Neophytes - Beauty and Danger

[Gerdk]

Today I made a long walk along the river Wupper, which is a tributary stream of the Rhine. I was surprised at the masses of introduced plant species along the riverbank.
Because neophytes are an interesting subject I start a new topic here, hoping to initiate  a discussion with a lot of further informations from other regions.

1.+2. Fallopia japonica - wide-spread here and changes the character of the riverbank totally
3. - 5. Impatiens glandulifera from the Himalaya region - pretty flowers (locally it is called the 'Wupper Orchid'), but otherwiese the same as 1. + 2.
6. Impatiens parviflora from East Asia - wide-spread in forests, often more frequent
than our I. noli-tangere
7. Rudbeckia laciniata - nice and not as agressive as Fallopia
8. Erigeron annuus - nice little annual weed

Gerd

[Gerdk]

and here is the rest from today

1.Heracleum mantegazzianum a phototoxic plant (causes severe skin inflammations) from the Caucasus region - wide-spread here
2. + 3. Buddleja davidii from China, together with Solidago canadensis from the US
4. Senecio inaequidens from South Africa (covers mainly the margins of the 'Autobahn'), together with Erigeron annuus (from the US)
6. Aesculus hippocastanum - leaf with symptoms of Cameraria ohridella - the horse chestnut leaf miner. The leaf miner from Lake Ohrid (Macedonia) followed its host
and arrived here about 10 - 15 years ago
7. infested horse chestnut

Gerd

[Paddy Tobin]

Gerd,

The impatiens and the heracleum have both become dreadful pests along riverbanks here in Ireland. Although the impatiens is very pretty - and amuses the children with its exploding seedpods - it is a most horrible weed, succeeding in seeding into lawns with ease.

The heracleum causes terrible skin conditions and is really a terrible plant. Like the fallopia it was introduced originally as a garden plant but is no longer welcome.

The others have less impact here in Ireland.

Paddy.

[Armin]

Hallo Gerd,

an interesting article Neophytes - Beauty or Danger.

All these plants are "globetrotters" introduced/spread by human beings/escaped from gardens ect. but they are capable to survive in any conditions... We call them "pests" when growing undamped...

Following Darwin's law "only the strong will survive", I believe this is Nature and a part how Evolution works.

Sooner or later the Nature will create any animal or desease to "balance" them again.
The available time window of our own lifes are likely too small to recognise any countermeasures of Nature/mother earth.