A gardener who took to social media for advice after spotting an unidentified weed ended up receiving bad news.
The anonymous green-fingered poster posted snapshots of the incriminating plant to the r/GardeningUK subreddit asking: “What is this weed and how do I get rid of it?”
And they added: It comes from the house next door and during the winter it has spread across the front garden.’
The responses confirmed that it was the dreaded Japanese knotweed, which is expensive to remove, can grow through walls and can even prevent you from getting a mortgage on your home.
One comment said: ‘Uh oh, that’s the bad one.’
An anonymous gardener asked ar/GardeningUK what his invasive plant was (pictured) and sad commenters confirmed it was Japanese knotweed.
However, there was a twist: it was actually an unreported case of an invasive plant in a house that was for sale.
However, there was another twist.
The original Redditer continued: ‘Thank you all. This has confirmed my worst fears.
‘I told a little lie, this is actually a property for sale, not my garden. We really liked it, but now we’re obviously out.
‘The estate agent didn’t know this, but the landlord has clearly cut it back aggressively.
‘The grass probably [sic] spreads from this property to adjacent properties, as this property is a historic country house and the infestation covers approximately 90 square meters. It is very established and under two TPOs. [tree preservation ordered] walnut trees.
‘Is there any need to report it now that it has been discovered?’
One response advised reporting it to the city council, but others encouraged the advertiser not to give up the property.
One commenter suggested: ‘If you like the property, don’t let this put you off. Make an offer contingent on the seller purchasing a 10-year warranty remediation plan from a certified provider and be low.
‘Buyers who are willing to accept this are few and you are therefore in an excellent position. Once the seller has a treatment plan in place, he can proceed with the mortgage, etc.
‘Knotweed remediation is super effective. Wait a couple of years before doing any major landscaping work in the area. The Knotweed company will try to sell you crazy ways to do gardening.
‘If it doesn’t grow back for 12 months, continue with whatever the garden needs. I speak as someone who did exactly this 5 years ago and got the house we love for 15 grand less, in a super competitive market because the knot didn’t faze us. Nothing exists anymore and we would not need to declare it to the buyer.
Sellers are required to declare Japanese knotweed, but you can actually still have it in a home.
The plant tends to devalue properties by about 10 percent, but can totally destroy a property’s value in the worst cases, when the plant is closer to buildings and more entrenched.
It can also put off mortgage lenders, so if you buy a property with knots, make sure the seller already has a plan to remove them. These will tend to include a 10-year warranty backed by insurance to complete the weed treatment.
According to Checkatrade, the complete excavation and removal of Japanese knotweed costs an average of £6,500.
Despite all the legal obligations, it pays to know what to look out for when it comes to house hunting and tying the knots.
This is particularly important in areas where knotweed is most common, which tends to be all large cities. Environment have a knot heat map to help with this.
Knotweed is recognizable by its thick stems, spade-shaped leaves, red shoots, small white flowers, and orange roots.