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Monster plants and native species loss
ZARAH PATTISON explains how invasive plants like Himalayan balsam and rhododendron are playing havoc with ecosystems where they are introduced
Gardner Chris Brock, 43, at the National Trust's Seaton Delaval Hall in Northumberland as the Rhododendrons are in full bloom as the Bank holiday weekend approaches. Picture date: Friday May 28, 2021

Many of the first alien plants — those introduced by humans outside their natural range — to arrive in Britain were brought back by plant hunters of the Victorian era

Plants have adapted over millennia to their environment. So, we would expect alien plants to struggle in new places. But some survive a little too well, and are so devastating to local plantlife that you need a permit to grow them. 

 

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