Brainstorming a knotty problem

Japanese knotweed, a bamboo-like plant that crowds out native flora and robs native animals of food and habitat, is one of the primary dangers to our local streamside environments. The plant, which doesn’t even provide good erosion control, is especially evident on the roadsides, with one of the biggest problem areas being Sullivan County Route 94 and the stretches of Hankins Creek that run close by it.

Walking along that route recently, we noted numerous places where county road maintenance crews have cut down knotweed stands, leaving fragments of the plant strewn on the ground between the road and the creek.

We are heartened to see anybody doing anything at all about knotweed, but we also know that it is, to borrow a phrase from the National Park Service’s (NPS) Don Hamilton, “the plant from hell.” Anyone trying to fight it back is facing an uphill battle. In particular, leaving bits of knotweed lying on the ground can potentially worsen the problem in the long run, not only because the individual pieces can re-root, even after they are dried out and apparently dead, but because fragments can spread by washing down culverts to other stretches of roads, or into waterways—like Hankins Creek—to infect the downstream banks of the creek and Delaware River.

Trying to get a handle on the problem, we made a few calls to experts at the NPS and Cornell Cooperative Extension, and to commissioner of public works Bob Meyer, the man who has ultimate responsibility for roadside maintenance in Sullivan County. The calls confirmed that the problem is difficult, but also raised our hopes that progress can be made toward a solution.

First, the problem.

Getting rid of knotweed can be an extremely labor intensive task. According to horticultural educator Marianna Quartararo of the Sullivan County Cornell Cooperative Extension, the roots can be killed by frequent cutting. But the key is “frequent.” Meyer told us that the county has 400 miles of roads to maintain, which it aims to cut twice a season—not enough to do the job. Given the county’s recent budget woes, we doubt the additional resources needed could be obtained without a corresponding increase in taxes.

But even if the county could afford the additional cutting, disposing of the fragments would remain a serious problem. They would need to be picked up, dried and then, preferably, burned, according to Hamilton, as even moist fragments in the center of a pile can sometimes take root again.

Now for the hope.

Commissioner Meyer, in our conversation, came up with what we thought was a truly inspired idea: a “Knotweed pluck” program similar to the existing Litterpluck program. On Litterpluck days, citizen volunteers congregate to clean the roadsides of litter. In a Knotweed pluck program, citizen volunteers could be alerted when sections of roadside infected with knotweed were cut, and could come pick up the pieces before they had a chance to re-root or be washed into the waterways. To finish the job, either joint facilities would have to be provided for drying and burning the pieces, or individual volunteers could be trained to do so.

Even with volunteers, the program might still cost some money, but grant money may be available. There are certainly grants available for fighting aquatic invasives, and it may be that knotweed, which is taking over our riparian ecosystems, could also qualify us for funds, especially if we could present an innovative initiative like the “Knotweed pluck” in our application.

In the end, the knotweed invasion will probably best be conquered with biological control. Most likely, insects from Japan that feed only on Japanese knotweed would be used, once the USDA has finished evaluating and approving them, according to Hamilton. But while we are awaiting these reinforcements, a community effort like Meyer’s brainstorm could help us to save some of our precious local streamside habitat from being overrun. And a pilot “knotweed pluck” program by the county, if it worked, could serve as a model for state and township road crews, who are also on the front lines of the knotweed wars.

In an era when we are surrounded by highly polarizing issues from the Iraq War to the approval of local subdivisions, it’s a relief once in a while to encounter an issue for which the concerned parties seem to share a common goal. Such problems will sometimes give way if people just get to talk them over. We think Meyer’s knotweed pluck idea could be a case in point, and we’d like to see it go further.

Dr. Punnybone

Extreme Fighting