Success Again!
Status on 27 July 2021
Sightings in 2021
Sightings This Year
We record all the sightings on our online Google map. The snapshot here shows all plants we found.
We use colours and icons to help, for example red means a mature plant, blue is flowering, a pram icon means it's just a small plant. A green tick means it is clear of hogweed.
The infestation now clearly splits into two areas, above Pencaitland and below Haddington. This GH-free gap is widening each year.
Progress
The Hogweed-free gap is now 8 miles, and stretches from Pencaitland almost to Hailes Castle. Although there were two "erratics" on that stretch - one right in the middle of Haddington & flowering!
And how does this all compare to previous years? Well, comparing years is tricky, because of the different number of surveys, by different people, at different times - we've certainly surveyed more this year.
Overall we've seen roughly the same number of plants, in roughly the same number of locations. However the number we have seen flowering has reduced dramatically - from over 100 in 2019 to only 10 this year, particularly above Pencaitland (although this is partly due to the end-of-year mop-up being earlier).
(NB: The bar charts exclude Tyninghame and Bellyford Burn, as they are special cases)
Other News
Tyninghame & Bellyford
There are two really serious infestations on the Tyne, with thousands of plants at Tyninghame and hundreds on the Bellyford Burn near Cousland. Both have been thoroughly treated by their respective landowners, and we have found far fewer flowering plants there this year. The photo shows part of Bellyford this July, which was sprayed in the spring. Last year there were a hundred flowering along a 200m stretch; this year we managed to find only three, which were hidden inside dense vegetation.
River Esk
James Wyllie's daughter Kathryn, who lives at Inveresk, has started a programme on the River Esk (initially from Dalkeith Country Park downwards). This is a major challenge, as its much worse than the Tyne ever was. Almost everywhere you look there are plants - along both banks of the river, the railway embankments, the burn across the golf course, around many of the fields, and even sprinkled around the Eskmills industrial estate. In places it is a pure forest. Remarkably a lot of it has been treated this year, but it will clearly be a long process. See full details on the Inveresk Village website
East Lothian
With the increased awareness, we are now getting more reports of GH in other places, so these are being added to another online map, which covers the rest East Lothian, and even further! If you spot any anywhere, just let us know at hogweed@elcv.org.uk