The Essex and Suffolk Rivers Trust has recently completed another successful season of Himalayan balsam control.
Despite its attractive appearance, Himalayan balsam has become a significant environmental threat to our native flora and fauna. This plant native to the Himalayas, was introduced to the UK in the early 19th century. It grows rapidly and spreads aggressively, outcompeting native species and altering riverbank ecosystems. Its shallow root system also contributes to increased soil erosion, exacerbating riverbank instability and sedimentation in the water.
INNS Control Projects
The Essex and Suffolk Rivers Trust conducts seasonal Himalayan balsam clearance in two catchment areas. The first area includes the River Stour and its tributaries, the Rivers Box and Brett, along with the Brett's tributaries, Lavenham Brook and Bildeston Brook. The second area focuses on the River Fynn, located north of Ipswich.
Himalayan balsam is a shallow-rooted annual, so it is relatively easy to control if it can be removed before seeds develop. We pull the plants out by the root and leave them to decompose, there is no need to use chemicals to destroy the plants. With regular checking and removal of new seedlings, it is possible to completely eradicate Himalayan balsam from an area within three years.
The ESRT team and volunteers have been working hard to eradicate this invasive, non-native species to improve the quality, stability and biodiversity of our riverbanks. We have revisited several sites along the Rivers Stour, Box and Brett since 2022 and have observed a marked decline in the presence of balsam. This year we have cleared Himalayan balsam from 6km of the River Fynn, 3.2km of the River Brett, 1.4km of the River Box and 1.2km of the River Stour.
Our Himalayan balsam control projects are funded by the Essex and Suffolk Water Branch Out Invasive Non-Native Species (INNS) fund, and the Anglian Water Invasive Species Fund administered by the Cambridgeshire Community Foundation.
We hope to continue to expand our coverage of balsam clearance subject to securing additional funding. In 2025 we would like to expand into new river catchments, offer additional volunteering opportunities and experiment with new techniques including the use of rust fungus as a biological control.
What to do if you find Himalayan balsam
The Non-native Species Secretariat has information about recording sightings of Himalayan balsam and other INNS online.
If you are a riparian landowner in Essex or Suffolk and have Himalayan balsam on your watercourse then contact our team to see if we can include you in our future INNS control work.
Read more about our INNS Himalayan Balsam control projects.
If you would like to support the work that we do at the Essex and Suffolk Rivers Trust please consider making a donation.
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