Invasive Species
Invasive Non-Native Riparian Plant Species Project (INNRPS)
Anyone who has been following the work of the Trust will be aware of the Invasive Non-native Plant Species Project that the Trust has been involved in. This project was started by the Nith District Salmon Fishery Board in 2010 with the aim of tackling three non-native riparian plants species within the Nith catchment; Japanese knotweed, Giant hogweed and Himalayan Balsam. See links below for ID sheets about the species.
At the end of the five year project we had injected over 200,000 stems of Japanese knotweed and 35000 Giant hogweed plants, and 45,500 square metres of Himalayan balsam had been pulled. In addition, Skunk cabbage was identified in the catchment in 2013 and since then nearly 100 plants have been treated.
Unfortunately we have not received any funding from SEPA since to be able to continue this project but we have continued to treat Giant hogweed along the Scaur Water and River Nith every spring using our own funds. Please contact us on trust@river-nith.com with any sightings of Giant hogweed so that we can make sure it is treated before it seeds.
INNPS Final Report 2010 – 2015