RiverCare Lincoln Paddlers tackle 'space invaders' in Lincoln!
World Rivers Day was founded to celebrate our rivers and the work being done by individuals and organisations across the world to protect their blue spaces from a wide range of threats.
Tackling Himalayan Balsam is an important part of this work, and RiverCare Lincoln Paddlers have started to combat this space invader along the banks of the Witham, between Brayford Pool and Boultham Park.
Himalayan Balsam (impatiens glandulifera) is an invasive non-native plant causing issues on riverbanks across the UK. Native to the Himalayas, it was introduced into the UK in the early 19th century selected for its attractive orchid-like pink, purple, or white flowers. It thrives across the UK, and there is a good chance you’ve passed by these plants when walking along your local river.
Balsam plants grow densely and rapidly, reaching 2m tall and quickly out-competing native species on our ecologically sensitive riverbanks. Being armed with explosive seed capsules, which contain over 800 seeds each, a single plant could spread thousands of seeds across a river system.
Alongside issues with suppressing native wildflower species, growth density can leave a riverbank bare, and vulnerable to erosion once the plants have died back.
Due to the aggressive growth and wide seed distribution, it can be a challenging plant to fully remove from a river system, often taking years of continual volunteer effort to make much of an impact. Yet this does not deter determined RiverCare volunteers from working to control balsam by hand pulling, snapping, and stamping upon this invasive plant – an activity called ‘Balsam Bashing’.
World Rivers Day was founded to celebrate our rivers and the work being done by individuals and organisations across the world to protect their blue spaces from a wide range of threats. Here in the UK tackling Himalayan Balsam is an important part of this work and RiverCare Lincoln Paddlers have started to combat this space invader along the banks of the Witham, between Brayford Pool and Boultham Park.
This year RiverCare Lincoln Paddlers have set their focus on removing balsam from the waterways running through the city centre. Working on both banks of the Witham this team of dedicated volunteers have completed an impressive 25 balsam bashes along 1 mile of riverbank, starting just upstream of the Boultham Avenue bridge and systematically working downstream past Altham Terrace. Work will continue in spring next year to remove new growth and keep on top of this invasive non-native plant.
Feeling inspired? Alongside Balsam Bashing, RiverCare Lincoln Paddlers takes part in litter picking, community events, and biodiversity surveys.
To find out more about RiverCare Lincoln Paddlers, and how to get involved, you can join their friendly facebook community here - https://www.facebook.com/groups/445130410743654 - or get in touch with [email protected].
The RiverCare and BeachCare programme is delivered by Keep Britain Tidy in partnership with Anglian Water, with the aim of supporting local community groups to protect and enhance their local waterways and beaches.
By joining RiverCare Lincoln Paddlers, you will be joining over 1,500 regular RiverCare and BeachCare volunteers from across the whole Anglian Water region.