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Why isn't Lonicera Japonica banned in the UK and the rest of Europe?

elliotp981elliotp981 Posts: 105
in Plants
I am worried about Lonicera Japonica as its invasive nature poses a threat to our forests and native plants. It is banned in Northern Ireland and is treated as a threat in the United States so why not here? For context, I had a Lonicera Japonica (until I removed it) and the fact it grew and grew even though this winter was worrying me, considering I've read articles about why the plant is bad news for native plants.
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  • philippasmith2philippasmith2 Posts: 3,742
    Do you have details of the articles ?
  • elliotp981elliotp981 Posts: 105
    Here are some of the articles I've seen/read since I got the plant (these examples are in the United States but could easily become a problem here):
    https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/26/nyregion/why-the-sweet-scent-of-japanese-honeysuckle-signals-trouble.html
    https://www.homesandgardens.com/gardens/invasive-plants
    https://www.southernliving.com/garden/vines/japanese-honeysuckle-invasive

    I could post more if you would like more examples of what caused me to dispose of mine. 
  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    Plants which are invasive in the USA can be perfectly safe here or even fail to grow at all as the clmate is wrong.  i certainly can't see a prooblem here with wisteria or euonymous and doubt that kudzu would last one winter if it grew outdoors in the first place.

    I'd stick to sites such as the RHS for a list of invasive plants in the UK.  Some are subject to legislation and others are just "beware of".

    https://www.rhs.org.uk/prevention-protection/invasive-non-native-plants 
    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
  • philippasmith2philippasmith2 Posts: 3,742
    Sorry @elliotp981 but neither of those articles make any sense.  JKW is already well known as an invasive plant as are the problems with some bamboos .  The former is a plant to be extremely wary of whilst the latter can be dealt with easily by various means.
    Perhaps be a bit more wary about what you read and research it a bit further before getting too worried  :)
  • thevictorianthevictorian Posts: 1,279
    Some plants are banned all over Europe because they are invasive in certain countries within the eu and all are tied together. We have plants that were banned here when we were in the eu but since we left, they have became available again. The same goes for animals and as an example off the top of my head, apple snails (a sometimes colourful aquarium snail) were banned because they could overwinter in warmer European countries and even though they would succumb to our winters, they were off limits. They have in the last year or so become available because the rules changed. I think this is the same for water hyacinth.   


  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    The articles all seem to be aimed at  sites/gardens in America. If you're in the UK, it's better to check info that's suitable for this country, not for somewhere thousands of miles away.  :)
    The fact that Himalayan balsam isn't even mentioned tells you plenty  ;)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • elliotp981elliotp981 Posts: 105
    Obelixx said:
    Plants which are invasive in the USA can be perfectly safe here or even fail to grow at all as the clmate is wrong.  i certainly can't see a prooblem here with wisteria or euonymous and doubt that kudzu would last one winter if it grew outdoors in the first place.

    I'd stick to sites such as the RHS for a list of invasive plants in the UK.  Some are subject to legislation and others are just "beware of".

    https://www.rhs.org.uk/prevention-protection/invasive-non-native-plants 
    I'm worried as it is classed as being invasive in Northern Ireland (it is on that list) so that's what was worrying me. In terms of it being invasive, it is the berries that bother me as I would be unlikely to pick all of them before the birds get to them first and spread the seed.
  • elliotp981elliotp981 Posts: 105
    philippasmith2 said:
    Sorry @elliotp981 but neither of those articles make any sense.  JKW is already well known as an invasive plant as are the problems with some bamboos .  The former is a plant to be extremely wary of whilst the latter can be dealt with easily by various means.
    Perhaps be a bit more wary about what you read and research it a bit further before getting too worried  :)
    It's not a massive issue I removed mine, I got a native one (Lonicera periclymenum 'Scentsation') instead which I think I would enjoy more. Shame about the limited spread though  :/
  • elliotp981elliotp981 Posts: 105
    philippasmith2 said:
    Sorry @elliotp981 but neither of those articles make any sense.  JKW is already well known as an invasive plant as are the problems with some bamboos .  The former is a plant to be extremely wary of whilst the latter can be dealt with easily by various means.
    Perhaps be a bit more wary about what you read and research it a bit further before getting too worried  :)

    I was just referring to Japanese Honeysuckle in those articles, ignore the other bits of the articles which are unrelated as some of those plants are common here anyway.
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