It's Figwort v Balsam on Kilcullen's riverside
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| Pics: Kilcullen Community Action. |
A competing native Irish plant against the invasive species Himalayan Balsam has been planted below the bridge in Kilcullen, writes Brian Byrne.
As part of the KCA-supported Kilcullen biodiversity programme, Green Figwort plants were placed yesterday in an area of the bank where the Himalayan Balsam has become annually the dominant growth. It is an issue along many stretches of the Liffey, where the plant takes over completely from other native riverside plants.
"We grew the Green Figwort (Scrophularia umbrosa) ourselves from seeds sourced at the Hedge Garden in Castletown House," Paul Leighton of the Kilcullen Pollinator Group told the Diary. "It's a trial to see if it can inhibit the growth of the Himalayan Balsam."
According to experts consulted by KCA the Green Figwort grows aggressively in wetland conditions and can replace the invasive species. Over recent years, KCA has regularly cleared the Balsam from the area below the bridge, but it always returned.
