I wonder.

[Greengage]

I came across this from June 2016
have not found the full report nor do I speak Norwegian http://sciencenordic.com/wild-bees-lose-fight-flowers

[gavin]

After Calum's comment I had back-up from one of the helpers at a bee workshop by the river Tay. He nibbles on young HB pods rather than seeds. Since then I've been contributing to the conservation effort by eating a few every time I see them - a few pods amongst the millions at these sites. Tasty enough but not worth travelling for.

There has been a steady if unremarkable flow from HB around here in recent weeks. A half super here and there, nucs that have readied themselves for winter. Yesterday at one site the two nucs which had remained there were piling the stuff in whereas the hives back from the heather last week were sitting quietly. Perhaps they'd been out earlier and the nucs were chancing it, getting back home shortly before the heavens opened.

At that same workshop someone said there was a conservation effort to eliminate HB on a river island I think, just to see what happened. That's about all that can be done - it is so widespread and abundant it is clearly an alien here to stay.

[SDM]

I've seen it successfully cleared from several sites and since it can and would infest most of the uk if given the chance it's not one to give up on eradicating.

[Calluna4u]

I've seen it successfully cleared from several sites and since it can and would infest most of the uk if given the chance it's not one to give up on eradicating.

Was talking to a lady involved in a hoped for project to clear this from the River Earn from Crieff to the sea. They considered the effort and expected expense to be very worthwhile, though I doubt the beekeepers agree.

Its not a huge bit of river and its not all full of it, but the expenditure they hoped to have approved was in the high six figures, verging on seven. This would be ANNUALLY for the foreseeable future. Apply this to the whole of Scotland and its a LOT of money. For a lot less you could deal with a truly noxious plant, Giant Hogweed, yet it grows in forests in places, especially around Perth. Once the numbers are added up the cost benefit ratio does not work out, no matter how ideologically pure an attempted eradication might be.

One patch and a decent flood later, and you have it all to do again next spring. Its here to stay.

[fatshark]

Big effort to eradicate balsam from Monnow river catchment on Wales/England border has been very successful, though still not complete.

It might be good for late nectar, but there may well be detrimental influences on pollination more generally - for example, this quote from the invasivespeciesireland.com website which has other reasons to eradicate HB "However, recent research suggests it competes for pollinators such as bumblebees with the native riverbank species, and so reduces pollination of other plants."

[madasafish]

HB is a natural species round here.. sorry naturalised. There are miles upon miles in fields,ditches, hedges , in valleys and moorland.. It bothers no-one, coexists with nettles, brambles and other "weeds" and does not appear to affect erosion.

Eradication is worthless. It's the wild Japanese Knotweed I worry about. I walk past a strand on my daily walks... been there 10 years and not spread - yet...A good mile and half from our house and 50 meters higher...

[Greengage]

I hope I did not post this before.
I recently came across a research document by Alicia prowes who looked at the ecological effects of this plant on native plants her conclusions show that:

It may have some effects on native plant communities, But it cannot be said for certain that it excludes any single species. As it flowers in late summer and many people comment on it then they often overlook other plants that would have been flowering earlier in the season such as lesser celandine, Large Bitter-Cress and Marsh marigold. Etc... Also It may be the case that Hyacinths nonscripta (Bluebell), for example, provides a refuge for slugs, one of the major herbivores affecting survival of seedlings of Hymalayan Balsam (I. glandulifera) (Prowse 1998) thereby reducing the possibility of establishment of I. glandulifera in bluebell dominated area.
http://www.morrison-prowse.com/docum...prowse_phd.pdf