[upthetump]

Marmande rotting on stems, sweetcorn only 3ft high, beans going brown runners and french as no warm temperatures anywhere,  utter waste of time and money this  year and last.  Plot riddled with himalayan  balsam  as Secretary refuses to clear  his redundant plot and seeds firing over my ground. I'm taking a year out next year, any advice on tackling  the  secretary please?

[New shoot]

It sounds like you have had a rotten year upthetump 

Is your site council run?  If a weedy plot is causing the rest of you problems, they should be able to help, even if it is the secretary's plot.  A few photos sent in to them might spur them on to visit the site and see for themselves.

[Goosegirl]

Himalayan Balsam is a notifiable weed like J. knotweed, see:
http://www.govyou.co.uk/charge-d-e-f-r-a-with-following-up-on-all-notifiable-plant-notifications/
Take some pics and start making trouble!

[upthetump]

thanks for the replys, the allotment is private and this weed lines literally miles of the valleys

[New shoot]

Privately owned - that's a shame 

You see Himalayan Balsam down here at the sides of roads and in ditches, but nothing on that scale.  Is weed membrane any good, or do the seeds find their way into the planting pockets? 

I have got a John Yeoman book where he has a recipe for DIY membrane using wallpaper paste and newspaper, if you need a cheap version that lasts a season.  He reckons it keeps mares tail in check 

[Snoop]

Any chance of getting a plot on another site? From the sound of it, that might be your best solution. Sorry if that sounds unsympathetic, it's not meant to be.

[Goosegirl]

thanks for the replys, the allotment is private and this weed lines literally miles of the valleys

Even so, it is still a notifiable weed so my OH says the best people to get in touch with for advice is DEFRA.

[crh75]

I don't thing DEFRA will do much:

Prevent the spread of invasive, non-native plants


You must not plant in the wild or cause certain invasive and non-native plants to grow in the wild. This can include moving contaminated soil or plant cuttings. If you do, you can be fined or sent to prison for up to 2 years.

The most commonly found invasive, non-native plants include:
•Japanese knotweed
•giant hogweed
•Himalayan balsam
•Rhododendron ponticum
•New Zealand pigmyweed (this is banned from sale)


You’re not legally obliged to remove these plants or to control them. However, if you allow Japanese knotweed to grow onto other people’s property you could be prosecuted for causing a private nuisance.

From https://www.gov.uk/guidance/prevent-the-spread-of-harmful-invasive-and-non-native-plants

[moose]

These two links suggest that there is no such thing as a notifiable weed.

http://www.ragwortfacts.com/ragwort-notifiable-weed.html

http://www.accidentalsmallholder.net/smallholding/grassland-management/weeds/