Himalayan balsam may look pretty but allowing it to flower and seed anywhere can have devastating consequences, as one single plant alone can produce up to 600 seeds which amazingly can be catapulted up to 5m away from the plant. Let a small patch go unchecked for several years and you will soon have acres and acres of the stuff.
Why does this matter? The pink flowers are attractive, smell nice and produce nectar which bees and insects love, BUT this non-native invasive species (INNS) which has a preference to grow in damp areas, particularly along streams, is taking over the habitat of our native plants, crowding them out and providing competition for pollinating insects.
It is shallow rooting and dies back each year leaving stream banks bare and open to erosion at times of flood and the sandy banks of our River Rother are particularly susceptible. It was introduced from the Himalayas in 1839 and since then it has slowly and inexorably gained a foothold along our streams and rivers using the water to distribute its seeds far and wide.
Currently there is a campaign by the Western Sussex Rivers Trust and South Downs National Park to try to exterminate balsam from our area along the Rother and its tributaries, and this is where Eco Rother Action (ERA) and PeCAN can play a part. Volunteers from both organisations have been balsam pulling in the Petersfield area and along the Rother to Trotton and beyond for several years and their efforts are starting to show results. However, there is still a lot to do.
That’s why it was particularly good to see 13 adults and 2 young children all busy balsam pulling last Saturday morning in Rotherlands Nature Reserve, Petersfield. Himalayan balsam pulling is surprisingly satisfying work as the plants, even the biggest ones, are very easy to remove, are totally harmless to humans and being juicy are easily crushed – small feet enjoyed doing this task!
After just a couple of hours of working in the beautiful surroundings of the riverine forest, it was possible to see a difference, and the pulled plants were piled up. It is against the law to remove the plants from a site without special permission so they must be left where they are found. If properly crushed they will not produce flowers and seeds, so no longer pose a threat and will quickly rot down and provide nutrients for the surrounding plantlife.
Despite the heat, we were all wearing long sleeves and trousers against the inevitable nettles and a few biting insects, though the latter weren’t at all bothersome. We found evidence that something had found a few of the leaves edible but it was only a few. Perhaps it was thirsty snails, as the leaves are quite juicy and these past few weeks have been so exceptionally dry.
Although our team cleared plenty and we are certainly making inroads into the problem, there is still much to be done, so we would encourage as many volunteers as possible to join our working parties. Keep an eye on our social media posts as we expect to add more dates.
The next meeting is at Goodyer Meadow, Petersfield - starting from the horse field entrance on Sussex Road on Saturday 7th June at 2pm - see here for more details.
And oh yes, one of our group had the delight of seeing a kingfisher at close quarters!