Is Japanese Knotweed Screening Everything It’s Made Out to Be?

There are many methods for the removal of Japanese knotweed, but one that is getting a lot of attention lately is Japanese knotweed screening. Japanese knotweed has a reputation for being one of the most troublesome weeds in the world and killing it is not easy. This invasive plant has been known to impact entire gardens and cause havoc on construction sites, causing thousands of pounds of damage and leading to long delays.

Japanese knotweed is not fussy about where it grows and can grow as much as 4cm in one day. It can grow from the smallest fragment of rhizome and in just a couple of weeks can result in a dense infestation. It can also be easily transported through soil importation, on footwear, and during construction.

Digging out the rhizome completely and disposing of it to a licensed landfill facility is the most effective knotweed removal method. Unfortunately, this is also a costly solution. The plant has the label of a hazardous material and is expensive to dispose of. This method for treating Japanese knotweed can also be very time consuming when extensive areas need treatment.

What Is Japanese Knotweed Screening?

This Japanese knotweed treatment involves excavating soil contaminated with Japanese knotweed, then sifting it and screening it for rhizome pieces. Using specialist plant machinery and teams of professional Japanese Knotweed surveyors, up to 40 tons of contaminated soil can be screened per hour. We offer our Japanese Knotweed Screening service to both residential and commercial clients, from terraced houses to large development and infrastructure schemes.

However, it’s important to point out that it is not a foolproof cure for Japanese Knotweed. It is a viable technique but needs to be used together with other removal methods to combat any infestation.

How Does The Process Work?

Soil contaminated with Japanese knotweed is excavated using plant machinery or even by hand on small sites, it’s then passed through a series of screening processes.  During the screening process, they carefully remove any evidence of Japanese knotweed for separate disposal and incineration. The screening process itself takes only a couple of days, depending on the size of the site. It’s crucial that the team remove even the smallest piece of this invasive species because it’s able to regrow from the tiniest piece of rhizome. It can also spread by means of the stem and crown.

New Japanese knotweed plants can grow from green stem nodes left in water or in the soil. The crown of this invasive plant can survive drying and composting, and as soon as it comes into contact with soil or water it produces new canes.

Screening Used In Combination With Other Eradication Methods

Screening is an effective method of control but to completely eradicate this weed it has to be used in combination with other Japanese knotweed treatments. These include herbicidal sprays, burning/incineration, and burial using layers of material to prevent rhizomes from successfully surfacing shoots. Professionals can only administer such methods effectively with minimal risk to surrounding plants, wildlife and water supplies.

Here at Japanese Knotweed Specialists, we have teams of experts who know what they doing and are masters in the art of Japanese knotweed control. Using the right combination of removal techniques and treatments, we will banish this invasive weed from your garden, construction, or development site.

To discuss your Japanese knotweed removal options, get in touch with the experts today.