Digging up knotweed?
I parked my car at GMRI, grabbed Christine and a camera, and we headed down the street for a closer look.
That digger I had imagined turned out to be a grinder. A loud grinder. A loud grinder that made fast work of that stand - by the time we arrived, they were nearly finished.
As casually as we could (we were excited!), we asked the two guys on break what they were up to. Turns out they were cutting down and grinding all of the knotweed on the block. They were on a public safety mission, and not the invasive species management mission I had imagined.
Regardless, the guys knew how aggressive knotweed can be, and laughed that it’d grow right back – probably stronger and more dense – and we’d see them out there again next year. Ha, indeed. They were quick to point out the other invasive species – multiflora rose and Oriental bittersweet – that were climbing up from the knotweed into the locust trees and onto the rock wall. They knew disturbing those plants would strengthen them this spring too.
Christine and I plan keep an eye on this spot through the spring to monitor the regrowth, unless Superstar beats us to it.
OUR PREDICTION: We’ll see these guys and their grinder right back here again next year.
