Covering Japanese Knotweed

Not all weeds are created equally, some need extra special attention. Unfortunately, Japanese knotweed is one of those 'special attention' weeds and if you find it on your property then it's vital that you deal with the problem quickly. There are lots of different approaches to eradicating Japanese knotweed, some are more drastic than others! Burning and backyard excavation can be quite intimidating to people, especially if the knotweed is located close to their homes or businesses, so people often seek alternatives.

One method of treating Japanese knotweed that doesn't require any digging or burning is covering it to choke it out. By depriving any living shoots of water and sunlight, they should die... right?

Here's the method you would follow if you wanted to give it a try:

• First, cut all the Japanese knotweed plants down as close to the ground as possible
• Make sure that any rocks or sticks that could perforate the covering are removed from the area
• Spread your tarp/covering over the area so the Japanese knotweed is covered completely
• Use something heavy to weigh the covering down securely

Now, if you know anything about Japanese knotweed and its ability to find it's a way through tiny cracks and crevices to survive, then you're probably thinking - "Is this method really effective?"

Generally speaking, covering Japanese knotweed is not a treatment that we'd endorse you trying, mainly because the success rates are painfully low. While you may want to cover Japanese knotweed in this way to help control the spread, we'd also recommend booking a professional Japanese knotweed treatment too. Otherwise, there's a very high chance that the Japanese knotweed will just continue to thrive and spread. 

Professional Japanese Knotweed Treatment

Here at Taylor Weed Control, we offer a range of professional Japanese knotweed treatments that can effectively control and remove your Japanese knotweed problem for good. You can take a closer look at our Japanese knotweed treatments here:

Japanese Knotweed Treatments >

We also offer a FREE survey that can help you determine whether or not the weed you've spotted is, in fact, Japanese knotweed. You can enquire about this, and ask us any questions you may have by calling us on 029 2039 7554.