Selfsufficientish.com

Hi

I have just acquired an allotment plot and there are patches of plants: http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/mynamesan ... directlink

We have no idea what they are and therefore don't know whats the best way to get rid them. But they are on a few plots.

Any help would be gratefully received.

Thanks

It looks like rosebay willow-herb to me. Looks beautiful along the grassy verges of long road journeys. I think it self-seeds quite easily, so I would advise you to pull it up before it goes to seed. I seem to remember it being quite easy to pull up if you grab it near the bottom, but I could be thinking of something else.

That's what I thought but sadly that's something I'd like to have in my wild patches or by my pond and I don't! It makes a change from the usual brambles and nettles on allotments though!

And I keep telling everybody at the moment who's complaining about it that it is soooooo good for bees... So don't get rid of it all. The flowers are very attractive, actually.

I seem to remember that you can use the pith from the middle as a thickening agent. The pith is definitely edible. The seeds are good as kindling and could be harvested.

I love it too - beautiful colour and easy enough to pull if you really want to keep it under control. My goat loves it too.

Funnily enough my horse loves it! never knew what it was called but it does make an appearance on my veg plot at home, which is so small It can't really take anything other than veg so it has to go! Still the bees seem very happy with the sweet william at the other end of the garden so fair's fair.

It is a great invader because it seeds like a snowstorm for weeks. It does have big roots too. Let it flower and then compost it. Regard it as a free donation both to the bees and the compost heap. But you may not be popular when people find out that it proliferates even more effectively than the dandelion.

And it makes a nice jelly.
http://www.celtnet.org.uk/recipes/misce ... herb-jelly

Rosebay Willow Herb is a food plant for the Elephant Hawk Moth as well .