases and comp systems shows up, I think PUPS (pesticide use proposal system) is listed under IPM (integrated plant management).

    You used to be able to get to PUPS from IRMA, so there might be a link there. "

     

  8. I'm turning up some great stuff and want you to be able to access it too!

    Cornwall Council- PDFs for almost every job that could encounter knotweed

    Environment Agency's Knotweed Code of Practice (the first couple pages are changes, the pretty pictures and flow chart are after that ;) ) (check out the Dendro Scott root barrier use!)

    2010 Article by Dr. John "Professor Knotweed" Bailey

    Dr. John "Professor Knotweed" Bailey's UofL informative webpage (he retired in 2014, I'm trying to find current contact info)

    Dr. John "Professor Knotweed" Bailey's 2016 Invasive Weed Conference presentation to Property Care (How deep do you want to go?)

     

    I'll post more as comments as I come to them.

    Happy reading!

     

  9. So far this year I've been contacted at my city job by more people than last year, TOTAL, and a lot of them are sounding desperate and wore out. The knotweed IS spreading.

     

    Some of us are trying to put together a knotweed conference, so I'll start a new thread for it. But I still insist that knotweed can be your vehicle to reach people about invasive species across the board. It hits people in their pocket books, it got here because it was 'pretty', and people are moving it without knowing. Perfect examples :)

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