"Graham Easterling" wrote in message
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On 29 Jan, 19:58, "Alan Gardiner" wrote:
"MCC" wrote in message

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On Tue, 29 Jan 2008 00:58:11 -0800 (PST), Graham Easterling wrote:

On 29 Jan, 02:57, "Eric Ingham" wrote:
wrote in message

...

It's a lovely website run by Charles Winpenny. I'm a regular.

Jack

Me too! His knowledge of the flora and fauna make it very special.

Eric

He's just updated it, click on recent photos 'Newquay' to see the ones
I was refering to. Amazingly there is a hottentot fig in flower in the
latest batch of photos. It is a meditteranean climate (from S African)
plant, which normally flowers in Summer, not January.

Graham
Penzance

The National Trust doesn't like Hottentot Figs growing on their land
because they have been destroying every plant they see growing on Trust
property on the Lizard.
Vandals!
--
MCC

There is an Independent newspaper article
athttp://www.independent.co.uk/environment/nature/invasive-species-bann...
which discusses Hottentot fig and other alien invaders.

It seems that it will be illegal, if the schedule is accepted, to plant
Hottentot fig even if it is growing outside your door. It clearly is
causing
competition problems in some places with native plant species. For
example
in Jersey it is smothering native heather and gorse and the same is true
in
Bournemouth where it is being removed from the cliffs to protect
indigenous
plants.

Alan
St Albans- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Blimey, it sounds like the hottentot fig is up there with scattered
showers. Will there be anything left that isn't banned? If this
attitude continues where does it leave Tresco Abbey gardens which has
smothered 30% of Tresco with alien plants? (including the hottentot
fig)

As Nick said, it grows mainly on very steep unstable south facing
cliffs, where virtually nothing else can survive, looks nice, & binds
the cliff together. Heather tends to grow more on the flatter cliff
tops the hottentot doesn't like. In fact it's very selective. It won't
grow in my garden in Penzance, yet is quite happy clinging to the
sheer wall at the garden of my cottage, where I planted it. See
www.easterling.freeserve.co.uk/ where it is in the picture just left
of the mesembrianthemum , which likes a very similar habitat.

Graham
Penzance


It is an attractive plant which is undoubtedly the reason it was planted. I
found a bit more about the schedule and it appears that the consultation is
still open. The following section regarding Hottentot fig is taken from the
Defra consultation document and since the pant is included as a
precautionary measure it is possible that it won't appear in the final
schedule.

This species impacts on coastal habitat and species due
to dense mats of leaves and shoots and is a problem on a
number of coastal sites. On the Lizard cliffs, the National
Trust has spent a considerable sum trying to control it. It is
also a problem on other cliff sites in the south-west, such
as Dawlish and Budleigh Salterton. It may have an
adverse impact on invertebrates associated with soft cliffs.
The extent of trade in this species in uncertain and it is
included in this consultation as a precautionary measure.


Alan
St Albans